Psychological Approaches to Credibility Assessment Online

As networked information and communication technologies have enabled nearly instant access, from virtually anywhere, to almost inconceivably large information repositories, people have come to rely upon web-based information resources in a wide variety of ways. For example, even as early as 2006, nearly half of users in the United States said that the Internet played a crucial or important role in at least one major decision in their lives, such as attaining additional career training, helping themselves or someone else with a major illness or medical condition, or making a major investment or financial decision (Horrigan & Rainie, 2006). Yet, the credibility of information obtained online can be problematic, which raises concerns about how people obtain, interpret, and evaluate this information.