Abstract
Trust is a double-edged sword in peer-to-peer (p2p) sharing economy, being
both the foundation and a slippery ground of sharing resources with total strangers. The
online platforms are the most influential actors in trust formation as they set the terms
of sharing. How these sites can cultivate and sustain trust is the main question this
research asks, which aims to contribute to a more structured evolution of p2p sharing
platforms. This research proceeds through a qualitative investigation across ten sharing
economy platforms, introducing a comparative understanding of middlemen’s peculiar
responsibilities and performances in nourishing trust. Mainly inspired by Giddens’ (1990)
abstract system approach, this study constructs a trust pyramid where trust is put in: (i)
the internet, (ii) meaning/motivation for p2p sharing, (iii) the legal support for sharing; (iv)
the platform (v) the peers. For p2p sharing to occur, trust in the foregoing systems is prerequisite, which can be challenged through learning experiences mostly at the top two
levels. Platform trust and peer trust are under platforms’ direct influence and craft the
center of this inquisition that benefits from online participant observation and case study
research. The focal platforms are chosen based on leading roles in their categories such
as Airbnb, Couchsurfing, Uber, Lyft, and Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Patreon, Crowdcube, Zopa
and Wikipedia. Examination of site materials, news reports, and blog posts contributed to
online archival research executed at the Internet, the habitat of sharing economy where
collaborative actions become initiated. The accessibility and clarity of key information
are treated as a measure of platforms’ level of transparency enabling effective trustformation.
Collaborative consumption spaces like Airbnb, Couchsurfing, Uber, and Lyft
fare stronger than studied crowdfunding platforms in peer trust with self-monitoring tools,
while in terms of platform trust crowdfunding sites achieve higher standards. Yet, most
of the studied platforms fall short of the openness this new ecosystem demands given
a revenue-sharing partnership with users, which requires empowering users not only in
financial but also in informational terms.
both the foundation and a slippery ground of sharing resources with total strangers. The
online platforms are the most influential actors in trust formation as they set the terms
of sharing. How these sites can cultivate and sustain trust is the main question this
research asks, which aims to contribute to a more structured evolution of p2p sharing
platforms. This research proceeds through a qualitative investigation across ten sharing
economy platforms, introducing a comparative understanding of middlemen’s peculiar
responsibilities and performances in nourishing trust. Mainly inspired by Giddens’ (1990)
abstract system approach, this study constructs a trust pyramid where trust is put in: (i)
the internet, (ii) meaning/motivation for p2p sharing, (iii) the legal support for sharing; (iv)
the platform (v) the peers. For p2p sharing to occur, trust in the foregoing systems is prerequisite, which can be challenged through learning experiences mostly at the top two
levels. Platform trust and peer trust are under platforms’ direct influence and craft the
center of this inquisition that benefits from online participant observation and case study
research. The focal platforms are chosen based on leading roles in their categories such
as Airbnb, Couchsurfing, Uber, Lyft, and Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Patreon, Crowdcube, Zopa
and Wikipedia. Examination of site materials, news reports, and blog posts contributed to
online archival research executed at the Internet, the habitat of sharing economy where
collaborative actions become initiated. The accessibility and clarity of key information
are treated as a measure of platforms’ level of transparency enabling effective trustformation.
Collaborative consumption spaces like Airbnb, Couchsurfing, Uber, and Lyft
fare stronger than studied crowdfunding platforms in peer trust with self-monitoring tools,
while in terms of platform trust crowdfunding sites achieve higher standards. Yet, most
of the studied platforms fall short of the openness this new ecosystem demands given
a revenue-sharing partnership with users, which requires empowering users not only in
financial but also in informational terms.
| Originalsprache | Englisch |
|---|---|
| Titel des Sammelwerks | Sharing Society |
| Untertitel des Sammelwerks | The Impact of Collaborative Collective Actions in the Transformation of Contemporary Societies |
| Herausgeber*innen | Benjamin Tejerina, Cristina Miranda de Almeida, Ignacia Perugorría |
| Erscheinungsort | Bilbao |
| Verlag | Universidad del Pais Vasco |
| Seiten | 207-222 |
| Auflage | 2019 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-84-9082-678-2 |
| Publikationsstatus | Veröffentlicht - 2019 |