Excellence in Research - The Impact of Cybersecurity Policies on Employees' Efficiency and Performance Predictability

该项目是在一所历史悠久的黑人大学进行社会网络安全研究。正在调查的研究问题是网络安全程序如何影响现代组织的效率。具体的研究问题是：（1）网络安全政策的实施对员工的工作效率有什么影响？以及（2）组织内的网络安全协议对员工对安全漏洞的反应的可预测性有什么影响？这项工作很重要，因为网络安全正日益成为工人生活中不可磨灭的一部分。这种现代工作场所的现实包括但不限于网络安全从业人员。最后，社会网络安全项目非常重要，因为它将在大学的地理研究足迹内与当地组织建立关系。项目团队使用定性深入访谈来收集员工对他们的效率和绩效可预测性的意见。访谈是围绕一个网络安全应用程序构建的，该应用程序是对工作场所的模拟，每个受访者将在深入访谈之前浏览。多地点配额抽样被用来从弗吉尼亚州汉普顿路地区的几家公司招募小规模的员工。内容分析将用于理解和传播定性访谈的数据。来自社会学，商业和网络安全组织课程的学生将被招募来试点测试面试时间表。该项目将通过展示网络安全如何受到员工的约束和塑造，为社会组织理论文献做出贡献。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project is to conduct socio-cybersecurity research at a Historically Black University. The research problem being investigated is how cybersecurity procedures affect the efficiency of modern organizations. The specific research questions are: (1) What impact does the implementation of cybersecurity policies have on employees’ efficiency? and (2) What impact do cybersecurity protocols within an organization have on the predictability of employees’ responses to security vulnerabilities? This work is important because increasingly, cybersecurity is becoming an indelible part of workers’ lives. This modern workplace reality includes but goes beyond cybersecurity practitioners. Finally, the socio-cybersecurity project is important because of the relationships that will be fostered with local organizations within the university’s geographical research footprint.The project team uses qualitative in-depth interviews to gather employees’ opinions about their efficiency and performance predictability. The interviews are built around a cybersecurity application that is a simulation of a workplace, which each respondent will navigate before the in-depth interviews. Multi-site quota sampling is used to recruit small groups of employees from about several companies across the Hampton Roads area in Virginia. Content analysis will be used to understand and disseminate data from the qualitative interviews. Students from organization courses in sociology, business, and cybersecurity will be recruited to pilot-test the interview schedule. This project will contribute to the social organizational theory literature by demonstrating how cybersecurity is both constrained and shaped by employees.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.