ABSTRACT

Bargh and McKenna (2004) describe using the Internet on many occasions as a `leap of faith' (p. 586). Purchasing online compared to a bricks and mortar store requires a belief that the goods will arrive, that they will be as described on the website and that your credit card and personal information will not be traded or otherwise misused. If we contact a potential partner via an online dating site, there is no knowing if they are as they have described themselves in their pro®le or subsequent communication. When we work in virtual teams, or join virtual communities, we take it on faith that the people we talk to are who they say they are. When we seek advice online, we often do not know who are the authors of the advice we receive and what motivates them to help us.