Is this a Good Book? The Role of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Cues for

Perceived Product Quality in Textbooks in e-Commerce

Maria Madlberger

and Ruslan Tagiev

Department of Business and Management, Webster Vienna Private University, Praterstraße 23, 1020 Vienna, Austria

Optimus Consulting, Ivan Mihaylov 14, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria

Keywords: Perceived Product Quality, Intrinsic Cues, Extrinsic Cues, e-Commerce, User Ratings.

Abstract: Previous e-commerce research has largely investigated the role of extrinsic cues for the assessment of product

quality by online consumers. In addition, online retailers are also providing intrinsic cues to reduce

uncertainties on product quality. This paper empirically investigates the role of intrinsic and extrinsic cues by

an experimental design involving the average user rating as well as a product sample in the context of a printed

textbook. The research design is a two-by-two between-subjects factorial experimental design with four

conditions (high/low average user rating, presence/absence of sample pages). The results show that the

average user rating impacts perceived product quality, however a main effect of sample availability and the

interaction effect with average user rating could not be demonstrated. The study contributes to research on

perceived product quality in e-commerce and the utilization of cues by investigating how online consumers

use intrinsic and extrinsic cues to evaluate product quality.

1 INTRODUCTION

In electronic commerce (e-commerce), the evaluation

of an offered product’s quality is based on

information that is provided by the online shop,

so-called cues. Since products cannot be physically

examined prior to order and often also consumption,

the availability and attributes of such cues are

paramount in an e-commerce setting. Numerous

studies have investigated how quality cues impact

perceptions of product quality as well as purchase

intention, perceived value, or satisfaction. This body

of literature is predominantly focused on extrinsic

cues, which can be changed without changing the

product itself, such as the brand, the product origin,

or price. In contrast, intrinsic cues which are inherent

properties of a product (e.g., physical attributes or

ingredients), are examined to a lesser extent. There

are only few studies that address the role of both types

of cues, i.e., Chen & Dubinsky (2003), Choi et al.

(2018; 2019), Hu et al. (2010), Kim (2021), and

Weathers et al. (2007). The studies that are examining

both cue types in e-commerce are using secondary

data from existing online stores such as Amazon.com

which limits the generalizability for other online

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2850-0499

retailers. Moreover, these studies do not fully disclose

how consumers are using quality cues.

The study at hand aims to empirically investigate

the role of intrinsic cues, extrinsic cues, and their

interaction in the formation of perceived product

quality, a factor that has received limited attention in

previous research. By collecting data in an online

survey in an experimental design with a two-by-two

between-subjects factorial design, the role of average

user rating as an extrinsic cue and the availability of

a text sample as an intrinsic cue of an online sold

textbook has been investigated.

The study contributes to literature on quality cue

utilization and product quality perception by

addressing both types of cues simultaneously in an

e-commerce setting. By doing so, the study provides

insights into how consumers are using textbook

samples in order to evaluate the perceived quality of

textbooks that are sold online. The experimental

study allows the disclosure of underlying motives of

online consumers’ use of quality cues in a setting

where intrinsic and extrinsic cues are offered.

Madlberger, M. and Tagiev, R.

Is this a Good Book? The Role of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Cues for Perceived Product Quality in Textbooks in e-Commerce.

DOI: 10.5220/0012165700003584

In Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on Web Information Systems and Technologies (WEBIST 2023), pages 199-206

ISBN: 978-989-758-672-9; ISSN: 2184-3252

199

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Product Quality

Product quality is strongly associated with a

company’s profitability, sales, customer satisfaction,

and loyalty. In this respect, not the objective product

quality itself matters most, but consumers’

perceptions of quality as a driver of purchase

decisions (Mitra & Golder, 2006; Steenkamp, 1990).

Several researchers note that that a buyer’s perception

of quality reflects an “objective” product quality, i.e.,

a measurable and impartial product characteristic

(Mitra & Golder, 2006). However, in an e-commerce

context where direct experience with products is often

impossible, the term “perceived quality” is more

accurate (Chen & Dubinsky, 2003).

