Title: Online environmental trust and trustworthiness

Authors: Beverly Kracher, Linda Hadfield

Addresses: Creighton University, USA. ' Cranfield University, UK

Abstract: This paper describes an online survey of environmental researchers and environmentalists. We question why respondents trust online environmental information and what cues create the perception of a trustworthy environmental website. The results suggest that the comprehensiveness of the information, the lack of biased information, as well as the individual researchers| inherent propensity to trust, are important for ensuring online environmental trust. Furthermore, the trustworthiness cues considered important in commercial uses of Internet websites, including branding, appearance and navigation, are also relevant to environmental researchers and environmentalists looking for environmental information.

Keywords: environmental trust; trustworthiness; online survey; environmental researchers; environmentalists; online information; environmental information; environmental websites; branding; appearance; navigation.

DOI: 10.1504/IER.2002.053874

Interdisciplinary Environmental Review, 2002 Vol.4 No.1, pp.21 - 42

Published online: 13 May 2013 *

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