Higher dispersion and volume of consumer product ratings increases product preferences

We examined the impact of dispersion and volume of product ratings on product preferences. Earlier work shows that extremely positive exemplars have a disproportionate influence on people’s decision-making when they seek desirable outcomes. We examined if the occurrence of both extremely positive and extremely negative review ratings changed people’s preferences, even if the average review ratings remained similar, in a within-person experiment that simulated an online purchasing website. Participants (N = 281 adults residing in the USA) repeatedly chose one out of four products with review ratings. We experimentally varied the dispersion and volume of these rating scores. As hypothesized, individuals preferred products accompanied by a high volume and highly dispersed set of review ratings. The results hold important implications for understanding the influence of reviews on consumer purchasing intentions and behavior.