Date of Award
May 2020
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice
Committee Member
Ye Luo
Committee Member
Christina Kyprianou
Committee Member
William Haller
Abstract
On two-sided peer-to-peer platforms there exists a supply side (producers) and a demand side (consumers). Platform owners provide the platforms that assist in efficiently matching producers and consumers and an infrastructure that producers can take advantage of to signal quality to consumers. This study examines the effects of producer signals on product performance in the context of Airbnb, a peer-to-peer home sharing platform. Adjusting for producers with multiple listings, the analysis uses 77,445 listings from the platform to produce regression models which tests whether signals are positively related to product performance and if the relationship between producer signals and product performance is moderated by product type. Results show that while producer signals are important to product performance, there is minimal support for the assumption that signals vary by product type. Results also show that certain product attributes may be more important than producer signals in some contexts. Based on these findings, business and theoretical implications are discussed as well as directions for future research.
Recommended Citation
Johnson, Aubrey, "The Importance of Platform Producers’ Reputation Signals and Product Type on Product Performance in Peer-to-Peer Platforms" (2020). All Theses. 3304.
https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_theses/3304