When being consistent matters: the effect of valence consistency on review helpfulness

When evaluating the helpfulness of online reviews, review valence is a particularly relevant factor. This paper explores the role of review consistency on review helpfulness and the underlying rationale of this effect. Using both real life and experimental data, we show that the consistency of a review’s valence with other available reviews determines perceived helpfulness. This consistency effect is explained by the attribution theory. Because consistent reviews are more likely to be attributed to external factors that are more informative of the actual product quality, they are perceived as more helpful.