Interactive Effects of Return Policy Leniency and Recommendations on Post-Consumption Evaluation of Products with Mixed Outcomes

Abstract

This research investigates interactive effects of return policy leniency and recommendations on consumers’ post-consumption evaluations of product with mixed outcomes. A theoretical account of a post-consumption evaluation process based on counterfactual thinking is advanced. Then, two empirical studies show that consumers’ post-consumption evaluations of products with mixed outcomes tend to be more favorable under lenient return policies than under restricted return policies if recommendations are given during a pre-purchase decision-making process, but tend to be more favorable under restricted return policies than under lenient return policies when no recommendation is given during a pre-purchase decision-making process.

Keywords: Return policy; Recommendation; Post-purchase product evaluation; Counterfactual thinking