Deceptive Patterns
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Dark Patterns to Nudge Them All? A Theory-Informed Experimental Examination of Individuals’ Susceptibility to DPs in e-Commerce

Author
T. Schilling, A. Sergeeva
Date
18 May 2026
Publisher
International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction
Focus
HCI & Psychology
Category
Academic Scholar

While Dark Patterns—interface design strategies that influence users’ choices to increase companies’ profit or data collection—are widely discussed in both legislation and academia, little is known about the characteristics that make people more or less vulnerable to these designs.

While Dark Patterns—interface design strategies that influence users’ choices to increase companies’ profit or data collection—are widely discussed in both legislation and academia, little is known about the characteristics that make people more or less vulnerable to these designs. Personality traits shape many life outcomes and choices, including potentially harmful buying behaviors (e.g., impulsive purchases). Because Dark Patterns are known to affect users’ decision-making, it is important to understand the role of personality traits in susceptibility to Dark Patterns, however, current research on the intersection between Dark Patterns and personality traits is limited. To address this gap, we developed a theoretical framework linking personality traits to Dak Patterns susceptibility and tested it in a preregistered experiment (N = 964).