A review of theory-driven models of trust in the online health context

Generally speaking, theory-driven studies are more successful in producing a desired result than those missing the theoretical grounds. This paper aims to provide an informal assessment of theoretical foundations of trust models in online health context. After a review of literature, 12 theory-driven models were analysed in detail. The findings showed that previous models benefited from different theories within different disciplines (mostly from psychology). The technology acceptance model, the elaboration likelihood model, the theory of reasoned action and the health belief model were the most frequently used theoretical frameworks. The reviewed models were able to account for 23-69% of variance in dependent variables. In conclusion, although the health studies are very open to interdisciplinary theories, the inclusion of institutional and national cultural theories in future researches may enrich the current individualistic perspective with a broader context of society that jointly form trust behaviour and credibility judgements of health consumers in digital health environments.