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Article
Publication date: 2 December 2020

The impact of termination severity on customers' emotional, attitudinal and behavioral reactions

Amin Nazifi, Dahlia El-Manstrly, Angela Tregear and Kristina Auxtova

This paper empirically examines the direct and indirect effects of perceived termination severity on customers' behavioral reactions via betrayal and justice. It also…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper empirically examines the direct and indirect effects of perceived termination severity on customers' behavioral reactions via betrayal and justice. It also examines the moderating effects of attitude toward complaining (ATC).

Design/methodology/approach

This paper employs a quantitative method approach using a scenario-based experiment in a banking setting.

Findings

The results show that a more severe termination approach results in higher customer negative reactions. Betrayal is shown to be a key driver of customers' behavioral reactions, and ATC moderates these effects.

Research limitations/implications

Future studies should examine the effects of different termination strategies in markedly different cultures and should also examine other boundary conditions such as prior warning, relationship quality and service importance in influencing customers' negative behavioral responses.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the service termination literature by shedding light on the impact of termination severity on customers' reactions. It also unveils the mechanism that explains customers' reactions to service termination. Further, it reveals that ATC moderates customers' public (but not private) complaining behaviors.

Details

Journal of Service Theory and Practice, vol. 31 no. 1
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-10-2019-0224
ISSN: 2055-6225

Keywords

  • Firm-initiated service termination
  • Termination severity
  • Betrayal
  • Perceived justice
  • Customer complaint behavior
  • Revenge

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Article
Publication date: 1 February 2016

Should I stay or should I go? Customers’ reactions faced with the deterioration of a business relationship

David Vidal, Hervé Fenneteau and Gilles Paché

This paper aims to develop a framework helping managers to understand reactions, adopting the supplier perspective, and starting from the idea that the outcome of the…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to develop a framework helping managers to understand reactions, adopting the supplier perspective, and starting from the idea that the outcome of the degradation process is mainly determined by customers’ reactions. Inter-organisational relationships are sometimes subject to degradation. When incidents arise, and relationship attractiveness decreases, its evolution becomes uncertain.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study carried out with a large French industrial company (FabIndus) specialised in the production of supplies destined to a large variety of business sectors. In all, 26 semi-structured interviews were conducted with staff members of FabIndus and clients’ representatives identified as having recently been confronted with deterioration in their relationship.

Findings

The paper finds that customers’ reactions vary according to the nature of the business relationship and the customer commitment when degradation begins. Using two types of commitment and the exit–voice–loyalty–neglect model, it is possible to identify four types of reactions in the situation of the deterioration of a relationship. For each one of the reactions, the paper defines the response strategy that suppliers may take on.

Originality/value

The paper underlines the importance of a segmented view of business behaviours faced with the deterioration of a relationship. This can be helpful to elaborate differentiated response strategies, to avoid mutual misunderstandings.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 31 no. 1
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JBIM-06-2014-0124
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

  • Case studies
  • Buyer-seller relationships
  • Business-to-Business marketing

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Article
Publication date: 6 June 2016

The effects of traditional practices on modern banking system

Divya Mittal and Shiv Ratan Agrawal

The purpose of this paper is to identify the traditional practices in the modern banking system (MBS) and examine the effects of these on employee response, customer…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify the traditional practices in the modern banking system (MBS) and examine the effects of these on employee response, customer reactions and customer loyalty, in the context of public sector banks in India. The study also investigates the effects on customers of employees’ use of traditional banking practices in the MBS.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 460 usable responses were gathered from customers of seven public sector banks in Bhopal (MP), India. The study scales were refined and validated by exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis.

Findings

The results indicated that the MBS utilising traditional practices (MBSTP) significantly influences unfavourable employee responses, customer reactions and loyalty. In addition, employee responses in MBSTP motivate and generate unfavourable reactions of customers, which further influence their loyalty adversely towards public sector banks.

