Coping With Customer Complaints

This article investigates the relationship between customer complaints and service personnel commitment to customer service. Positive and negative affectivity are considered as potential moderators of this relationship. Using data obtained from a survey of 432 retail service personnel in a national retail chain with 124 stores, the authors find that customer complaints are significantly and negatively associated with service personnel commitment to customer service. Higher levels of service employee positive affectivity significantly reduced this negative relationship. Contrary to expectations, high levels of negative affectivity also reduced the negative relationship between complaints and commitment to customer service. Potential explanations for these findings are provided, and implications for managers and future research are considered.