Trust production and privacy concerns on the Internet - A framework based on relationship marketing and social exchange theory

Trust plays a key role in the electronic market that involves high uncertainty and lack of legal protection. Building trust online is proposed as a solution to consumers' privacy concerns. Drawing from relationship marketing and social exchange theory, this study examined several key mechanisms that can help increase customers' trust of e-commerce and decrease privacy concerns. These mechanisms include characteristic-based (e.g., community), transaction process-based (e.g., repeated purchases), and institution-based trust production (e.g., digital certificate). (C) 2001 Elsevicr Science Inc. All rights reserved.