[Air-L] The impact of online platform transparency of information on consumers’ choices

[Giuseppe A. Veltri]

FYI

Paper available here in Behavioural Public Policy Journal

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/behavioural-public-policy/article/impact-of-online-platform-transparency-of-information-on-consumers-choices/1D7F0662612755FE18E9694DA9E95BF3#.XutyjEjWVUY.twitter

Abstract
Millions of Europeans use online platforms with almost blind trust that the
platforms operate in the interests of the consumer. However, the
presentation of search results, transparency about contractual parties and
the publication of user reviews that contribute to the value of online
platforms in Europe's Single Digital Market also pose significant risks
regarding consumer protection and market competition. The current study
investigates how enhanced information transparency in online platforms
might affect consumers’ trust in online activities and choice behaviour.
Following an exploratory qualitative study, three online discrete-choice
experiments were conducted with representative samples of 1200 respondents
in each of four countries: Germany, Poland, Spain and the UK. The objective
of the experiments was to test whether increased transparency in the
presentation of online search information, details of contractual entities
and the implications for consumer protection and user reviews and ratings
would affect consumers’ choices. The results show that increased online
transparency increases the probability of product selection. A comparison
across the four countries found that the similarities in responses to
online transparency were far greater than the differences. The findings are
discussed in relation to the biases and heuristics identified in
behavioural science. In conclusion, recommendations are made to increase
online transparency, which the empirical evidence of this study shows would
benefit both users and platform operators.

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Giuseppe A. Veltri
Personal Webpage
<https://sites.google.com/a/unitn.it/giuseppe-a-veltri/home>