![Sample our Communication Studies journals, sign in here to start your access, 2013 & 2014 volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5927/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Information-Science2.jpg"})
Abstract
The primary goal of this manuscript is to advance a new risk revelation model (RRM) that explains the factors that predict when people will reveal or continue to conceal secrets. We propose, among other things, that people assess the risks involved with the disclosure of secrets and that this risk assessment is what predicts people's “readiness” or willingness to reveal them. People are more willing to reveal their secrets under certain conditions: (1) for catharsis, (2) if the target needs to know/has the right to know the information, and (3) if other people (including the target) are encouraging the person to reveal the secret. Finally, the RRM assumes that people are more willing to actually reveal their secret when they have communication efficacy or they believe they have the ability to talk about it. The second goal of this manuscript was to use the RRM to predict the types of strategies people use to reveal their secrets. As a part of this process, we also generated an exhaustive list (and corresponding scale) of the strategies people use to reveal their secrets, which was the final goal of the manuscript. The findings and implications of the RRM and the strategies for revealment are discussed.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Loreen Olsen for her assistance with data collection for Study One of this manuscript.
Notes
1. This version of AMOS allows for the inclusion of categorical data as endogenous variables in models.
2. We originally also controlled for the age and gender of the participant, whether the target of the secret was a sibling or parent, as well as the length of time they had been keeping the secret. The only control variable that was significant for any of the models was the sex of the participant. However, the sex of the participant was only significant for two of the strategies for revealing the secrets and not the revelation of the secrets themselves. Therefore, in order to reduce the number of parameters to be estimated, we did not include it in any of the models.
3. For both model types, however, we included those participants who intentionally revealed their secret and those in which the target family member accidentally found out about the secret or heard about the secret through a third party, but who also indicated that they purposefully revealed the secret to others or left out information knowing that the person would probably find out about the secret (final n=100). This sample was used because in 27 of the 100 cases the actual strategies that participants used to reveal their secret involved the use of indirect strategies where they were not the ones to initiate the revelation of the secret, but they still reported purposefully using methods that they knew would probably result in the person finding out about the secret.