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Online Information Sharing About Risks: The Case of Organic Food

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  • Femke Hilverda
  • Margôt Kuttschreuter

Abstract

Individuals have to make sense of an abundance of information to decide whether or not to purchase certain food products. One of the means to sense‐making is information sharing. This article reports on a quantitative study examining online information sharing behavior regarding the risks of organic food products. An online survey among 535 respondents was conducted in the Netherlands to examine the determinants of information sharing behavior, and their relationships. Structural equation modeling was applied to test both the measurement model and the structural model. Results showed that the intention to share information online about the risks of organic food was low. Conversations and email were the preferred channels to share information; of the social media Facebook stood out. The developed model was found to provide an adequate description of the data. It explained 41% of the variance in information sharing. Injunctive norms and outcome expectancies were most important in predicting online information sharing, followed by information‐related determinants. Risk‐perception‐related determinants showed a significant, but weak, positive relationship with online information sharing. Implications for authorities communicating on risks associated with food are addressed.

Suggested Citation

  • Femke Hilverda & Margôt Kuttschreuter, 2018. "Online Information Sharing About Risks: The Case of Organic Food," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 38(9), pages 1904-1920, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:wly:riskan:v:38:y:2018:i:9:p:1904-1920
    DOI: 10.1111/risa.12980
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    2. Cabeza-Ramírez, L. Javier & Sánchez-Cañizares, Sandra M. & Santos-Roldán, Luna M. & Fuentes-García, Fernando J., 2022. "Impact of the perceived risk in influencers' product recommendations on their followers' purchase attitudes and intention," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    3. Piper Liping Liu & Vincent Huang & Melannie Zhan & Xinshu Zhao, 2023. ""Nice You Share in Return": Informational Sharing, Reciprocal Sharing, and Life Satisfaction Amid COVID-19 Pandemic," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 165(2), pages 453-471, January.
    4. Wiese, Melanie & van der Westhuizen, Liezl-Marié, 2024. "Impact of planned power outages (load shedding) on consumers in developing countries: Evidence from South Africa," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    5. Meng Zhang & Yang Gao & Minghe Sun & Datian Bi, 2020. "Influential Factors and the Realization Mechanism of Sustainable Information-Sharing in Virtual Communities from a Knowledge Fermenting Perspective," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(4), pages 21582440209, November.
    6. Kayode Ajewole & Elliott Dennis & Ted C. Schroeder & Jason Bergtold, 2021. "Relative valuation of food and non‐food risks with a comparison to actuarial values: A best–worst approach," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 52(6), pages 927-943, November.
    7. Nina Veflen & Joachim Scholderer & Solveig Langsrud, 2020. "Situated Food Safety Risk and the Influence of Social Norms," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 40(5), pages 1092-1110, May.
    8. Judith I. M. de Groot & Elisa Schweiger & Iljana Schubert, 2020. "Social Influence, Risk and Benefit Perceptions, and the Acceptability of Risky Energy Technologies: An Explanatory Model of Nuclear Power Versus Shale Gas," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 40(6), pages 1226-1243, June.
    9. Han Lv & Xueyan Cao & Shiqi Chen & Liqun Liu, 2022. "Public and Private Information Sharing under “New Normal” of COVID-19: Understanding the Roles of Habit and Outcome Expectation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-26, May.

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