Universität zu Köln

Silva, Rita R. ORCID: 0000-0003-3370-295X, Chrobot, Nina ORCID: 0000-0002-5344-7506, Newman, Eryn ORCID: 0000-0001-8663-7173, Schwarz, Norbert ORCID: 0000-0002-8868-7067 and Topolinski, Sascha ORCID: 0000-0001-9295-3463 (2017). Make It Short and Easy: Username Complexity Determines Trustworthiness Above and Beyond Objective Reputation. Front. Psychol., 8. LAUSANNE: FRONTIERS MEDIA SA. ISSN 1664-1078

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Abstract

Can the mere name of a seller determine his trustworthiness in the eye of the consumer? In 10 studies (total N = 608) we explored username complexity and trustworthiness of eBay seller profiles. Name complexity was manipulated through variations in username pronounceability and length. These dimensions had strong, independent effects on trustworthiness, with sellers with easy-to-pronounce or short usernames being rated as more trustworthy than sellers with difficult-to-pronounce or long usernames, respectively. Both effects were repeatedly found even when objective information about seller reputation was available. We hypothesized the effect of name complexity on trustworthiness to be based on the experience of high vs. low processing fluency, with little awareness of the underlying process. Supporting this, participants could not correct for the impact of username complexity when explicitly asked to do so. Three alternative explanations based on attributions of the variations in name complexity to seller origin (ingroup vs. outgroup), username generation method (seller personal choice vs. computer algorithm) and age of the eBay profiles (10 years vs. 1 year) were tested and ruled out. Finally, we show that manipulating the ease of reading product descriptions instead of the sellers' names also impacts the trust ascribed to the sellers.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Silva, Rita R. UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0003-3370-295X UNSPECIFIED Chrobot, Nina UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0002-5344-7506 UNSPECIFIED Newman, Eryn UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0001-8663-7173 UNSPECIFIED Schwarz, Norbert UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0002-8868-7067 UNSPECIFIED Topolinski, Sascha UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0001-9295-3463 UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-207796
DOI:	10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02200
Journal or Publication Title:	Front. Psychol.
Volume:	8
Date:	2017
Publisher:	FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
Place of Publication:	LAUSANNE
ISSN:	1664-1078
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Human Sciences Faculty of Management, Economy and Social Sciences
Divisions:	Faculty of Human Sciences > Department Psychologie Center of Excellence C-SEB
Subjects:	Psychology
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language MERE EXPOSURE; PERCEPTUAL FLUENCY; PROCESSING FLUENCY; ONLINE TRUST; IMPULSIVE DETERMINANTS; BRAND-NAME; JUDGMENTS; INFORMATION; PSYCHOLOGY; PRODUCT Multiple languages Psychology, Multidisciplinary Multiple languages
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/20779