The Role of Attributions in Customer Satisfaction: A Re-Examination
9 Pages Posted: 26 Oct 2013
Date Written: September 2004
Abstract
We investigate the role of disconfirmation, responsibility, and stability attributions in the formation of satisfaction judgments. Building on the valence-expectancy framework, we find that disconfirmation and attributions impact satisfaction in a complex manner. Besides its main effect, responsibility moderates disconfirmation’s effect on satisfaction, manifested as a two-way interaction between the two. Disconfirmation and responsibility jointly determine the valence component, and stability determines the expectancy component of the satisfaction evaluation. This is consistent with the three-way interaction among stability, responsibility, and disconfirmation that we also find. These results clarify past studies and provide new insights about the relationship among the constructs.
Keywords: Disconfirmation, responsibility, stability
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