Fellow Travellers: What do users trust on recommender websites? A case study of TripAdvisor.com

Abstract

This study used TripAdvisor.com to explore the role of trust in decision-making in an information-rich environment. It is established that information helps to overcome uncertainty; and when it is insufficient, trust takes over to allow for action. The role of trust when information is abundant is less explored. The study integrated dimensions and forms of trust, self-efficacy, as well as the technological aspects and social identification that meet on Web 2.0. It found that users do not trust the site implicitly, any more than they trust individual reviewers. Rather, they rely on themselves to use it along with other sources to overcome risk to make a decision. This study suggests that the role of trust may be different in information-rich environments. It also suggests that TripAdvisor use can involve an `apomediary effect? in which technological features and social identification combine in some circumstances to reduce information to a manageable level.