Consumers establish product quality perceptions

by experiencing beliefs about different product

quality attributes, i.e., benefits they expect to receive

as a result of consuming the product (Steenkamp,

1990). Following the notion of the cue utilization

theory, consumers use different quality cues as

indicators when they are deciding between various

product alternatives, since product quality attributes

cannot be directly experienced prior to consumption

(Chen & Dubinsky, 2003).

2.2 Quality Cues

Quality cues are “information stimuli that are,

according to the consumer, related to the quality of

the product, and can be ascertained by the consumer

through the senses prior to consumption”

(Steenkamp, 1990, p. 312). They can be categorized

as either intrinsic or extrinsic (Zeithaml, 1988).

Intrinsic cues are inherent properties of a product and

thus, cannot be changed without altering the product

itself (Bhuian, 1997). In contrast, extrinsic cues are

not inherent to a product, however, they are related to

it (Choi et al., 2018).

Many consumers are likely to use both intrinsic

and extrinsic cues to form beliefs about the quality of

a product (Hu et al., 2010). The relative importance

of intrinsic and extrinsic cues is subject to different

conditions. Intrinsic cues are getting less important

while extrinsic cues are becoming more salient in

presence of the following conditions (Zeithaml,

1988): (1) limited availability of intrinsic cues (2),

more required time and/or effort than perceived as

feasible to evaluate intrinsic cues, and (3) generally a

difficult assessment of product quality.

2.2.1 Average User Rating as Extrinsic Cue

An important extrinsic cue in e-commerce that can

influence purchase intention is word-of-mouth of

other users (Zhou et al., 2013). Online consumer

reviews provide such extrinsic cues, since they reflect

other users’ individual product quality perceptions

(We et al., 2010; Zhou et al., 2013). Hence, they are

related to the respective product, but are not inherent

to them.

Among different investigated attributes of online

consumer reviews, their sentiment is one of the most

important features (King et al., 2014). It defines a

unique nature of electronic word-of-mouth,

especially when compared with offline word-of-

mouth. Sentiment denotes positive, neutral, or

negative evaluations, whose expression is often

supported by online shops in the form of numerical

ratings. These are usually provided in the form of

5-point scales, typically organized as star ratings

which help consumers assign positive or negative

evaluations to single products (King et al., 2014).

Hence, average user ratings which are usually

provided in addition to single online consumer

reviews offer a popular extrinsic cue that is used for

decision-making in e-commerce.

2.2.2 Product Sample as Intrinsic Cue

Whereas intrinsic cues are often difficult to convey in

e-commerce settings, information goods, such as

software, music, or books (Wang & Zhang, 2009) are

valued for their content and benefit from free

sampling that can help consumers in their decision-

making process. When online retailers provide

product samples together with online consumer

reviews, consumers refer more strongly to their

assessment of the product samples to evaluate the

product quality, compared with the user ratings (Hu

et al., 2010). In the case of a book, such a sample may

consist of further product information, e.g., on the

front or back cover, sample text, or sample chapters

(Choi et al., 2019).

2.2.3 Interaction Effect

Choi et al. (2019) studied the interactive effects of

e-book samples and online consumer reviews on

e-book sales. This study hypothesizes that the

relationship between e-book samples and purchase

decisions becomes more salient as the average user

ratings decrease, because consumers tend to combine

their direct and indirect experiences in order to make

the purchase decisions, especially if the information

asymmetry is high.

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The data set used for the study by Choi et al.

(2019) was obtained from a Korean e-book retailer

and contained detailed browsing data (e.g., exposure

to e-book previews and online consumer reviews),

transactional data, and various e-book characteristics,

including author popularity, publication date, price,

etc. Only the data on nonserial romance and fiction

e-books were analyzed. The results suggest that the

positive effect of e-book samples on purchase

decisions decreases when the average user rating

(online review valence) is high. Moreover, this effect

diminishes as the number of reviews increases.

However, the effect of e-book samples on purchase

decisions becomes more salient as the disagreement

among the reviewers (online review variance)

intensifies.

The study by Choi et al. (2019) is among only a

handful of research works that found empirical

evidence on how consumers utilize both intrinsic and

extrinsic cues to decide whether to purchase a

product. Choi et al. (2019) demonstrated that many

consumers rely on a combination of direct and

indirect product experiences, if both are available to

them, in order to make a purchase decision. However,

giving the fact that Choi et al. (2019) used only fiction

and romance e-books, the results of their study may

not hold for other book categories.

