Web Credibility Research

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Web Credibility Research

• A Method for Online Experiments
• Early Study Results

B.J. Fogg, Jonathan Marshall, Tami Kameda, Joshua
Solomon, Akshay Rangnekar, John Boyd, Bonny Brown
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Why Study Web Credibility?

• Many Web sites contain low-quality information.
• User experience is affected by perceived
  credibility of Web sites.
• Research was lacking in this area.
• No large-scale quantitative study.

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Research Goals

• Develop a method for running controlled
  experiments online.
• Study how specific Web site factors affect
  perception of Web credibility.

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The Method

• We developed a system for online research.
• The Vividence newsletter invited subscribers to
  participate in the study at www.webresearch.org.
• The participants were randomly assigned to an
  experimental condition.

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Step 1
Informed Consent
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Step 2
View Article
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Step 3
AnswerQuestions
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Study 1 Banner Ads

• How do banner ads change perception of Web site
  credibility?
• Low reputation ad vs. high reputation ad.
• 164 participants.

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The Banner Ads
Low Reputability Ad
High Reputability Ad
No Ad
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Study 1 Some results
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Study 1 Conclusions

• Banner ads influence how people perceive Web
  information. They are NOT transparent to the
  user.
• Low-reputation banner ads reduce perceived
  credibility.

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Study 2 Attribution

• How do specific attribution elements affect
  perceived credibility of Web content?
• Study 2a Author photographs.
• Formal photo, casual photo, no photo.
• Study 2b Author names.
• Formal name, casual name, no name.
• 484 participants

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Study 2a Results
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Study 2a Conclusions

• Author photographs have significant effect on the
  perceived credibility of an article.
• Specifically, formal author photograph increased
  content credibility compared to casual author
  photograph.

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Study 2b Results
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Study 2b Conclusions

• Authors name has a limited effect on perceived
  credibility of article.
• Article with casual byline - by Bobby Johnson -
  perceived as more believable than formal byline-
  by Robert M. Johnson, M.D.
• No obvious explanation for this result.

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Summary

• Online Research Method
• Ability to run empirical studies quickly.
• Accurate data retrieval.
• Global reach for participation.

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Summary

• Effects on Web Content
• Certain banner ads can reduce Web content
  credibility.
• Use reputable ads or no ads at all.
• Author photographs are more influential than
  author names.
• Make sure photographs dont hurt you.

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Further Studies

• Were currently outlining a series of Web
  credibility studies for 2001.
• We welcome input from Vividence.

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Wrap Up

• Thank you, Vividence, for your cooperation.
• We brought copies of our published papers to
  share with you.
• For ongoing information, please visit
• www.webcredibility.org