ABSTRACT

The severity and prevalence of fake news on social media (SM) are growing, which leave detrimental effects to businesses. Therefore, understanding consumer behavior when they are exposed to SM fake news is important. From the perspective of information asymmetry and signaling theory, this study derives that the negative effect of fake news on consumer trust is further reinforced in the presence of information asymmetry. Conversely, vendors’ signal credibility and consumers’ perceived vendor reputation diminish the effect of SM fake news on consumer trust. Our research model is empirically validated via an online survey. The results support these three moderation effects. In addition, the results indicate that consumers’ brand bias is a direct predictor of consumer purchase behavior. The findings suggest development of strategies for marketing managers and executives to mitigate the impact of SM fake news by signaling techniques. Further implications for research and practice along with future research opportunities are offered.

摘要

社交媒体 (SM) 上虚假新闻的严重性和普遍性日益严重，这给企业带来了不利影响。因此，了解消费者在接触 SM 假新闻时的行为非常重要。本研究从信息不对称和信号理论的角度出发，得出假新闻对消费者信任的负面影响在信息不对称的存在下进一步强化。相反，供应商的信号可信度和消费者感知到的供应商声誉会减弱 SM 假新闻对消费者信任的影响。我们的研究模型通过在线调查进行了实证验证。结果支持这三种调节效应。此外，结果表明消费者的品牌偏见是消费者购买行为的直接预测因素。研究结果建议营销经理和高管制定策略，通过信号技术减轻 SM 假新闻的影响。提供了对研究和实践的进一步影响以及未来的研究机会。