Motivators behind information disclosure: Evidence from Airbnb hosts

Abstract

Extensive studies have researched on the determinants of user information disclosure. This study extends current research by switching into peer-to-peer property rental platforms and highlights the information disclosure behavior of hosts (sellers). We construct a conceptual framework and collect a unique longitudinal dataset from Airbnb to examine the determinants of hosts' decisions to disclose information. The empirical results suggest that getting more reviews, higher ratings, and receiving more informative or readable reviews motivate hosts to disclose more information, especially for low permission relevant information. Moreover, property quantity negatively moderates the relationship between the reviews hosts received and their information disclosure intention. This study concludes by presenting theoretical and managerial implications for both research and practice.