Determinants of online professor reviews: an elaboration likelihood model perspective

PurposeDrawing on the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), the authors examine the influence of perceived professor teaching qualities, as central cues, on online professor ratings. Also, our study investigates how the volume and period of reviews, as peripheral cues, affect online professor ratings.Design/methodology/approachLeveraging stratified random sampling, the authors collect reviews of 892 Information Systems professors from 250 American universities. The authors employ regression models while conducting robustness tests through multi-level logistic regression and causal inference methods.FindingsOur results suggest that the central route from perceived professor qualities to online professor ratings is significant, including most qualitative pedagogical factors except positive assessment. In addition to course difficulty, the effect of the peripheral route is limited due to deficient diagnosticity.Research limitations/implicationsOur primary concern about the data validity is a lack of a competing and complementary dataset. However, an institutional evaluation survey or an experimental study can corroborate our findings in future research.Practical implicationsOnline professor review sites can enhance their perceived diagnosticity and credibility by increasing review vividness and promoting site interactivity. In addition to traditional institutional evaluations, professors can obtain insightful feedback from review sites to improve their teaching effectiveness.Originality/valueTo our best knowledge, this study is the first attempt to employ the ELM and accessibility-diagnosticity theory in explicating the information processing of online professor reviews. It also sheds light on various determinants and routes to persuasion, thus providing a novel theoretical perspective on online professor reviews.