3 HYPOTHESIS DEVELOPMENT

Previous research revealed the key role of average

user ratings as an indicator of product quality (Hu et

al., 2010), so that we hypothesize:

H1: The average user rating impacts the level of

perceived product quality of textbooks sold online.

For product quality evaluation and uncertainty

reduction, consumers are using different sources of

information, including intrinsic cues where available

(Hu et al., 2010). In an e-commerce context, product

samples of information goods serve as a reliable

source to obtain this information (Hu et al., 2010), so

that we assert:

H2: The availability of a product sample impacts

perceived product quality of textbooks sold online.

The average user rating is the collective

assessment of other consumers on a product and its

perceived quality (Hu et al., 2010). This evaluation is

the result of different individuals’ tastes and prior

experiences, turning the assessment into a largely

subjective statement (Hu et al., 2010). A consumer

may attribute the average user rating more to other

users’ experiences and not so much to the product

itself (Hu et al., 2010). Hence, consumers may look

for other relevant information and thus review an

available product sample (Hu et al., 2010). This leads

to the following consideration: If a product’s average

user rating is low, a consumer may still conclude with

a high-quality perception after the product sample has

been reviewed. On the other hand, the consumer may

also experience doubts about their own conclusions

about consumption experience after reviewing the

sample (Steenkamp, 1990). In that case, opinions of

other users, expressed in the average user rating, can

be used as a reference. Hence, we propose the

following:

H3: The interaction term of the average user

rating and the product sample impacts perceived

product quality of textbooks sold online.

4 RESEARCH DESIGN

The experimental research design in this study

follows Chen & Cheng (2013) who examine the

impact of website design and appeal on perceived

product quality, perceived information quality, and

customer satisfaction as dependent variables. In our

study, the experiment is a two-by-two between-

subjects factorial design which employs four

experimental conditions that are displayed in Table 1.

Table 1: Experimental design overview.

Sam

No Yes

Avera

eHi

(

4.3 stars

)

(

)

(

)

user rating Low (1.0 star) (3) (4)

Data has been collected via an online survey

among American consumers who were recruited by

Qualtrics (n = 504 after removal of incomplete

questionnaires). 32.7% of the respondents are

females, 67.3% are males. The age distribution is as

follows: 18‒24 years: 5.6%, 25-34 years: 19.3%, 35-

44 years: 20.3%, 45-54 years: 16.5%, 55-64 years:

21.3%, 65 years or older: 16.9%. 51.6% are full-time

or part-time employed, the remaining respondents are

either retired, studying, homemakers, or others.

According to Qualtrics’ methodology (Qualtrics,

2014), to ensure that the sample is representative, the

company selects at random the survey participants

from the certified third-party panels and randomizes

the respondents in every sample before the survey.

Qualtrics is taking appropriate measures to make sure

that no respondents have participated in the survey

twice or more (Qualtrics, 2014).

Each respondent has been randomly assigned to

only one of the four experimental condition. Thus,

Is this a Good Book? The Role of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Cues for Perceived Product Quality in Textbooks in e-Commerce

201

each of the four conditions has been provided to a

sub-sample all of which had approximately the same

size. All other information provided to the

participants, except for the stimuli, (e.g., product

details, the front and back cover of the textbook),

were kept constant in the experiment. Respondents

rated the perceived quality of the shown textbook on

a single-item Likert scale (1 = “terrible”,

5 = “excellent”). The scale for measuring the

perceived quality of a textbook has been applied from

Boulding & Kirmani (1993).

As a stimulus for the experiment, an existing

textbook has been used (Ian Tuhovsky: “Emotional

Intelligence: A Practical Guide to Making Friends

with Your Emotions and Raising Your EQ”;

(Tuhovsky, 2015). This textbook has been chosen for

two reasons: first, the topic of the textbook is rather

broad and not overly controversial; second, it has

received overall positive average ratings (4.4 average

user rating in 2023 based on more than 360-star

ratings on Amazon.com). This rather high average

user rating was used as a reference point for the

interpretation of the study results.

