Start Date
12-16-2013
Description
Online product-related opinion sharing is prevalent and effective in shaping consumers’ purchasing decisions. With the proliferation of social networks embedded in online rating platforms, users participate in opinion sharing activities in a socially enriched manner. This study unpacks social influences in online rating behaviors. We differentiate between the influences from two types of online social relationships: informant relationship and friend relationship. Each relationship triggers different social mechanisms and results in different impacts on rating decisions. Based on a two-stage model, we investigate the social relationship-specific influences in rating posting and evaluation stage. The model is empirically estimated using data from a popular Chinese social-networking website. Our findings suggest the social influences from informant and friend relationship are distinctive and interdependent. Online friends’ ratings exert conformity pressure while informants’ ratings crowd out new ratings. This study extends our understanding about the social dynamics in online opinion sharing.
Recommended Citation
Feng, Yue (Katherine); Wang, Chong (Alex); and Zhang, Michael, "The Impacts of Informant and Friend Relationships on Online Opinion Sharing" (2013). ICIS 2013 Proceedings. 9.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2013/proceedings/EconomicsOfIS/9
The Impacts of Informant and Friend Relationships on Online Opinion Sharing
Online product-related opinion sharing is prevalent and effective in shaping consumers’ purchasing decisions. With the proliferation of social networks embedded in online rating platforms, users participate in opinion sharing activities in a socially enriched manner. This study unpacks social influences in online rating behaviors. We differentiate between the influences from two types of online social relationships: informant relationship and friend relationship. Each relationship triggers different social mechanisms and results in different impacts on rating decisions. Based on a two-stage model, we investigate the social relationship-specific influences in rating posting and evaluation stage. The model is empirically estimated using data from a popular Chinese social-networking website. Our findings suggest the social influences from informant and friend relationship are distinctive and interdependent. Online friends’ ratings exert conformity pressure while informants’ ratings crowd out new ratings. This study extends our understanding about the social dynamics in online opinion sharing.