A 2020 perspective on "How knowledge contributor characteristics and reputation affect user payment decisions in paid Q&A? An empirical analysis from the perspective of trust theory"

Abstract Knowledge sharing economy has been revolutionizing the way people obtain knowledge. As the foundation of sustainable development of sharing economy, factors influencing trust are worth studying, especially in paid Q&A since users (buyer) barely have no information about the knowledge commodity (answer) except for the price. From the perspective of knowledge contributor, the previous article has examined the role of knowledge contributor characteristics and reputation on trust and user pay decisions in paid Q&A, and we have highlighted the importance of trust in knowledge sharing economy. Now, with massive data in sharing economy platforms, researchers have the opportunity to take advantage of advanced methods like text analysis, sentiment analysis, computer vision and deep learning to uncover the effect of self-reported information, facial features, and social influence on trust. Moreover, in combination with neuroscience, researchers can reveal the mechanism of how trust-related factors affect payment decisions more objectively and accurately.