This research explored the perceptions of university students about the credibility of information being shared on Facebook. The data were collected using an online questionnaire from university ...students who were Facebook users. A total of 325 usable responses were received which were analyzed using SPSS. The results revealed that these students perceive information shared on Facebook as credible and of good quality. The source credibility, medium credibility, and information quality had positive and significant relationships with each other. The age, social background, and educational level of students appeared to predict the credibility of information shared on Facebook. These results are useful for information professionals and social media managers in extent to understand and cater to the demands of information consumers. These findings would also be helpful for teachers, information providers, and researchers to understand the perspectives of developing countries' students on the credibility of social media information. Furthermore, this study is supposed to be a valuable addition in existing literature which could provide guidelines for novice researchers, interested in exploring the area, especially in the context of Facebook users in a developing country's context.
•Determining the credibility of information has always been a key challenge for social media users.•Source credibility, medium credibility, and information quality are positively correlated with each other•The students with rural backgrounds were more likely to trust Facebook information than those having urban backgrounds.•The age, and education of students appeared to predict the credibility of Facekbook information.•The library administration needs to focus on advanced levels of IL Instructions.
Airlines have introduced voluntary carbon offsetting (VCO) products to encourage consumers to mitigate emissions from their air travel. However, literature has suggested a low VCO adoption partly ...because of low perceived credibility. This study investigates the impact of source credibility (expertise and trustworthiness) on air travelers’ purchase intention for aviation VCO products. This is the first study to conceptualize and test the influence of source credibility on air travelers’ carbon offsetting behavior using communication theory. Source credibility of a message directly influences air travelers’ purchase intention of aviation VCO products in a positive way. Examining source credibility components shows that trustworthiness has a significant positive impact on purchase intention, while the impact of expertise is not significant. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed, which highlight the importance of improving source credibility, and trustworthiness in particular, to encourage consumers to mitigate air travel emissions.
Information on social media platforms suffers from a relative lack of professional gatekeepers to monitor content. How to evaluate the information credibility on social media platform has become an ...important issue for today information consumers. Despite its importance, little research has empirically examined what factors influence the information credibility on social media platforms, which limits our understanding of the determinants of online information assessment. To fill this gap, this study examines the factors that influence individuals’ perceived information credibility on social media platforms. Drawing on the persuasion theory—the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM), we identify that five factors from two dimensions of credibility (medium and message credibility) are key ingredients in the online information assessment, and develop a research model that predicts individuals’ perceived information credibility on social media platforms. We test and validate the proposed model with empirical data from 135 users of the Facebook page. The results show that interactivity, medium dependency from the medium credibility dimension and argument strength from the message credibility dimension are main determinants of the information credibility. However, we did not observe any moderating effect of personal expertise between two credibility dimensions and information credibility, which suggested from ELM.
•A framework for web credibility in social Q&A, consisting of 21 criteria, is proposed.•The study examined two Q&A sites, Wikipedia Reference Desk and Stack Exchange.•Author decency and reputation ...were referenced in the policies of both Q&A sites.•Content novelty or consistency were not found in the policies of both Q&A sites.•Engaging design and moderation can be part of credibility evaluation of Q&A sites.
Social question-and-answer (Q&A) sites have the potential to serve as a useful source of online information based on their content-focused and collaborative nature. Although previous research has examined various attributes of high-quality information on social Q&A sites (e.g., best answers), relatively less attention has been paid to what affects users’ credibility assessments of information in the social Q&A context. The present study developed a social Q&A platform-specific framework for web credibility assessment, including 21 criteria under six types of web credibility, based on a literature analysis and case study of two online Q&A communities, Stack Exchange and Wikipedia Reference Desk. Using the selected sites’ policies and guidelines (n = 46) as the source of evidence, the case study revealed that content-related attributes (e.g., evidence-based, pertinence) were most frequently identified (12 of 21 criteria) as potential cues and heuristics for web credibility assessments of social Q&A sites, followed by author-related (five of 21; e.g., reputation) and design-related (four of 21; e.g., engaging design) factors. Design-related criteria were rarely included in previous models of web credibility on social Q&A or similar peer-knowledge production platforms. However, our findings showing that both Stack Exchange and Wikipedia Reference Desk have policies regarding all four design-related criteria in our framework—engaging design, moderation, design appropriateness, and ease of use—indicate the potential influences of design features on users’ web credibility assessment on social Q&A sites. Some differences emerged between the two cases, such as policies regarding the answerer's credentials or semantic accuracy that are present on Wikipedia Reference Desk but absent on Stack Exchange. Such differences in the sites’ policies reflect how they position themselves as social Q&A communities—Wikipedia, of which Wikipedia Reference Desk is a part, as an encyclopedia, and Stack Exchange as a community-based platform for learning, sharing knowledge, and building careers of users.
