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What’s in a Name? The Impact of Reviewer Identification on Language and Helpfulness of Reviews

Fri, May 25, 9:30 to 10:45, Hilton Old Town, Floor: M, Haydn

Abstract

For online reviews to serve as decision-making aids, users have to first perceive reviews to be helpful. However, unlike face-to-face communication, where people are identifiable, consumers in the online shopping context have to rely on reviews that are not always accompanied of personal profile information. Before posting reviews, reviewers could identify themselves by disclosing profile information. The impact of this disclosure on review readers has been demonstrated, but little attention has been given to the impact on review writers. Two experiments (N=89 and N=144) examined how disclosure of review identification elements influences language abstraction in reviews. Moreover, building on literature about self-presentation and construal level theory, we show that the relation between reviewer identification and perceived helpfulness of reviews is mediated by language abstraction. When reviewers disclose personal profile information, they will use more concrete language (i.e. words that refer to specific product features), which is then perceived as helpful.

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