Examining the Effect of Positive Online Reviews on Consumers' Decision Making

Lin Xiao, Yuan Li

OAI: oai:igi-global.com:227391 • DOI: 10.4018/JGIM.2019070109

Online reviews play an important role in consumers' decision making. However, limited studies have been conducted to understand the effects of online reviews on consumers' behavior. Drawing upon the Elaboration Likelihood Model and the valence framework, a research model was developed to investigate the perceived benefits and potential risks brought by positive online reviews. The moderating effect of review skepticism was also examined. Data were collected through on online survey based on consumers' perceptions of the positive reviews from restaurants and food businesses and analyzed with partial least squares. The results indicated that argument quality and source credibility influence information usefulness, which further influences consumers' behavioral intentions. The influence of positive online reviews on perceived risk differs between high and low skepticism consumers. This research offers a more in-depth understanding of consumer information processing in an online context and benefits practitioners by allowing them to better understand consumers.

Global Information Technology Computer Science and Information Technology IT Research and Theory