User reviews are an essential source of information for consumers, exerting a considerable influence on purchase decisions. In general, reviews rated as more helpful exert a greater influence downstream. But how do the linguistic characteristics of a review affect its helpfulness? Thanks to HKUST’s Sang Kyu Park and two colleagues, marketers now have fresh ... Read More

In today’s technologically connected world, people learn about others’ purchase decisions on social media and review sites, as well as through direct observation. These decisions are perceived as either a choice or a rejection, explain HKUST’s Sang Kyu Park and co-researchers, who ask a critical question: “Does the mere perception of another’s decision as a ... Read More

Every day, we learn about others’ decisions from various sources. We perceive some of these decisions as choices of the more-preferred alternative and others as rejections of the less-preferred alternative. In which case are we more likely to follow another’s decision? We find that people are more likely to conform to another’s decision if it is perceived as ... Read More

When we fall in love with a product but fail to catch its name, the obvious solution is to search for it online—guided only by our fuzzy recollection of the product and a few general search terms. How likely are we to correctly identify the target product among the many similar items advertised online? In an illuminating study, HKUST’s Sang Kyu Park and ... Read More