Navigating trust dynamics in online health communities: the impact of doctors’ attributes and patient feedback

The cornerstone of doctor-patient interaction rests upon mutual trust. However, patients often encounter challenges in promptly selecting the most suitable doctor within the extensive information landscape of online health communities, primarily stemming from difficulties in establishing trust. While previous studies have delved into factors influencing patient choice, few have approached this issue from a trust-centric perspective. Thus, this study examines a dataset comprising 2685 doctors across 16 disease specialties from the “Good Doctor Online” platform, aiming to elucidate how doctors’ personal attributes and patient feedback influence patient trust and selection. Our findings indicate that while doctors’ published articles bolster trust, their titles may hinder selection, underscoring the nuanced relationship between professional credentials and patient trust in online health communities. Patient feedback, both online and offline, emerges as a pivotal factor in shaping trust dynamics. Surprisingly, treatment satisfaction unexpectedly exerts a negative impact on patient choices, prompting scrutiny regarding the credibility of platform ratings. Moreover, disease risk magnifies the influence of offline comments. These insights bear implications for ameliorating information asymmetry between doctors and patients and refining trust dynamics in digital healthcare.