Evaluating Multiple Approaches to Impact Trust Formation: Labeling, Design, and Support Features

Abstract

Creating trust in wireless solutions and increasing their social acceptance are major challenges to achieve the full potential of the Internet of Things (IoT). In the current study we investigate various methods to increase trust in wireless systems like user feedback, usability, and product labeling. This work is part of the European project SCOTT (Secure COnnected Trustable Things; https://scottproject.eu) with the goal to develop wireless solutions that are safe, trusted, and acceptable. Participants watched three videos of three use cases and then rated the expected impact of controllability, accountability, user feedback, usability, and product labeling on their trust in the technologies. Also, two labels were evaluated: a uni-dimensional label that reflected the privacy of user data as well as a multi-dimensional label that combined the dimensions privacy, product quality, manufacturing, usability, and cost. The results indicate that trustworthiness aspects of the system like controllability, accountability and usability have the strongest impact on positive trust formation among all the investigated methods. Furthermore, the results indicate that both the uni-dimensional and the multi-dimensional labeling conditions seemed to increase user trust at the maximum trust level and increased the participants indicated willingness to use the product. However, only the uni-dimensional label showed a positive influence on trust formation at the medium quality level. Results of this study highlight that service and product providers have various methods at hand to help increase trust among their customers. Consumers want control over their technologies, as well as accountability of technology vendors. Furthermore, in the long term, the results suggest that customers could benefit from digital competence education that may allow them to learn to use and rely on otherwise relatively complex multi-dimensional labeling systems. Next steps for this research are suggested.