Broscience: Creating trust in online drug communities

Abstract

This study explores the social mechanisms involved in online community trust. Drawing on interviews with members from two Norwegian Internet drug forums, the article illustrates how forum members evaluate the trustworthiness of online user-generated drug content, referred to as ‘broscience’. First, the shared narratives and boundaries within the forums generated a sense of collective identity, where members defined their online surroundings in terms of community trust and collaboration. Second, the subcultural argot within the forums helped members express a level of subcultural competence and authenticity, in which they were able to assess their credibility and initial trustworthiness. Third, the reputation linked to online identities created expectations and predictability as a basis for evaluating members’ trustworthiness. These findings touch upon the ambivalence of trust in an online setting and highlight the communal process that caused their ambivalence to be suspended, thereby enabling online community trust.