Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/10397/91811
PIRA download icon_1.1View/Download Full Text
Title: Mitigating the negative effects of service failure through customer identification
Authors: Song, J
Huang, J
Jiang, Y 
Issue Date: Apr-2021
Source: Psychology and marketing, Apr. 2021, v. 39, no. 4, p. 715-725
Abstract: This study investigated the effect of numerical customer identification (i.e., assigning numbers to identify customers) in the service context on the numbered customers' reaction to service failures. We manipulated numerical identification in different ways (room number, customer number, table number, and order number) and measured customers' tolerance of services across various settings (in a restaurant, a spa, and a café) in four studies. The results demonstrated that after being identified by a number, customers tend to exhibit a higher tolerance of service failures (Studies 1 and 2), and this effect is mediated by a sense of self-dehumanization among the numerically identified customers (Study 3). Moreover, the investigated effect diminished when customers had heightened individuation (e.g., by disclosing personal information) to buffer against dehumanization (Study 4). Our findings contribute to the underexplored research area on customer identification, broaden the numerical research and dehumanization literature in marketing, and bring practical implications for firms to mitigate the negative effects of service failures and decrease customer dissatisfaction.
Keywords: Customer identification
Dehumanization
Dissatisfaction
Individuation
Numerical identification
Service failures
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Journal: Psychology and marketing 
ISSN: 0742-6046
DOI: 10.1002/mar.21615
Rights: © 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Song, J., Huang, J., & Jiang, Y. (2022). Mitigating the negative effects of service failure through customer identification.Psychology & Marketing, 39, 715–725, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21615. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.
Appears in Collections:Journal/Magazine Article

Files in This Item:
File Description SizeFormat 
Song_Mitigating_Negative_Service.pdfPre-Published version464.2 kBAdobe PDFView/Open
Open Access Information
Status open access
File Version Final Accepted Manuscript
Access
View full-text via PolyU eLinks SFX Query
Show full item record

Page views

170
Last Week
2
Last month
Citations as of May 11, 2025

Downloads

56
Citations as of May 11, 2025

SCOPUSTM   
Citations

15
Citations as of May 8, 2025

WEB OF SCIENCETM
Citations

14
Citations as of May 8, 2025

Google ScholarTM

Check

Altmetric


Items in DSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.