Understanding the Antecedents of Self-Disclosure in Malaysian Social Media Use

Lim, Poh Yee (2026) Understanding the Antecedents of Self-Disclosure in Malaysian Social Media Use. Masters thesis, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology.

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Abstract

The rapid growth of social media in Malaysia has revolutionized online communication, interaction, and self-expression, but it has also raised concerns about data misuse, privacy, and cyberthreats. Many users continue to participate in self-disclosure that could expose them to unexpected consequences despite increasing awareness of digital threats. This study integrates Relational Capital Theory, Communication Privacy Management (CPM) Theory and Privacy Calculus Theory to examine the antecedents of self-disclosure in Malaysian social media use. The study uses a quantitative, cross-sectional approach to examine how self-disclosure is influenced by trust, the norm of reciprocity and perceived control as well as the mediating role of perceived risk and the moderating impact of privacy concern. Convenience sampling was used to collect 513 valid responses from Malaysian social media users, which were subsequently evaluated by partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis. The findings indicate that trust, the norm of reciprocity and perceived control significantly decrease perceived risk, which has a negative impact on self-disclosure. The willingness of users to reveal primarily depends on their evaluation of potential risks rather than only relational or social motives, as evidenced by the finding that perceived risk is a strong mediator. However, the relationship between perceived risk and self-disclosure was not significantly moderated by privacy concerns, indicating that disclosure may not be discouraged by privacy concern alone unless there is strong perceived risk. Overall, the findings have practical implications for platform designers, digital educators and legislators seeking to promote safer and more responsible social media behaviors, as well as deeper theoretical insights into the social and psychological mechanisms driving online self-disclosure.