The influence of self-construal and co-consumption others on consumer complaining behavior
Abstract
The present study examined the influence of self-construal and co-consumption others on consumer complaining behavior. A comprehensive review of related literature indicated that it is imperative to understand how consumers with different dominant self-construals react to similar service failures and whether their complaining behavior is influenced by co-consumption others. A total of 202 participants were recruited on a major mid-western university campus. Participants were asked to fill out a paper and pencil questionnaire. All participants were randomly assigned one of three service failure scenarios and were instructed to indicate their tendency to engage in three types of complaining behavior. To test the hypotheses, Two-Way MANOVA and multiple comparisons were conducted. MANOVA results demonstrated that the dominant self-construal had a significant effect on people's voice response and switching behavior after a service failure. In addition, the dominant self-construal and present co-consumption others had a significant joint effect on switching behavior. Multiple comparison results indicated a significant difference in switching behavior for individuals with a dominant independent self-construal across situations. The present study is theoretically and practically meaningful to the hospitality industry because with a better understanding of consumers' complaining behavior, managers will be able to better prepare themselves for consumer responses after a service failure.
Degree
M.S.
Advisors
Cai, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Behavioral psychology|Management|Personality psychology
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