Information Quality and System Quality in Online Communities: an Empirical Investigation

As the number of online communities (OCs) continues to increase, it is critical for an OC to satisfy users’ needs in order to encourage and retain their voluntary participation and contribution over time. Consistent with the IS Success model, we argue that information quality and system quality are two important antecedents of OC user satisfaction. However, little IS research has systematically examined quality issues and their impacts in the OC context. To bridge the gap, we empirically investigate the impacts of information quality and system quality on user satisfaction in one of the largest travel OCs. Based on the IS quality literature, we develop a measurement model by incorporating different dimensions of information quality and system quality. Given the uniqueness of OCs, this study enriches our understanding of why and how information and system quality matter in an OC. It also provides insights for OC design and management.