Assessing Internet Source Credibility

Little work in IT trust has extended the source credibility model from mass communications to the context of online media. Existing constructs arise from reference discipline concepts of interpersonal trust, but consumers view the Internet differently than they view individuals. We develop an Internet Source Credibility model that compares the effects of Trusting Intentions and Cosmetic Credibility on Purchase Intentions for an Internet security application provided by an Internet Service Provider. Results indicate that aspects of Internet Source Credibility are conceptually different from constructs demonstrated in both prior IS research and mass communications research. We find that the popular operationalization of trusting dispositions of buyers for the Internet medium is conceptually different from the popular IS operationalization of trust drawn from interpersonal buyer-seller interaction research. We also determine that characteristics of Internet sites are more predictive of subsequent purchase intentions than are user trusting intentions.

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