The role of attributions in customer satisfaction: A reexamination

We investigate the role of disconfirmation, responsibility, and stability attributions in the formation of satisfaction judgments. Building on the valence-expectancy framework, we find that disconfirmation and attributions impact satisfaction in a complex manner. Besides its main effect, responsibility moderates disconfirmation's effect on satisfaction, manifested as a two-way interaction between the two. Disconfirmation and responsibility jointly determine the valence component, and stability determines the expectancy component of the satisfaction evaluation. This is consistent with the three-way interaction among stability, responsibility, and disconfirmation that we also find. These results clarify past studies and provide new insights about the relationship among the constructs.