Examination of the Factors that Influence Teleworkers’ Willingness to Comply with Information Security Guidelines

With the increased use of teleworkers, it is important to understand how teleworker attitudes are related to the willingness to accept and follow guidelines that maintain data security in the telework environment. The objective of the study was to evaluate the application of the Theory of Planned Behavior and the idea of subjective norms as a means of explaining teleworker compliance in using information technology (IT) security guidelines in a telework environment. A sample of 150 respondents who considered themselves formal and informal teleworkers and were eligible for membership in The Telework Exchange completed an original Teleworker Security Survey. Descriptive and linear regression analyses were used to determine relationships existing between willingness to follow organizational teleworker data information security guidelines and practices. The findings of the analyses demonstrated that Personal Attitude, Social Pressure, and Sense of Control represented a weak to moderate model for explaining teleworker willingness to follow an organization’s security guidelines. This study is significant to organizations with teleworkers by identifying insight on attitudes of teleworkers regarding data security, sense of control and sense of responsibility teleworkers have regarding the confidentiality and integrity of data, and the intent of teleworkers to follow security protocols in a telework environment.