Gender rating gap in online reviews reveals women less likely to share negative experiences

A new study led by Dr. Andreas Bayerl of the Erasmus School of Economics, Dr. Yaniv Dover of the Hebrew University, as well as Professor Hila Riemer and Professor Danny Shapira of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev has identified a meaningful and consistent sex. rating gap in online reviews, revealing that women’s average ratings are higher than men’s on major platforms such as Amazon, Google, IMDb, TripAdvisor and Yelp.

The research paper entitled “Gender rating gap in online reviews” is published in Human behavior.

Drawing on analysis of more than 1.2 billion real online reviews, supplemented by two controlled laboratory experiments, this research suggests that gender differences in willingness to share negative comments are at the origin of this discrepancy.

The results reveal that although women and men generally have similar attitudes toward products or experiences, women are more hesitant to express negative opinions in public online forums. This reluctance may stem from societal expectations that place more emphasis on communal and empathetic behavior among women, leading them to avoid negative reactions or negative evaluations.

The researchers said: “Our findings highlight a broader societal problem. Women are less likely to express their dissatisfaction in online reviews, not because they are more satisfied, but because they are more concerned about the potential social consequences when expressing their dissatisfaction. »

The main findings of the study include:

• Women’s average ratings are higher than men’s by about 0.1 stars on a 5-point scale. Such a gap is large and impactful for online reviews, especially since small differences in online review scores lead to significant changes in ranking, which have significant economic implications.
• Lab experiments found that when dissatisfied, women are less likely than men to post a review, while satisfied women and men submit reviews at similar rates.
• The gender rating gap exists across many contexts, platforms, and geographies, suggesting it is a pervasive problem in online review culture.

The researchers also discuss potential solutions to reduce bias in online reviews and call for further research on the topic. Suggestions include encouraging platforms to create more inclusive spaces where women feel comfortable sharing their honest opinions and also considering the option of anonymous reviews.

Researchers note, however, that anonymity can sometimes lead to more toxic environments, so platform managers must balance transparency and inclusiveness.

These findings have significant implications for consumers, businesses, online platforms and society as a whole. Given the critical role of online reviews in influencing purchasing decisions, the gender rating gap can skew perceptions of products and services. Small differences in ratings can result in significant changes in rankings, potentially disadvantageous to businesses or create uninformed consumer choices.

“This research is a call to action for platforms, businesses and society as a whole,” emphasize the researchers. “To ensure fair representation of opinions, we must address the factors that prevent individuals, especially women, from sharing their true experiences, especially when they are dissatisfied.”