PapersFlow Research Brief
Sharing Economy and Platforms
Research Guide
What is Sharing Economy and Platforms?
The sharing economy and platforms refer to digital systems enabling collaborative consumption where individuals share access to underutilized goods and services through peer-to-peer online marketplaces, such as Airbnb and Uber.
This field encompasses 36,870 works examining collaborative consumption, peer-to-peer accommodation, sustainability, trust mechanisms, access-based consumption, digital platforms, consumer behavior, the hospitality industry, and regulation. Research highlights motivations for participation, including community benefits and economic incentives, as shown in studies on collaborative consumption coordinated via online services. Key analyses address impacts on traditional sectors, with platforms altering supply dynamics in hospitality.
Topic Hierarchy
Research Sub-Topics
Collaborative Consumption
Researchers study motivations, barriers, and patterns of collaborative consumption where consumers share underutilized assets through digital platforms. This sub-topic examines psychological drivers, social influences, and economic incentives behind participation in sharing activities.
Peer-to-Peer Accommodation
This sub-topic focuses on platforms like Airbnb, analyzing pricing dynamics, supply-demand interactions, and impacts on traditional hospitality sectors. Studies explore host-guest interactions, regulatory challenges, and market disruptions caused by P2P rentals.
Trust and Reputation Mechanisms
Researchers investigate reputation systems, review authenticity, and trust-building algorithms in sharing platforms. This includes analyses of rating biases, signaling theory applications, and the role of social proof in transaction facilitation.
Sustainability in Sharing Economy
This area examines environmental impacts of access-based consumption, resource efficiency gains, and rebound effects from increased usage. Studies assess lifecycle analyses and sustainability outcomes across sectors like mobility and housing.
Regulation of Sharing Platforms
Researchers analyze regulatory frameworks, policy responses, and governance challenges for platforms in sectors like transport and lodging. This sub-topic covers legal liabilities, zoning laws, and platform-labor relationships.
Why It Matters
Sharing economy platforms have measurable effects on incumbent industries, such as Airbnb reducing hotel revenues by 3.3% on average and up to 16.1% in high-supply areas like Austin, Texas, as estimated by Zervas et al. (2017) in "The Rise of the Sharing Economy: Estimating the Impact of Airbnb on the Hotel Industry." These platforms facilitate institution-based trust through IT-enabled mechanisms like feedback systems and escrow services, enabling effective online marketplaces, according to Pavlou and Gefen (2004) in "Building Effective Online Marketplaces with Institution-Based Trust." In hospitality and tourism, electronic word-of-mouth via platforms influences consumer decisions, while broader applications extend to prosumer models blending production and consumption, as explored by Ritzer and Jurgenson (2010) in "Production, Consumption, Prosumption." Such developments reshape consumer behavior and regulatory frameworks across sectors.
Reading Guide
Where to Start
"The sharing economy: Why people participate in collaborative consumption" by Hamari et al. (2015), as it provides an accessible entry into core motivations and the definition of collaborative consumption via empirical study.
Key Papers Explained
Hamari et al. (2015) in "The sharing economy: Why people participate in collaborative consumption" establishes participation drivers, which Belk (2013) in "You are what you can access: Sharing and collaborative consumption online" extends to identity and access models; Pavlou and Gefen (2004) in "Building Effective Online Marketplaces with Institution-Based Trust" provides the trust foundation enabling these exchanges, while Zervas et al. (2017) in "The Rise of the Sharing Economy: Estimating the Impact of Airbnb on the Hotel Industry" quantifies real-world industry impacts building on prior behavioral insights.
Paper Timeline
Most-cited paper highlighted in red. Papers ordered chronologically.
Advanced Directions
Current research builds on platform impacts and trust, with extensions into prosumer dynamics from Ritzer and Jurgenson (2010) in "Production, Consumption, Prosumption" and societal structuring in van Dijck et al. (2018) in "The Platform Society"; no recent preprints available, directing focus to regulatory and sustainability challenges implied in top works.
