TITLE:
Analysis of Decision Logic in Reporting Behavior from the Perspective of Internet
AUTHORS:
Shengjie Deng
KEYWORDS:
Whistle-Blowing Organizational Ethics, Cost-Benefit Theory, Anonymity Effect, Rendering Effect
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.7 No.4,
April
25,
2019
ABSTRACT: The Internet, as one of the most important channels for citizens to obtain and publish information, has an increasing influence on citizens’ whistle-blowing decisions. An in-depth analysis of the impact of the Internet on potential reporters can not only clarify the mechanism of network information on individual decision-making, but also provide a better suggestion for improving China’s network supervision policy. [Method/Process] Based on cost-benefit analysis and Prospect Theory, this research analyzes the impact mechanism of Internet on the ethical judgment, utility evaluation and probability expectation of citizen reporting decision-making process. [Results/Conclusions] The impact of the Internet on reporting decisions mainly includes three stages: the potential whistleblower’s expectation of positive response to netizens strengthens their own cognition of social citizenship, thereby breaking the ethical barriers to loyalty judgments; the anonymous mechanism reduces the potential whistleblower’s estimate of the risk cost; and the rendering effect of online news increases the expectations of potential whistleblowers for the probability of reporting success.