Quansheng Wang
ABSTRACT
The proliferation of the Internet and online discussion forums has greatly increased the number and transmission speed of online rumors in China. To take more effective measures to counter the negative effects of these rumors, researchers and companies should understand the underlying mechanism of online rumor transmission. Therefore, this study take an early initiative by focusing on consumers' arguments in online discussion forums on the rumors and their effects on an individual's belief in rumor and belief change, which is guided by the informational cascade and group polarization theories. In turn, belief and belief change on the online rumor lead to intention to spread the rumor. A lab experiment was conducted to test research hypotheses, which support most of the key hypotheses. Based on the discussions on the results, implications, limitations of the study and conclusion are presented.
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Index Terms
- The effect of group arguments on commercial rumor spreading in Chinese online discussion forum: a conformity and polarization perspective
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