Communal vs. exchange appeals: Relationality framing as a strategy to discourage platform bypassing

Platform bypassing, which occurs when users find providers on a platform but complete transactions off-platform, undermines revenue, governance, and trust. This research examines whether relational message framing can deter bypassing in ride-hailing contexts. Three experiments compare communal appeals that emphasize shared responsibility and collective trust with exchange appeals that stress fairness and mutual gain. Study 1 shows that communal framing reduces bypassing intentions. Study 2 identifies communal relationship norms as the main psychological mechanism linking framing to reduced intentions. Study 3 confirms this mediation for actual behavioral choices and tests boundary conditions, showing that social value orientation moderates the activation of communal norms by relational framing, resulting in a stronger negative indirect effect on bypassing behavior among prosocial participants than among pro-self individuals. The findings position relational framing as a psychologically grounded governance strategy that enhances compliance and strengthens cooperative engagement in digital platforms.