Piotr Chelminski and John K.S. Chong
Located in the heart of Europe, with a population of about 10.5 million people, Hungary is sometimes referred to as a jewel on the East European crown—at least, as far as…
Abstract
Located in the heart of Europe, with a population of about 10.5 million people, Hungary is sometimes referred to as a jewel on the East European crown—at least, as far as international business is concerned (Dent, 1992). Although Hungary is a relatively small country, about the same size as the state of Indiana in America, it is generating a lot of interest among foreign investors because of its attractive business environment, especially when compared to the other newly emerged democracies of Eastern Europe.
Piotr Chelminski and Robin A. Coulter
This paper aims to examine the relationships between consumer advocacy and consumer complaining behaviors such as voicing and negative word‐of‐mouth in the context of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the relationships between consumer advocacy and consumer complaining behaviors such as voicing and negative word‐of‐mouth in the context of dissatisfactory service experiences.
Design/methodology/approach
Using an experimental design embedded in a survey methodology, the authors examine the relationship between consumer advocacy and the likelihood for complaining about dissatisfactory service experiences among adult US consumers. Additionally, the authors examine the differences between likelihood for voicing and negative word‐of‐mouth (NWOM) in the context of dissatisfactory service experiences at varying levels of service encounter failure.
Findings
The authors find that consumer advocacy is positively related to consumer complaining (i.e. voicing and NWOM), and that likelihood of NWOM is consistently greater than likelihood of voicing.
Research limitations/implications
This study uses a convenience sample of US adult consumers, which could compromise generalizability of the results to broader consumer populations.
Practical implications
Based on these results, the authors suggest that companies and consumer protection agencies appeal to consumers' advocacy tendencies to facilitate voicing so problems can be quickly identified and resolved, and the negative word‐of‐mouth can be minimized.
Originality/value
This study is the first attempt known to authors to link consumer advocacy to complaining behaviors in the marketplace.