Fierce competition within the fashion industry compels apparel companies to formulate a variety of marketing strategies to entice consumers, enhancing their purchase intention (PI). This study ...examines the relationship between endorser credibility (EC) and brand credibility (BC) on consumers' PI of products sold by local apparel brands in Malaysia. The study also examines the mediating effect of attitude towards BC (ABC) and attitude towards brand (AB). Data analysis was based on data collected from a sample of 245 consumers in a structured survey. Structural equation modelling was used to examine the hypothesised linkages between the mentioned variables. The findings of this study demonstrate that EC and BC have significant effects on ABC, AB and PI. The bootstrapping procedure shows that ABC and AB possess a significant influence as mediators between the EC and BC in swaying consumers' PI. The findings of this study can help managers, marketing strategists, and designers within local apparel companies to improve marketing communication and brand management for sustainable growth within the fashion industry.
This study examines the effectiveness of brand endorsements in vlogs (video blogs) by assessing the role of audience participation, parasocial relationship, and valence toward vlog endorsements on ...the perceived credibility of the vlogger and brand attitudes. Four experimental conditions were created on Qualtrics based on a YouTube vlog where the endorser reviewed a few products. The data were collected using Mturk and analyzed with 203 usable responses. The findings indicate that audience participation in the vlog enhances para-social relationship with the vlogger, thus further fostering the vlogger's perceived credibility as an endorser. Additionally, the valence of the audience's attitudes toward vlog endorsements moderates the audience participation–parasocial relationship. The results show that vlogs with high levels of audience participation are more likely to increase the acceptance of the brand's endorsement via enhanced credibility perceptions among viewers. Hence, time should be spent choosing vloggers who are active in the online community. This study contributes to the understanding of the distinct characteristics of vlogs that specifically affect endorsement effectiveness. The focal role of parasocial relationship for message acceptance in the context of vlogs is also highlighted.
Electronic word of mouth influences the consumer buying behavior through the online exchange of customer opinions and experiences about commodities using social networking sites. Reviews or comments ...posted on the Internet by consumers and experts are based on their personal experiences and the evaluation and expert analysis of a product. The current study explains an overview of key elements of eWOM communication antecedents, addresses eWOM motives to analyze food products purchasing factors associated with consumer engagement. We found certain factors of eWOM that should be considered in decision making according to the model for information adoption. It revealed that consumers’ need for social interaction, economic incentives, and self-worth reinforcement are the primary drivers of eWOM involvement. However, argument quality was found to be more appealing then eWOM source credibility for food product purchasing. Practitioners should make their strategies to follow the credibility standards, trustworthy vehicles, perceived values, informative and digital channels for the enhancement of eWOM communications. eWOM communication is an emerging area, further research can be focused on the meta-analysis of relative factors, such as responses, moderators, and credibility to eWOM communication.
•Electronic word-of-mouth is an online exchange of customer opinions and experiences.•The current study addresses eWOM readership from food product purchasing perspective.•Self-worth reinforcement is significantly effective compared to other involvements.•eWOM factors for information adoption should be considered in decision-making process.
This article introduces grounded theory and places this method in its historical context when 1960s quantitative researchers wielded harsh criticisms of qualitative research. The originators of ...grounded theory, sociologists Glaser and Strauss, sought to defend the quality of qualitative research and argued that grounded theory increased its quality by providing a method of theory construction. Our major foci include: (1) introducing the logic of grounded theory, with emphasis on how researchers can use it to construct theory, (2) detailing criteria for quality in the major forms of grounded theory advocated by Glaser and Strauss and augmented by Glaser, Strauss and Corbin and refined by Corbin, and Charmaz and (3) providing an analysis of how constructivist grounded theorists Thornberg, Halldin, Bolmsjö and Petersson attended to the interviewing process, coding, and developing their theoretical concept of double victimizing. Students and researchers new to the method can use our concluding guidelines as a checklist to assess the quality of their constructivist grounded theory research.
A survey of credibility theory Liu, Baoding
Fuzzy optimization and decision making,
10/2006, Volume:
5, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
This paper provides a survey of credibility theory that is a new branch of mathematics for studying the behavior of fuzzy phenomena. Some basic concepts and fundamental theorems are introduced, ...including credibility measure, fuzzy variable, membership function, credibility distribution, expected value, variance, critical value, entropy, distance, credibility subadditivity theorem, credibility extension theorem, credibility semicontinuity law, product credibility theorem, and credibility inversion theorem. Recent developments and applications of credibility theory are summarized. A new idea on chance space and hybrid variable is also documented. PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
This paper investigates the antecedents and consequences of electronic word of mouth (eWOM) credibility using a meta-analysis technique. The extant literature provides inconsistent findings related ...to eWOM credibility. These inconsistencies are primarily because of methodological differences or heterogeneity among previous studies, which leads to confusion amongst researchers and managers. We resolve this inconsistency and provide a conclusive takeaway on the determinants and consequences of eWOM credibility by conducting a meta-analysis of the 51 primary studies comprising 124 effect sizes. Results show that both review and reviewer-related determinants have a significant positive influence on eWOM credibility while consequences, namely purchase intention, eWOM adoption, and attitude towards the product, have a significant relationship with eWOM credibility. Furthermore, results indicate that culture, product type, and platform type are the moderating factors. Results of the study can be used by researchers to address the issue of omitted variable bias, while managers can use the findings to enhance the credibility of eWOM messages on various eWOM platforms.
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