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The evolution of trust in Airbnb: A case of home rental

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  • Ert, Eyal
  • Fleischer, Aliza

Abstract

Airbnb, a leader of P2P accommodation markets, has acknowledged that “trust is what makes Airbnb work” and has implemented several trust indicators over the years: reputation system, impression formation, and certification. We evaluate the changes in these indicators over time: 1. the modification of the reputation system, 2. the removal of hosts’ photos from the main search screen, and 3. the introduction of the Superhost program. We find that the change of the rating system was associated with a small, yet significant, reduction in ratings, that the removal of the hosts’ photos might have eliminated the price premium of trustworthy images, and that Superhost certification involves a price premium, but does not seem to compensate for established reputation.

Suggested Citation

  • Ert, Eyal & Fleischer, Aliza, 2019. "The evolution of trust in Airbnb: A case of home rental," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 279-287.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:anture:v:75:y:2019:i:c:p:279-287
    DOI: 10.1016/j.annals.2019.01.004
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    3. Löw, Franziska & Lüth, Hendrik, 2021. "Quality Signals on Airbnb: A Hedonic Regression Approach," Working Paper 189/2021, Helmut Schmidt University, Hamburg.
    4. Ko, Guihan & Amankwah-Amoah, Joseph & Appiah, Gloria & Larimo, Jorma, 2022. "Non-market strategies and building digital trust in sharing economy platforms," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 28(1).
    5. David Dann & Raphael Müller & Ann-Catherin Werner & Timm Teubner & Alexander Mädche & Christoph Spengel, 2022. "How do tax compliance labels impact sharing platform consumers? An empirical study on the interplay of trust, moral, and intention to book," Information Systems and e-Business Management, Springer, vol. 20(3), pages 409-439, September.
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    7. Bresciani, Stefano & Ferraris, Alberto & Santoro, Gabriele & Premazzi, Katia & Quaglia, Roberto & Yahiaoui, Dorra & Viglia, Giampaolo, 2021. "The seven lives of Airbnb. The role of accommodation types," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    8. Scerri, Madalyn A. & Presbury, Rajka, 2020. "Airbnb Superhosts' talk in commercial homes," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    9. Karl Taeuscher & Eric Yanfei Zhao & Michael Lounsbury, 2022. "Categories and narratives as sources of distinctiveness: Cultural entrepreneurship within and across categories," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(10), pages 2101-2134, October.
    10. Cha, Moon-Kyung & Lee, Hee-Jung, 2022. "Does social trust always explain the active use of sharing-based programs?: A cross-national comparison of Indian and U.S. rideshare consumers," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    11. Chen, Yujia & Tussyadiah, Iis P., 2021. "Service failure in peer-to-peer accommodation," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    12. Yeon, Jihwan & Song, Hyoung Ju & Lee, Seoki, 2020. "Impact of short-term rental regulation on hotel industry: a difference-in-differences approach," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    13. Dolnicar, Sara, 2019. "A review of research into paid online peer-to-peer accommodation," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 248-264.
    14. Lim, Weng Marc & Yap, Sheau-Fen & Makkar, Marian, 2021. "Home sharing in marketing and tourism at a tipping point: What do we know, how do we know, and where should we be heading?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 534-566.
    15. Gössling, Stefan & Larson, Mia & Pumputis, Aurimas, 2021. "Mutual surveillance on Airbnb," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    16. Hamilton, Kathy & Hewer, Paul & Tonner, Andrea, 2022. "Authoritative performances of care in home exchange," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    17. Sengupta, Pooja & Biswas, Baidyanath & Kumar, Ajay & Shankar, Ravi & Gupta, Shivam, 2021. "Examining the predictors of successful Airbnb bookings with Hurdle models: Evidence from Europe, Australia, USA and Asia-Pacific cities," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 538-554.
    18. Meijian Yang & Enjun Xia, 2021. "A Systematic Literature Review on Pricing Strategies in the Sharing Economy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-28, August.
    19. Sakib, Md Nazmus & Hasan, Fuad & Al-Emran, Md & Felix, Reto, 2023. "A cross-cultural analysis of ridesharing intentions and compliance with COVID-19 health guidelines: The roles of social trust, fear of COVID-19, and trust-in-God," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).

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