The Impact of Platform Social Responsibility on Consumer Trust

The concept of social responsibility has been widely applied incorporates business philosophy to gain the trust of consumers. With the rise of two-side platforms, platforms have popped up the limelight along with the hot topic of the sharing economy. Despite this, we do not know much about the underlying mechanisms of consumer trust. A questionnaire survey was conducted with 263 consumers from China to explore the consequences of platform social responsibility on consumer trust. The results demonstrate that the implementation of social responsibility by platforms significantly increases consumer trust. Additionally, consumer confusion plays a mediating effect, and platform network externality plays a moderating role. Briefly, the platform does not play a dominant role in regulating supply and demand as we might think since the consciousness of consumer groups is rising. Their autonomy to collect information and make decisions after perception cannot be ignored. The study shows that sharing economy platforms should take their social responsibilities into consideration, rather than taking them as a subsidiary role. Platforms should see consumer trust as a key end rather than a means to promote profits