Title: Do personality traits predict 'complaining' consumers?

Authors: Yuksel Ekinci; Joana Calderon; Haytham Siala

Addresses: The School of Marketing and Reputation, Henley Business School, University of Reading, Reading, UK ' Department of Marketing, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK ' Roehampton University Business School, University of Roehampton, London, UK

Abstract: Although the effects of personality traits on complaining behaviour emerged in the early 1980s, there is limited research in the service industry. The purpose of this study is to examine whether consumer personality traits influence intentions to complain and whether product price and product types moderate the relationship between personality traits and intentions to complain in the retail industry. The research model is tested by logistic regression analysis on two groups of consumers who report passive and active complaining intentions. The study reveals that conscientious consumers who are open to new experiences tend to have higher intentions to complain. Being extroverted does not have any influence on complaining behaviour. Whilst price levels (low/high) and product types (grocery, clothing and electronics) improve the predictive ability of the complaining behaviour, the interaction effects relating to the three personality traits are statistically insignificant. Theoretical and managerial implications of the study findings are discussed.

Keywords: complaining behaviour; personality traits; retailing; retail industry; consumer complaints; service industry; services; product price; product types; intention to complain; logistic regression.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBE.2016.074793

International Journal of Business Environment, 2016 Vol.8 No.1, pp.32 - 42

Received: 14 May 2015
Accepted: 28 Oct 2015
Published online: 17 Feb 2016 *

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