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How credible are online product reviews? The effects of self-generated and system-generated cues on source credibility evaluation

Computers in Human BehaviorPublished 12 November 2015
Shan Yan
Citations161
SJR quartileQ1
SJR score2.92
SNIP3.35

TL;DR

Self-generated cues and system- generated cues were found to have different roles in source credibility evaluation and perceived similarity has a positive effect on trustworthiness and a negative effect on expertise.

Abstract

Online product reviews are important information sources in the consumer decision-making process. Despite the importance of online reviews in product evaluation, there is an emerging need to address the role of self-generated and system-generated information in enhancing the credibility of online reviews. Two experiments were conducted to examine the topic. Study 1 found significant interactions between perceived similarity and source reputation on the evaluation of trustworthiness and expertise. Study 2 extended the findings of study 1 by examining how argument quality influenced credibility perception under different levels of similarity and source reputation.

Keywords

Social Sciences