Determinants of unlawful file sharing: a scoping review

We employ a scoping review methodology to consider and assess the existing evidence on the determinants of unlawful file sharing (UFS) transparently and systematically. Based on the evidence, we build a simple conceptual framework to model the psychological decision to engage in UFS, purchase legall...

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Published inPloS one Vol. 10; no. 6; p. e0127921
Main Authors Watson, Steven James, Zizzo, Daniel John, Fleming, Piers
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Public Library of Science 01.06.2015
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
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Summary:We employ a scoping review methodology to consider and assess the existing evidence on the determinants of unlawful file sharing (UFS) transparently and systematically. Based on the evidence, we build a simple conceptual framework to model the psychological decision to engage in UFS, purchase legally or do nothing. We identify social, moral, experiential, technical, legal and financial utility sources of the decision to purchase or to file share. They interact in complex ways. We consider the strength of evidence within these areas and note patterns of results. There is good evidence for influences on UFS within each of the identified determinants, particularly for self-reported measures, with more behavioral research needed. There are also indications that the reasons for UFS differ across media; more studies exploring media other than music are required.
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Analyzed the data: PF SWJ DZ. Wrote the paper: PF SWJ DZ. Responsible for data collection: SWJ. Designed study and interpreted the data: PF SWJ DZ.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0127921