The effect of social proximity, attribution, and guilt on accepting dysfunctional customer behavior
Journal: Service Business
Year: 2024

Abstract This study examines how construal levels affect the acceptability of dysfunctional customer behavior following service failure in restaurants. Across three experimental studies with online panel respondents ( n = 555), we found that consumers feeling psychologically close to service providers are less likely to deem deviant actions acceptable. This stems from the trust they place in socially close service providers and their perceptions of failure controllability. Additionally, anticipa