Consumer (Dis)satisfaction and Complaining Behaviour: The Role of The Market Environment
Buberwa, Lawrence Gabriel
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/67324
Description
Title
Consumer (Dis)satisfaction and Complaining Behaviour: The Role of The Market Environment
Author(s)
Buberwa, Lawrence Gabriel
Issue Date
1981
Department of Study
Business Administration
Discipline
Business Administration
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Business Administration, General
Language
eng
Abstract
Past studies on Consumer Satisfaction, Dissatisfaction (CS/D) and Complaining Behaviour (CB) have investigated the influences of expectations, product and consumer characteristics, and product performance on CS/D and CB. No consensus has been attained and some of the findings remain controversial. Common to most of the previous studies were two issues. First, failure to investigate the role of the market place where transactions and consumption take place. Two, most of the research was culture bound with virtually most of it having been done in USA and Western Europe.
The present study explored the role of the market environment on CS/D and CB by looking at their incidences in various consumer segments with different market environments. This study unlike virtually all previous ones, was done in Tanzania (a less developed country) which is dramatically different (culturally, socially and economically) from USA and Western Europe. As such the results were expected to stimulate interest in cross-nation and/or cross cultural research.
In the study, the city of Dar-es-Salaam was divided into four clusters of segments on the basis of two factors--the socio-economic status of an area and the outlet density within the area. These two factors were assumed to describe the market environment of the city.
The results of the study show that overall the outlet density factor was a better discriminator of satisfied/dissatisfied and complainer/non-complainer consumer than the socio-economic status of an area factor. When the income factor was introduced, interesting results emerged. First, the poor consumers who reside in areas of low socio-economic status reported dissatisfaction less often than the rich consumers in the same areas. The reverse was the case in areas of high socio-economic status. Two, the poor consumers who reside in areas of low socio-economic status report dissatisfaction less often than the poor consumers in areas of high socio-economic status. The reverse is true for the rich consumers, although the rich consumers' differences are not substantial compared to the poor consumers' differences.
Three competing hypotheses are advanced by the author to explain the findings: (a) Exit, (b) Voice, and (c) Competition.
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