INSIGHTS INTO CS/D&CB FROM THIRTY YEARS OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN THE JOURNAL OF CONSUMER SATISFACTION, DISSATISFACTION AND COMPLAINING BEHAVIOR

We review thirty years of qualitative research from the Journal of Consumer Satisfaction, Dissatisfaction and Complaining Behavior. Four themes emerge from this analysis: 1) CS/D&CB as a process, not an end state; 2) CS/D&CB as a social process; 3) CS/D&CB causation outside of the expectancy/disconfirmation paradigm; and 4) qualitative CS/D&CB studies driven by quantitative assumptions. These themes suggest a second-level interpretation of the results focused on theoretical complexity. We conclude the article by commenting on qualitative methodologies and proposing elements that should be required for qualitative research to be published in the journal in the future.