Keep Your Cool or Let it Out: Nonlinear Effects of Expressed Arousal on Perceptions of Consumer Reviews

This research explores how expressed emotional arousal in a consumer review affects reader perceptions of its helpfulness. Drawing from research on written communication and lay theories of emotion, the authors propose a pattern of diminishing returns, in which the marginal effect of arousal on perceived helpfulness is positive at low levels of arousal but diminishes at higher levels. Results of a field study using Apple’s App Store, a follow-up survey, and two laboratory experiments provide consistent evidence for the predicted pattern. In addition, results suggest that the nonlinear effect is explained in part by perceptions of reviewer effort, and that the effect is stronger for products that are utilitarian in nature. By revealing a nuanced relationship between emotional expression and perceived helpfulness, these findings offer valuable implications for effective word-of-mouth communication.