Investigation of online word-of-mouth dimensions

Although there has been an increasing number of research around online word-of-mouth (WOM), a variety of definitions have been adopted without indicating explicitly as to what specific aspects the concept contains or adequately specifying the conceptual meaning of online WOM. The aim of this research is to review the existing definition of online WOM concept and its dimensions, and empirically test the dimensionality of OWOM in a different context from which it was initially developed. Survey data were collected from 574 respondents through an online survey administered in China. The findings revealed unidimensionality of online WOM, but containing three different aspects. The possible factors contributing to this finding are discussed and future research directions are presented.