Reducing user avoidance of sponsored search results : The effects of social influence cues

Whether and how social influence cues can reduce users' avoidance of sponsored search results (SSRs) remain a puzzling and critical issue in IS research. This study employed an implicit theory perspective to investigate the effects of social influence cues on SSR avoidance. This theoretical perspective suggests that in e-commerce context, SSR avoidance is driven by various implicit theories of consumers regarding sponsored products (e.g., "sponsored products must be of low popularity or quality"). Through a laboratory experiment, we observed a matching effect that a social influence cue could reduce users' behavioral and psychological SSR avoidance when the cue (e.g., high ratings on the quality of sponsored products) directly addressed the active implicit theory (e.g., a concern on the product quality). In addition, social influence cues could also reduce consumers' attentional SSR avoidance. This study advances our understanding of the effects of social influence cues on consumers' judgment and behavior.