To avoid a potential bias due to the author’s name

(Amblee & Bui, 2011), the real name has been

replaced with a fictive author name. The textbook

sample text matched all details, such as the text

length, page layout, font types of the real sample

provided on Amazon.com and it also visually

resembles the samples provided on Amazon’s “look

inside” feature. The content of the sample text

included the title page of the textbook, the table of

contents, a 3-pages extract from the introduction

section, and a 5-pages extract from the first chapter.

475 of the 504 respondents were not familiar with the

existing textbook and therefore qualified to take the

survey.

5 RESULTS

5.1 Hypothesis Tests

Data analysis to test the hypotheses was done with

two-way ANOVA. In the test of hypothesis 1, the

main effect for average user rating yields an F-ratio

of F(1, 312) = 27.5 (p < .001, ƞ

= .081), resulting in

a statistically significant difference between quality

perception levels for high (M = 2.09, SD = 0.75) and

low average user rating (M = 2.66, SD = 1.04).

Hence, in case of a high average user rating,

participants rated perceived quality of the textbook as

higher, compared with participants who were shown

a low average user rating.

The test of hypothesis 2 results in a main effect for

the availability of the textbook sample of as follows:

F-ratio of F(1, 312) = 0.88 (p >.5, ƞ

= .003). Hence,

the main effect for the availability of the sample is not

significant (provided sample pages: M = 2.25,

SD = 0.85, no provided sample pages: M = 2.40,

SD = 0.98).

For hypothesis 3, the interaction effect between

average user rating and availability of the sample was

tested. This outcome is not significant either: F-ratio

of F(1, 312) = 0.001 (p >.5, ƞ

< .001). The

availability of text sample does therefore not show a

moderating impact on the relationship between

average user rating and perceived textbook quality.

The results of the hypothesis tests are shown in

Table 2:

Table 2: Hypothesis test results.

H1 (average user rating): supporte

H2 (sample availability): not supporte

H3 (interaction effect): not supporte

5.2 Sample Use

In the following, some further details on the use of the

intrinsic cue are provided in order to shed light on the

motives of intrinsic cue utilization. 137 individuals

were exposed to the second experimental condition

with high average user rating and availability of

sample text. 72 of them (52.6%) stated that they had

reviewed the sample, i.e., either read or have

skimmed through the text. As shown by Table 3, most

participants only skimmed through the sample text.

Table 3: Sample text use with high average user rating.

Did not

Rea

Skimmed

Through

Read

First page 6.9% 75.0% 18.1%

Table of contents 18.1% 56.9% 25.0%

Introduction 22.2% 65.3% 12.5%

Cha

ter 1 41.7% 43.1% 15.3%

The most important reasons for not reading the

pages of the introduction and first chapter were: “lack

of time and/or motivation”, “lack of interest in the

topic of the textbook”, and “sample length”. Other

reasons were preference to read the whole book or

preference to skim through sample text only to

determine whether the book is worth reading at all.

65 (47.4%) participants have decided not to read

or skim through the sample pages. Most of them

stated a lack of interest in the topic as the main reason

for not reviewing the sample text, followed by lacking

time and/or motivation to do so and other reasons

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(i.e., use of the other provided intrinsic cues, such as

the book title or front cover description).

112 respondents were exposed to the fourth

experimental condition (low average user rating and

availability of sample text). 47 of them (42.0%) said

that they have reviewed the sample, i.e., read or

skimmed through the sample pages. Also, this

sub-sample mainly skimmed through the sample

pages (see Table 4).

Table 4: Sample text use with low average user rating.

Did not

Rea

Skimmed

Through

Read

First page 6.4% 66.0% 27.7%

Table of contents 14.9% 63.8% 21.3%

Introduction 21.3% 59.6% 19.2%

Cha

ter 1 25.5% 61.7% 12.8%

Reasons why respondents have not read the

introduction and first chapter were mainly the length

of the sample and lacking interest in the textbook

topic, whereas a lack of time and/or motivation was

the least frequently mentioned factor. Reasons why

the sample pages have not been read or skimmed

through were primarily a lack of interest in the

textbook’s topic, a lack of time and/or motivation,

and other reasons (availability of other intrinsic cues

that provided sufficient information for quality

assessment).

