Investigating the Effects of Implicit and Explicit Personalization on Perceived Credibility

Personalizing computer systems (such as Academic Social Networking Sites) can improve positive user perceptions, particularly credibility perceptions of that system. Earlier research has identified two broad personalization approaches: Implicit and Explicit personalization. Moreover, applying the wrong personalization approach may negatively affect users' perceptions of the system's credibility. Yet, the evidence that earlier research provides for the relevance and importance of the different personalization approaches on perceived credibility in system design is limited. This study explores which of the two personalization approaches is most important and could be prioritized when designing systems to improve credibility perceptions. Academic Social Networking Sites (ASNSs) users' perceptions of implicit and explicit personalization and system credibility are gathered via survey and analyzed using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling. We find that whereas Implicit personalization has a positive influence, Explicit personalization negatively influences users' credibility perceptions. Furthermore, the Importance Performance Map Analysis (IPMA) reveals implicit personalization as the better-performing and more important approach for promoting credibility perceptions on ASNSs. Based on the results, this study recommends further investigations into how personalizing the personalization approaches for different users may affect their credibility perceptions.