Do the rich grow richer? An empirical analysis of the Matthew effect in an online healthcare community

作者:

Highlights:

• The Matthew effect aroused by the rating mechanism in the online health community was examined.

• Online doctor rating has a significantly positive relationship with doctors’ platform income.

• The relationship between online doctor ratings and doctors’ platform income is moderated by the number of thank-you letters and votes that doctors obtained from the online health community, the level of the hospitals with which doctors are affiliated, and the level of the doctors’ clinical and academic titles.

摘要

•The Matthew effect aroused by the rating mechanism in the online health community was examined.•Online doctor rating has a significantly positive relationship with doctors’ platform income.•The relationship between online doctor ratings and doctors’ platform income is moderated by the number of thank-you letters and votes that doctors obtained from the online health community, the level of the hospitals with which doctors are affiliated, and the level of the doctors’ clinical and academic titles.

论文关键词:Word of mouth,Online health communities,Doctor ratings,Matthew effect

论文评审过程:Received 9 May 2021, Revised 10 January 2022, Accepted 24 January 2022, Available online 31 January 2022, Version of Record 15 February 2022.

论文官网地址:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.elerap.2022.101125