Wendy Norris's List: Credibility

Little of the work on online credibility assessment has considered how the information-seeking process figures into the final evaluation of content people encounter. Using unique data about how a diverse group of young adults looks for and evaluates Web content, our paper makes contributions to existing literature by highlighting factors beyond site features in how users assess credibility. We find that the process by which users arrive at a site is an important component of how they judge the final destination. In particular, search context, branding and routines, and a reliance on those in one's networks play important roles in online information-seeking and evaluation. We also discuss that users differ considerably in their skills when it comes to judging online content credibility.

""News is a process, not a finished product, and the Web is making that perfectly clear these days. Trust in the process is different than trust in the finished product, and this is doubtless impacting overall views of trust in the press.""

"All online media were seen as only moderately credible, with blogs and online newspapers being rated higher than online broadcast and cable news. Reliance on the online source proved to be the strongest predictor of whether it was judged as credible. "

"As part of the Persuasive Technology Lab, we are investigating such questions as:

* What causes people to believe (or not believe) what they find on the Web?
* What strategies do users employ in evaluating the credibility of online sources?
* What contextual and design factors influence these assessments and strategies?
* How and why are credibility evaluation processes on the Web different from those made in face-to-face human interaction, or in other offline contexts?"