Influence of type and source of electronic word-of-mouth on consumers’ health care-seeking decisions

We examined the influence of the type (positive vs. negative) and source (patients’ online community vs. general online community) of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) on consumers’ health care-seeking decisions. Participants in this 2 × 2 between-subjects study comprised 160 patients who had sought medical advice at a large Tier 3, Class A hospital in China in 2019. The results show that negative (vs. positive) eWOM had a greater influence on consumers’ health care-seeking decisions, with similar results for the patients’ (vs. general) online community. In addition, positive eWOM from the patients’ (vs. general) online community had a greater influence on participants’ health care-seeking decisions but the result was not significant for negative eWOM. Credibility of eWOM also mediated the relationship between eWOM and health care-seeking decision. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.