Practical implications

The identified traditional practices with MBS are expected to bring clarity to the issue of employee response, customer reaction and loyalty. This would help the management of banks.

Originality/value

The results of the analysis indicated that public sector banking services are facing the internal challenges by its own service processes and employees’ behavioural intentions.

Details

International Journal of Bank Marketing, vol. 34 no. 4
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJBM-01-2015-0008
ISSN: 0265-2323

Keywords

  • Customer loyalty
  • Customer reaction
  • Employee response
  • Modern banking system (MBS)
  • Traditional practices

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Article
Publication date: 4 March 2014

Does relationship matter? – Customers’ response to service failure

Chia-Ching Tsai, Yung-Kai Yang and Yu-Chi Cheng

The purpose of this paper is to examine how service failure affects customers’ negative response and how service recovery affects perceived justice in the context of…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how service failure affects customers’ negative response and how service recovery affects perceived justice in the context of different relationship norms.

Design/methodology/approach

It includes four studies that examine how relationships influence customer reactions to service failures. In study 1, the paper examines how service failures affect customers’ negative reaction. In study 2, the paper examines how service recoveries influence perceived justice. Study 3 and study 4 test the robustness of the results of study 1 and study 2. All studies have a 2×2 between-subjects design.

Findings

The results show that individuals in exchange relationships experience a stronger feeling of betrayal than those in communal relationships during service failures. Further, individuals feel more betrayed and show greater negative responses during process failures. They perceive greater justice when offered physical recoveries, which, in turn, contributes to higher service-recovery satisfaction.

Research limitations/implications

This study was conducted in Taiwan. Customer reactions to service failures may vary according to cultural and environmental contexts.

Practical implications

Service providers are encouraged to cultivate relationships with customers and identify different types of customers to compensate them more effectively, according to their preferences.

Originality/value

This study introduces relationship norms to investigate consumer responses to service failures. The main contributions are twofold; it investigates the effect of relationship norms on customer responses to service-failure types and service-recovery types.

Details

Managing Service Quality, vol. 24 no. 2
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/MSQ-06-2013-0113
ISSN: 0960-4529

Keywords

  • Service failure
  • Service recovery
  • Betrayal
  • Negative reaction
  • Perceived justice
  • Relationship norms

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Article
Publication date: 13 May 2019

Webcare’s effect on constructive and vindictive complainants

Wolfgang J. Weitzl

This paper aims to demonstrate that online complainants’ reactions to a company’s service recovery attempts (webcare) can significantly vary across two different types of…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to demonstrate that online complainants’ reactions to a company’s service recovery attempts (webcare) can significantly vary across two different types of dissatisfied customers (“vindictives” vs “constructives”), who have dramatically diverging complaint goal orientations.

Design/methodology/approach

Online multi-country survey among 812 adult consumers who recently had a dissatisfying brand experience and turned to a marketer-generated social media site to voice an online complaint for achieving their ultimate complaining goals. Scenario-based online experiment for cross-validating the survey findings.

Findings

Results suggest that “vindictive complainants” – driven dominantly by brand-adverse motives – are immune to any form of webcare, while “constructive complainants” – interested in restoring the customer-brand relationship – react more sensitively. For the latter, “no-responses” often trigger detrimental brand-related reactions (e.g. unfavorable brand image), whereas “defensive responses” are likely to stimulate post-webcare negative word-of-mouth.

Research limitations/implications

This research identifies the gains and harms of (un-)desired webcare. By doing so, it not only sheds light on the circumstances when marketers have to fear negative effects (e.g. negative word-of-mouth) but also provides insights into the conditions when such effects are unlikely. While the findings of the cross-sectional survey are validated with an online experiment, findings should be interpreted with care as other complaining contexts should be further investigated.

Practical implications

Marketers have to expect a serious “backfiring effect” from an unexpected source, namely, consumers who were initially benevolent toward the involved brand but who received an inappropriate response.

