Neural Correlates of Susceptibility to Group Opinions in Online Word-of-Mouth Recommendations

Abstract

The present study examines the relationship between social influence and recommendation decisions among adolescents in the new media environment. Participants completed the App Recommendation Task—a task that captures neural processes associated with making recommendations to others, with and without information about peer recommendations of the type commonly available online. The results demonstrate that increased activity in the striatum and orbitofrontal cortex in response to peer recommendations is significantly correlated with participants changing their recommendations to be consistent with this feedback within subjects. Furthermore, individual differences in activation of the temporoparietal junction during feedback that peer recommendations varied from those of the participant correlated with individual differences in susceptibility to influence on recommendation decisions between subjects. These brain regions have previously been implicated in social influence and the concept of being a “successful idea salesperson,” respectively. Together, they highlight a potential combination of internal preference shifts and consideration of the mental states of others in recommendation environments that include peer opinions.