Papers at a Glance
| # | Paper | Year | Venue | Citations | Open Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Transaction-Cost Economics: The Governance of Contractual Rela... | 1979 | The Journal of Law and... | 9.9K | ✕ |
| 2 | A New Approach to Consumer Theory | 1966 | Journal of Political E... | 8.0K | ✕ |
| 3 | The sharing economy: Why people participate in collaborative c... | 2015 | Journal of the Associa... | 3.2K | ✕ |
| 4 | Electronic word-of-mouth in hospitality and tourism management | 2007 | Tourism Management | 3.0K | ✕ |
| 5 | You are what you can access: Sharing and collaborative consump... | 2013 | Journal of Business Re... | 2.9K | ✕ |
| 6 | Building Effective Online Marketplaces with Institution-Based ... | 2004 | Information Systems Re... | 2.4K | ✕ |
| 7 | The Rise of the Sharing Economy: Estimating the Impact of Airb... | 2017 | Journal of Marketing R... | 2.1K | ✕ |
| 8 | Smart tourism: foundations and developments | 2015 | Electronic Markets | 2.0K | ✓ |
| 9 | The Platform Society | 2018 | — | 2.0K | ✕ |
| 10 | Production, Consumption, Prosumption | 2010 | Journal of Consumer Cu... | 2.0K | ✕ |
Frequently Asked Questions
What motivates people to participate in the sharing economy?
People participate in collaborative consumption for community benefits and economic incentives, enabled by information and communications technologies coordinating peer-to-peer access to goods and services. Hamari et al. (2015) in "The sharing economy: Why people participate in collaborative consumption" identify these drivers through empirical analysis. Participation aligns with access-based models where sharing replaces ownership.
How do sharing platforms build trust among users?
Sharing platforms build trust via institution-based mechanisms, including IT-enabled feedback systems, escrow services, and legal protections that assure transaction success. Pavlou and Gefen (2004) in "Building Effective Online Marketplaces with Institution-Based Trust" demonstrate that buyers' perceptions of these mechanisms enhance marketplace effectiveness. Such trust facilitates peer-to-peer exchanges in uncertain environments.
What is the impact of Airbnb on the hotel industry?
Airbnb impacts the hotel industry by providing alternative lodging supply, reducing revenue by 3.3% on average and up to 16.1% in markets like Austin. Zervas et al. (2017) in "The Rise of the Sharing Economy: Estimating the Impact of Airbnb on the Hotel Industry" quantify this effect using data from peer-to-peer markets. Hotels respond with price adjustments and supply changes.
What role does electronic word-of-mouth play in sharing economy platforms?
Electronic word-of-mouth shapes consumer decisions in hospitality and tourism through online reviews on sharing platforms. Litvin et al. (2007) in "Electronic word-of-mouth in hospitality and tourism management" analyze its influence on management practices. Platforms amplify this dynamic via user-generated content.
How does collaborative consumption redefine access to goods?
Collaborative consumption redefines access by enabling sharing of underutilized assets online, shifting from ownership to temporary use. Belk (2013) in "You are what you can access: Sharing and collaborative consumption online" argues this extends personal identity through accessed items. Digital platforms coordinate these exchanges efficiently.
What is prosumerism in the context of sharing platforms?
Prosumerism involves users simultaneously producing and consuming via platforms, blending roles traditionally separated in capitalism. Ritzer and Jurgenson (2010) in "Production, Consumption, Prosumption" trace its rise in sharing economy contexts. Platforms like Airbnb exemplify prosumption through peer-hosted services.
Open Research Questions
- ? How do regulatory interventions affect the growth and equity of sharing economy platforms across different cities?
- ? What long-term sustainability outcomes arise from access-based consumption versus traditional ownership models?
- ? How do evolving trust mechanisms on platforms mitigate risks in high-value peer-to-peer transactions?
- ? In what ways do sharing platforms alter consumer identity and social norms around possession?
- ? What metrics best capture the net economic welfare effects of sharing economy expansion on incumbents and participants?
Recent Trends
The field includes 36,870 works with sustained interest in trust, consumer behavior, and regulation, anchored by highly cited analyses like Zervas et al. on Airbnb's hotel impacts and Hamari et al. (2015) on participation motives; no growth rate data or recent preprints/news indicate stable scholarly attention without specified acceleration.
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