Originality/value

This research is one of the first research studies that enables marketers to identify situations when webcare is likely to backfire on the brand after a service failure.

Details

Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 28 no. 3
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JPBM-04-2018-1843
ISSN: 1061-0421

Keywords

  • Service failure
  • Service recovery
  • Webcare
  • Online complaints
  • Negative word-of-mouth

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Book part
Publication date: 2 June 2015

Can I Help You? Employee Prosocial Rule Breaking as a Response to Organizational Mistreatment of Customers

Maureen L. Ambrose, Regina Taylor and Ronald L. Hess Jr

In this chapter, we examine employee prosocial rule breaking as a response to organizations’ unfair treatment of customers. Drawing on the deontic perspective and research…

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Abstract

In this chapter, we examine employee prosocial rule breaking as a response to organizations’ unfair treatment of customers. Drawing on the deontic perspective and research on third-party reactions to unfairness, we suggest employees engage in customer-directed prosocial rule breaking when they believe their organizations’ policies treat customers unfairly. Additionally, we consider employee, customer, and situational characteristics that enhance or inhibit the relationship between employees’ perceptions of organizational policy unfairness and customer-directed prosocial rule breaking.

Details

Mistreatment in Organizations
Type: Book
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-355520150000013001
ISBN: 978-1-78560-117-0

Keywords

  • Prosocial rule breaking
  • customer mistreatment
  • organizational unfairness
  • justice
  • climate
  • organizational mistreatment

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Article
Publication date: 12 February 2018

Managers’ reactions to customer vs coworker sexual harassment

Juan M. Madera, Priyanko Guchait and Mary Dawson

The purpose of this paper is to examine how managers react to sexual harassment as a function of the harasser role that includes a customer as a source of harassment and…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how managers react to sexual harassment as a function of the harasser role that includes a customer as a source of harassment and an organization’s climate for sexual harassment.

Design/methodology/approach

Using an experiment with a 2 (harasser role: coworker or customer) × 2 (organizational climate of sexual harassment: tolerates or does not tolerate) between-subjects design, 162 hotel managers were randomly assigned to read one of four conditions.

Findings

Both the harasser role and organization’s climate for sexual harassment influenced the managers’ sexual harassment reactions, specifically whether they label the incident as sexual harassment and attribute responsibility to the organization. The managers’ gender was found to moderate these relationships.

Practical implications

The results underscore the importance of understanding reactions to sexual harassment because, regardless of who harasses (coworker or customer) and the organizational climate (tolerates or does not tolerate sexual harassment), sexual harassment of any form can be harmful for the well-being of hospitality employees. These results also provide educational implications.

Originality/value

This is the first known experimental study to examine how hospitality managers react to sexual harassment when the harasser role includes a customer versus a coworker. The results illustrate that the same sexually harassing behavior was perceived less negatively – in regard to both the labeling and attribution of organizational responsibility – when it was done by a customer than by a coworker.

Details

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 30 no. 2
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-02-2017-0081
ISSN: 0959-6119

Keywords

  • Hotel industry
  • Sexual harassment
  • Human resource management
  • Coworker harassment
  • Customer harassment

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Article
Publication date: 1 February 2016

Optimal design of a multi-server queueing system with delay information

Miao Yu, Jun Gong and Jiafu TANG

The purpose of this paper is to provide a framework for the optimal design of queueing systems of call centers with delay information. The main decisions in the design of…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a framework for the optimal design of queueing systems of call centers with delay information. The main decisions in the design of such systems are the number of servers, the appropriate control to announce delay anticipated.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper models a multi-server queueing system as an M/M/S+M queue with customer reactions. Based on customer psychology in waiting experiences, a number of different service-level definitions are structured and the explicit computation of their performance measures is performed. This paper characterizes the level of satisfaction with delay information to modulate customer reactions. Optimality is defined as the number of agents that maximize revenues net of staffing costs.

