Users and trust: The new threats, the new possibilities

Abstract

In this paper, we describe the current threats and possibilities in the online environment from a user's perspective on basis of literary analysis and a set of user studies concentrating on online trust formation and expression. The work includes a review on the current level of understanding about online trust, what kind of research has been done and what the basic ingredients of trust might be in the future. By comparing the new results with results gained in 1999, we can see how the situation has been changing. The analysis is based on research conducted on trust between 1999 and 2007, utilising user studies, ethnography, cultural studies, aesthetics, and basic usability engineering as methods. We also include some discussion on the appropriateness of various methods available for studying online trust, and propose directions for new trust research as a field inside human-computer interaction. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007.