What's in a Username? The Effect of Perceived Anonymity on Herding in Crowdfunding

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Jiang, Yang; (chad) Ho, Yi-Chun; Yan, Xiangbin; Tan, Yong
• 署名单位: Nanjing University; George Washington University; University of Science & Technology Beijing; University of Washington
• 刊物名称: INFORMATION SYSTEMS RESEARCH
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1047-7047
• DOI: 10.1287/isre.2021.1049
• 发表日期: 2022
• 页码: 1-17
• 关键词: source credibility; INFORMATION; BEHAVIOR; IDENTITY; COMMUNICATION; perceptions; DYNAMICS; Reviewer; IMPACT; BIAS

摘要

This research examines the role of perceived anonymity in shaping herding behavior in online crowdfunding markets. Drawing on theories from social psychology literature, we argue that a lender forms different credibility perceptions toward preceding peers based on their perceived anonymity state; the lender then uses such perceptions to adjust the lender's herding momentum toward them. Using data collected from a leading debt-based crowdfunding platform, we classify an individual's username as either anonymous or real-seeming, with the latter referring to as a user identification that seems to reveal one's real name. The results show that successors demonstrate weaker herding momentum toward predecessors who are presented with real-seeming usernames than anonymous ones. This finding, which we attribute to a lower extent of perceived credibility derived from a nonconforming behavior, challenges the conventional wisdom that considers anonymity a negative factor for source credibility. We further show that the uncovered positive effect of perceived anonymity on herding is accentuated in the early stage of the fundraising period; nevertheless, we find no such discrepancies between listings that are assigned with high-risk and low-risk credit grades. Our study contributes to the literatures dealing with anonymity and herding in online environments.