Findings

Numerical studies show that the solutions to optimal design of staffing levels and delay information exhibit interesting differences, especially U-shaped curve for optimal staffing level. Experiments show how call center managers can determine economically optimal anticipated delay and number of servers so that they could control the trade-off between revenue loss and customer satisfaction.

Originality/value

Many results that pertain to announcing delay information, customer reactions, and links to satisfaction with delay information have not been established in previous studies, however, this paper analytically characterizes these performance measures for staffing call centers.

Details

Industrial Management & Data Systems, vol. 116 no. 1
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-05-2015-0201
ISSN: 0263-5577

Keywords

  • Service systems
  • Balking
  • Predicting and announcing delays
  • Reneging
  • Satisfaction with delay information

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Article
Publication date: 10 August 2010

Triangle model of fairness: investigating spillovers and reciprocal transfers

Robert Folger, Robert C. Ford, Mary Bardes and Duncan Dickson

The purpose of this paper is to present and partially test the triangle model of fairness (TMF) by examining employee reactions to customer fairness.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present and partially test the triangle model of fairness (TMF) by examining employee reactions to customer fairness.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 217 undergraduate hospitality students at a US university participated in the study. Participants seated in a classroom were asked to take part in the study. Customer interpersonal justice was manipulated (high justice versus low justice) in a completely randomized between‐subjects design. The manipulation consisted of written scenarios that depicted interactions between a customer and an employee. Participants read the scenarios. Then, they were instructed to imagine they were the employee in the scenario and were asked to answer questions that assessed their reactions to the interaction with the customer.

Findings

Consistent with the predictions, the results of the study revealed that when employees experience interpersonally fair treatment from customers, they are more likely to engage in helping behaviors toward their organization and future customers.

Originality/value

The paper examines employee responses to fairness from customers, in terms of helping (or harming) the organization and future customers. As rationale for the study, the authors drew on the TMF. The study makes a contribution to research on services and organizational justice by being the first to empirically examine the TMF. Overall, this paper demonstrates that organizations need to be cognizant of the effects of customers' treatment on service employees, as customers' treatment can have serious effects on employees' subsequent behaviors.

Details

Journal of Service Management, vol. 21 no. 4
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/09564231011066097
ISSN: 1757-5818

Keywords

  • Customer relations
  • Employee attitudes
  • Employee behaviour
  • Hospitality services
  • United States of America

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Article
Publication date: 18 March 2019

Observer reactions to other customer incivility: Emotional labor, gratitude, loyalty to employee and tipping intention

Youngsun Sean Kim and Melissa A. Baker

This study aims to examine the observing customer’s reactions, namely, gratitude, loyalty to the employee and tipping intention while observing other customer incivility…

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the observing customer’s reactions, namely, gratitude, loyalty to the employee and tipping intention while observing other customer incivility during another customer service failure and the frontline employee’s emotional labor strategy.

Design/methodology/approach

A 2 (emotional labor strategy: deep acting vs surface acting) by 2 (service consumption criticality: high vs low) experiment is used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

The results reveal that observing an employee’s deep acting emotional labor (vs surface acting) leads to a greater level of gratitude among the affected customers and promotes their tipping and loyalty to the employee. However, there is no significant interaction effect of service consumption criticality and emotional labor strategy on customer gratitude.

Research limitations/implications

This research builds upon the social servicescape, customer misbehavior and emotional labor literature by examining previously untested relationships.

Practical implications

In cases of other customer service failure, managers should effectively communicate to their employees how their emotional labor induces positive customer feedback. Currently, emotional labor is emphasized mostly regarding its negative effects on employees, but this research suggests that serving the recovery expectation of the affected customers, especially when it is served with authentic emotional displays, can promote increased tipping and loyalty behavior.

Originality/value

No research investigates customers’ emotional and behavioral reactions to employee emotional labor in the context of other customer service failure.

Details

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 31 no. 3
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-03-2018-0262
ISSN: 0959-6119

Keywords

  • Tipping
  • Gratitude
  • Loyalty

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