How does the valence of online consumer reviews matter in consumer decision making? Differences between search goods and experience goods

Existing empirical studies have drawn inconsistent conclusions about the effect of electronic word-of-mouth valence on consumer decision making. Based on attribution theory and prospect theory, this study attempts to explain this discrepancy through exploring how product type moderates the impact of online consumer reviews valence. Our results from a 2 (Positive reviews vs. Negative reviews) x 2 (Search goods vs. Experience goods) experiment design show that the effect of online consumer reviews valence is asymmetrically moderated by product type: The effect of positive reviews is greater for search goods than that for experience goods, whereas the effects of negative reviews have no significant difference between these two types of goods; And the impact difference between negative reviews and positive reviews is greater for experience goods than for search goods. Our study not only confirms the moderating role of product type, but also further explores how product type moderates the effect of reviews valence. We also provide implications for e-marketers.