6 DISCUSSION

6.1 Major Findings

The study at hand investigates the role of intrinsic

cues (provided as product description on the front and

back cover and sample pages) and extrinsic cues

(average user rating) on the perceived quality of a

printed textbook sold online. The hypothesis tests

confirm the strong effect of the average user rating for

the perception of product quality (H1 being supported

by data). Where average user rating was high, the

textbook was considered having superior quality

compared with respondents who were shown a low

average user rating.

This result is in line with previous research that

has pointed at the relevance of online consumer

reviews for the assessment of product quality before

or after purchase (see King et al. (2014) for a review).

Studies drawing on signalling theory have shown that

extrinsic cues that can be easily observed and

assessed by consumers in e-commerce have the

highest impact on quality assessments (Wells et al.,

2011).

The availability of the sample text as well as the

interaction term of sample text availability and

average user rating did not show a significant effect

on consumers’ quality perceptions (H2 and H3 are

rejected). Hence, unlike anticipated, the sample text

neither had a direct nor a moderating impact on

perceived product quality. Hence, the availability of

the sample text did not override or minimize the effect

of a high/low average user rating on perceived

quality.

The absence of the interaction effect is countering

the findings provided by Choi et al. (2019) who

conducted a similar study in nonserial fiction and

romance e-books sold in an online store. Although

most respondents have made use of the sample (as

also revealed by Hu et al., 2010), the importance of

the intrinsic cues has diminished in presence of the

extrinsic cues (Zeithaml, 1988). In the current

findings, the most likely reason is a heightened

perceived effort or time consumption (Zeithaml,

1988), since intrinsic cues were provided and product

quality assessment was not difficult. Hence, the result

is interpreted against this background:

52.2% of the respondents who were provided with

the sample text neither read nor skimmed through the

materials due to lack of interest in the topic, lack of

time and/or motivation, or perceived sample length.

Hence, the majority of these participants used average

user rating to support their assessment of product

quality, resulting from the intrinsic cues to be not

appropriate to make a judgment about the textbook

quality.

Only 15.1% of the respondents who have

reviewed the sample pages at all, have read the

introduction and first chapter pages that were offered

in the sample. Most participants preferred to skim

through the text because of the text length, lacking

interest in the topic, and lack of time. Hence, also

these individuals ultimately used the extrinsic cue to

evaluate the product quality.

Hence, we can conclude that textbook samples

offered by online retailers can be perceived as too

complex for product quality assessment processes in

books for many consumers. On the other hand,

extrinsic cues, such as the average user rating, are

readily available and easy to interpret and therefore

become more salient to online consumers for quality

perception formation.

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203

6.2 Research Implications

The study contributes to the literature on product

quality perception in e-commerce in several ways.

First, it simultaneously investigates extrinsic and

intrinsic cues as well as their interaction as potential

drivers of product quality perception and thus

responds to the need for such an approach as

expressed by Hu et al. (2010). In an e-commerce

context, findings on this subject are limited. Second,

the study sheds light on motives of online consumers

to use intrinsic cues for product quality evaluation by

examining the extent and preferred parts of text

samples that are utilized by consumers. In doing so,

the study at hand complements extant findings

originating from analyses of secondary data available

from online retailers (Choi et al., 2018; Choi et al.,

2019; Hu et al., 2010), which helps to deepen the

understanding of how consumers use different kinds

of cues in product quality evaluation in greater detail.

Third, our study shows that the role of intrinsic cues

may be contingent upon the respective product

category. Unlike the study by Choi et al. (2019) which

revealed a strong effect of the interaction term of an

intrinsic and extrinsic cue in the categories of

nonserial fiction and romance e-books offered by an

online bookstore. Fourth, our study adds to research

on both intrinsic and extrinsic cues on perceived

product quality (Chen & Cheng, 2013; De Langhe et

al., 2014; Kim & Min, 2014; Wells at al., 2011) by

addressing the contemporaneous effect of the

intrinsic and extrinsic cue. By focusing on

informational goods where product quality is difficult

to assess prior to consumption, the findings provide

useful insights into the formation of product quality

assessment (Steenkamp, 1990).

