Ulterior motives in peer and expert supplementary online reviews and consumers' perceived deception

Purpose The study aims to examine the effects of ulterior motives in peer and expert supplementary online hotel reviews on consumers' perceived deception, dissatisfaction, and its downstream effects on altruistic response and repurchase intentions. The research also examines the moderating role of hotel attribute performance on perceived deception and its consequents. Design/methodology/approach This study used convenient non-probability sampling and collected data from 448 inbound tourists in China. It used partial least square structural equation modeling technique and SmartPLS 3.0 for analyzing the main and moderating effects of the variables. Findings The ulterior motives in peer and expert supplementary reviews significantly affect perceived deception, further leading to consumers' dissatisfaction and engagement in altruistic response. Noticeably, consumers' dissatisfaction is positively associated with repeat purchase intentions. Hotel attribute performance significantly moderates the relationship between the ulterior motives in supplementary reviews and consumers' perceived deception. Originality/value The study examines the key issue in online hotel reviews using the expectancy disconfirmation theory and identifies consumers' altruistic behavior because of their dissatisfaction, contributing to ethics and consumer behavior literature. Moreover, the research offers prolific implications for hotel and travel websites and hoteliers in the study context.

Automated summary

This study explores the impact of ulterior motives in peer and expert supplementary online hotel reviews on consumers' perceived deception, dissatisfaction, altruistic response, and repurchase intentions. It also considers the moderating role of hotel attribute performance on perceived deception. The findings highlight the importance of addressing ethical concerns in online hotel reviews and suggest implications for hotel and travel websites as well as hoteliers.