Does source matter? Examining source effects in online product reviews

Drawing on the literature about online source classification, source credibility, and attribution theory, this study examines how the source of a product review influences people's product judgments. Results from a between-subjects experiment suggest that the perceived source of a message (the visible source) impacts how people evaluate actual reviewer (the original source) and product. Reviews made by regular Internet users (visible sources) lead to greater trust in the actual reviewer (the original source), compared to product reviews from product makers. Results further indicate that visible sources play a crucial role in helping people judge the credibility of online reviews. Particularly, the identity of a visible source is used to consider the intention of original source of the message, which in turn determines message persuasiveness. The authors conclude that evaluating the intentions of online reviewers is a critical antecedent to forming opinions about online reviews and products.

[1]  Richard M. Sparkman.  The Discounting Principle in the Perception of Advertising , 1982 .

[2]  S. Lirtzman,et al.  Credibility of Sources of Communication on Products' Safety Hazards , 1986, Psychological reports.

[3]  Sammy W. Pearson,et al.  Development of a Tool for Measuring and Analyzing Computer User Satisfaction , 1983 .

[4]  E. E. Jones,et al.  From Acts To Dispositions The Attribution Process In Person Perception1 , 1965 .

[5]  Mira Lee,et al.  Electronic word of mouth (eWOM) , 2009 .

[6]  D. A. Kenny,et al.  The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. , 1986, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[7]  J. Cacioppo,et al.  Central and Peripheral Routes to Advertising Effectiveness: The Moderating Role of Involvement , 1983 .

[8]  B. Ratchford,et al.  The impact of the internet on consumers' use of information sources for automobiles : A re-inquiry , 2007 .

[9]  Chanthika Pornpitakpan.  The Persuasiveness of Source Credibility: A Critical Review of Five Decades' Evidence , 2004 .

[10]  H. H. Johnson,et al.  Relationship between authoritarianism and attitude change as a function of source credibility and type of communication. , 1969, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[11]  M. Holbrook,et al.  Assessing the Role of Emotions as Mediators of Consumer Responses to Advertising , 1987 .

[12]  S. Chaiken,et al.  Heuristic processing can bias systematic processing: effects of source credibility, argument ambiguity, and task importance on attitude judgment. , 1994, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[13]  Kenneth G. DeBono,et al.  Source expertise, source attractiveness, and the processing of persuasive information: A functional approach. , 1988 .

[14]  Ling Liu,et al.  Do online reviews affect product sales? The role of reviewer characteristics and temporal effects , 2008, Inf. Technol. Manag..

[15]  S. Shyam Sundar,et al.  Effects of Online Health Sources on Credibility and Behavioral Intentions , 2010, Commun. Res..

[16]  Roobina Ohanian.  The impact of celebrity spokespersons' perceived image on consumers' intention to purchase. , 1991 .

[17]  V. Folkes.  Recent Attribution Research in Consumer Behavior: A Review and New Directions , 1988 .

[18]  Huaping Chen,et al.  Credibility of Electronic Word-of-Mouth: Informational and Normative Determinants of On-line Consumer Recommendations , 2009, Int. J. Electron. Commer..

[19]  Roobina Ohanian.  Construction and Validation of a Scale to Measure Celebrity Endorsers' Perceived Expertise, Trustworthiness, and Attractiveness , 1990 .

[20]  J. Mowen,et al.  Multiple sources in advertising appeals: When product endorsers are paid by the advertising sponsor , 1994 .

[21]  C. I. Hovland,et al.  The Influence of Source Credibility on Communication Effectiveness , 1951 .

[22]  Miriam J. Metzger,et al.  Social and Heuristic Approaches to Credibility Evaluation Online , 2010 .

[23]  S. Sen,et al.  Why are you telling me this? An examination into negative consumer reviews on the Web , 2007 .

[24]  J. Cacioppo,et al.  Personal involvement as a determinant of argument based persuasion , 1981 .

[25]  C. Nass,et al.  Conceptualizing Sources in Online News , 2001 .

[26]  D. R. Danielson,et al.  How do users evaluate the credibility of Web sites?: a study with over 2,500 participants , 2003, DUX '03.

[27]  N. Anderson.  Integration theory and attitude change. , 1971 .

[28]  H. Kelley.  The processes of causal attribution. , 1973 .

[29]  Wayne D. Hoyer,et al.  An Integrative Framework for Understanding Two-sided Persuasion , 1994 .

[30]  Clinton Amos,et al.  Exploring the relationship between celebrity endorser effects and advertising effectiveness , 2008 .

[31]  Lawrence S. Wrightsman,et al.  Wallace supporters and adherence to "law and order." , 1969 .

[32]  Miriam J. Metzger.  Making sense of credibility on the Web: Models for evaluating online information and recommendations for future research , 2007 .

[33]  B. Erdogan.  Celebrity Endorsement: A Literature Review , 1999 .

[34]  M. Heesacker,et al.  Field dependence and attitude change: Source credibility can alter persuasion by affecting message-relevant thinking , 1983 .

[35]  A. Celeste Farr,et al.  The Effect of Race and Expertise on Source Credibility Ratings While Considering Resumes , 2007 .

[36]  Sejung Marina Choi,et al.  CONGRUENCE EFFECTS IN SPONSORSHIP: The Mediating Role of Sponsor Credibility and Consumer Attributions of Sponsor Motive , 2004 .