6.3 Managerial Implications

The study offers implications for online consumers,

online retailers, and textbook authors. For consumers

the average user ratings matter for the assessment of

product quality in textbooks due to the easy access

and availability of average user ratings and the ease

to interpret them (Hu et al., 2017). However, such

ratings do not always reflect product quality in an

accurate manner since they are based on other users’

subjective assessments based on criteria that may be

different from those of an individual consumer. For

example, around two thirds of books that had been

launched on Amazon.com have shown positively

biased ratings shortly after their launch (Xinxin &

Hitt, 2008).

Online retailers that offer online reviews to their

customers may decide to complement subjective user

ratings with intrinsic cues that can provide a less

biased stimulus for product evaluation assessment.

While also extrinsic cues may be provided in a more

objective manner, e.g., by offering expert reviews that

are complementing user reviews (Zhou & Duan,

2016) or applying scoring systems with multiple

criteria on single attributes (e.g., content, writing style

etc.) rather than one overall assessment (Amblee &

Bui, 2011), intrinsic cues offer a different source of

information and hence a useful contribution to

formation of quality evaluation based on own

assessment criteria. As the findings show, such a

provision of intrinsic cues needs to be simple and easy

to use since consumers may otherwise quickly turn to

referring to simpler extrinsic cues.

This consideration leads to the recommendation

that retailers may undertake some effort to motivate

consumers to make use of intrinsic cues by an

appropriate design of sample pages and other stimuli.

This may particularly be relevant for products, in this

case textbooks, where the maximum number of

feasible extrinsic cues are rather rare, e.g., in cases

where the author or the subject is not very well known

and there are only few consumer reviews available.

Simply providing extensive sample texts appears not

to be sufficient as many respondents stressed that they

did not need all information provided for product

quality assessment.

Hence, for book authors, particularly unknown

authors, we recommend using unconventional and

innovative approaches of intrinsic cue provision to

overcome consumers’ hesitation to review them.

Possibilities are offering substantial parts of the text

or supplementary materials, for example case studies

or exercises, free of charge, if permitted in the

publishing contract. Authors and publishers may also

apply different formats of content provision, such as

visuals, audio or video content, or chat functions. This

way, intrinsic cues may be made more salient to

prospective buyers, especially among younger

generations.

7 CONCLUSION

The study results suggest that the provision of

intrinsic cues in online sold textbooks may require too

much time and effort from consumers to use them for

product quality evaluation. Hence, extrinsic cues such

as the average user ratings and simple intrinsic cues

such as visuals of the textbook’s front cover and back

cover description, become more salient to them, as

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these cues are easily observable and can be

interpreted very quickly.

Like any research, this study has several

noteworthy limitations. First, the findings cannot be

generalized to other product categories, including

books of other genres, such as novels, drama, or

romance. They are not applicable to e-books either.

Second, results may be biased due to respondents’

usage scenario of personal use. Third, the intrinsic

and extrinsic cues have been manipulated only at two

levels (high/low and present/absent). Therefore,

potentially important levels such as an average user

rating close to three stars or different lengths or types

of samples were not used. Also, the number of

extrinsic and intrinsic cues was limited to one,

respectively, leading to a limited external validity, as

real online shops offer a multitude of cues. Hence,

future research may add further extrinsic cues, for

example the level of disagreement among reviewers,

text-based reviews and features of those (e.g., writing

style, sentiment), but also attributes like product

price, perceived author popularity or quality and

reputation of the online retailer. Further, the study at

hand has omitted personal contextual factors, such as

interest in the subject or overall need for the applied

textbook in general, which may also be a causal factor

of a higher or lower willingness to review especially

the more extensive intrinsic cues. Finally, the

experimental setting was different from a real

purchase situation, thus potentially leading to a biased

process of product quality evaluation. While this was

intentional to avoid a possible bias when introducing

purchase intention as a dependent variable, this factor

would contribute to a more complete understanding

of consumers’ product evaluation and their decision-

making process.

As a result, future research may apply different

experimental setups. Possible designs involve an

experimental website with a mock-up purchase

situation that involves a product purchase and a

payment process. Also, post-experimental surveys

may help better understand motivations of online

consumers when using particular intrinsic and

extrinsic quality cues to assess product quality.

Finally, also innovative digital formats of intrinsic

and extrinsic cue provision (e.g., by means of voice

communication and/or artificial intelligence

applications) may shed more light on the role of

intrinsic and extrinsic cues in the dynamically

changing e-commerce environment.

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