How much Klout do you have … A test of system generated cues on source credibility

Social media provides a great deal of information about the users; whether it is personal likes or dislikes, social connections and networks, or general emotional states in ways not previously available to others. As a result, judgments and perceptions of a person’s credibility can be made from examining posts, tweets, or other indicators on social media (Westerman, Spence, & Van Der Heide, 2012). Because social media users create their own content, the question of how others make judgments about credibility is important (Haas & Wearden, 2003). However, until recently, a single indicator of a person’s influence on social media networks did not exist. Klout.com developed an popular indicator of this influence that creates a single score based on the idea that “everyone has influence—the ability to drive action”. The purpose of the study is to determine whether and to what degree a Klout score can influence perceptions of credibility. Results demonstrated that the mock Twitter page with a high Klout score was perceived as higher in dimensions of credibility than the identical mock Twitter page with a moderate or low Klout score.

► Experimentally tested the effects of Klout on credibility.
► Higher Klout scores were perceived as higher in competence.
► Higher Klout scores were perceived as higher in character.