The impact of interface usability on trust in Web retailers

A study where 66 subjects were asked to perform some predefined book purchasing task in a series of sites with varying interface quality found a strong relationship between interface quality and trust was found and some components of user interface quality were more important than others.

Abstract

Web retailing is expected to grow at aggressive rates in future years, but lack of trust on the part of potential customers can impede this growth. So, as transactions through the Internet develop and mature, success will largely be dependent on gaining and maintaining this trust. It has been suggested that the quality of the user interface of the Web site is a determinant of the initial establishment of trust. Describes a study where 66 subjects were asked to perform some predefined book purchasing task in a series of sites with varying interface quality. A strong relationship between interface quality and trust was found and some components of user interface quality were more important than others. Discusses the implications for Web site design.