ABSTRACT
The public is uncomfortable providing personal information, or having their personal information used for secondary purposes, if they do not trust the organization collecting and using the data. For example, individuals often cite privacy and confidentiality concerns and lack of trust in researchers as reasons for not wanting their health information used for research [18]. One study found that the greatest predictor of patients’ willingness to share information with researchers was the level of trust they placed in the researchers themselves [19]. A number of U.S. studies have shown that attitudes toward privacy and confidentiality of the census are predictive of people’s participation [20, 21], and also that there is a positive association between belief in the confidentiality of census records and the level of trust one has in the government [22]. These trust effects are amplified when the information collected is of a sensitive nature [22, 23].
