How does perceived risk affect Airbnb hosts’ satisfaction and continuance intentions on the platform?

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Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

School of Business | Master's thesis

Authors

Date

2023

Department

Tieto- ja palvelujohtamisen laitos

Major/Subject

Mcode

Degree programme

Information and Service Management (ISM)

Language

en

Pages

53

Series

Abstract

The sharing economy has witnessed significant growth in recent years, with platforms like Airbnb revolutionizing the hospitality industry. As more individuals participate in home-sharing, these individuals are exposed to several risks that are not encountered in traditional accommodation options such as hotels. Due to the peer-to-peer nature of home-sharing platforms, the hosts are not professional operators but individuals who share their own homes for accommodation purposes. As there are no hosts in traditional accommodation options, it is interesting to study the perceived risks the hosts face. This understanding is essential to address their concerns and improve the hosting experience. It is important to understand how perceived risk affects hosts participating in home-sharing. The risk perception varies between individuals depending on their own perspective and experience. The previous literature on perceived risk in home-sharing context, especially from hosts point of view, is scant. This study focuses on perceived risks and their effects on hosting satisfaction and continuance intentions. The aim of this study is to find perceived risk categories that affect host behavior. The risk categories are based on the literature review on the relevant research in the field. The risk categories are used in the empirical part where Airbnb hosts discuss their risk perceptions. The findings are reviewed against a modified framework of a previous study and Prospect Theory. The findings of this study indicate that different perceived risk categories have varying effects on behavior. Perceived financial and political risks impact continuance intentions through mediation effect on perceived value. The perceived performance risks decrease the satisfaction of hosting on Airbnb platform. Being satisfied with hosting increases continuance intentions. Among the other risk categories, the results varied more between the participants. Only perceived physical risks were seen not to have an impact on the host behavior. As seen from the findings, it is important to avoid generalizing perceived risk in the context of sharing economy. To effectively address the various perceived risks, it is essential to use diverse approaches for each risk category. Airbnb should focus on helping hosts to overcome especially financial, political, and performance risks. Airbnb hosts are encouraged a proactive approach towards risk assessment and risk management. Due to the uniqueness of risk perception, each host must address risks on their individual basis. In addition, there is a call for clear regulation from public authorities to decrease the political risk.

Description

Thesis advisor

Tuunainen, Virpi

Keywords

sharing economy, home-sharing, Airbnb, perceived risk

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Citation

Permanent link to this item

https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202308204885

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[gradu] Kauppakorkeakoulu / BIZ