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CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, the methods, techniques and procedures that were employed in the process of implementing the research design (research plan) are discussed in detail. Firstly, the conceptual framework is presented and explicated to set the stage for the phenomena being studied. Next, the research problem and resultant objectives and sub-objectives are stated formally. In the ensuing sections, the research strategy, research design and sampling plan are described. Additionally, the data collection technique for this study is discussed in terms of the respective methodologies for researching consumers’ complaint behaviour and causal attributions, since these methodologies serve as background for the methodology chosen for this study. The analysis of the data is discussed in terms of the coding and capturing of the data, the operationalisation of measurements and the explanation of the statistical methods respectively. Then, the quality of the data is discussed in terms of its validity and reliability. Finally, the manner in which the data is presented is indicated.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK, PROBLEM STATEMENT AND OBJECTIVES
Conceptual framework
This study proposes a conceptual framework of the consumer’s complaint behaviour following dissatisfaction due to a performance failure of a major electrical household appliance item. As already mentioned in Chapter 1, this framework integrates three lines of CS/D and complaint behaviour research, namely the expectancy disconfirmation model (satisfaction research) (Churchill & Suprenant, 1982; Bearden & Teel, 1983), Weiner’s (1986) causal dimensions (attribution theory), and Day and Landon’s (1977) taxonomy of complaint behaviour. Additionally, consumer-related variables and product-specific variables that may impinge on consumers’ complaint behaviour (complaint behaviour theory) are included in the framework. Figure 1.1 (Chapter 1, par. 1.3) is provided once more, and then explained, to facilitate the reader’s understanding of the interrelationships between the respective concepts.
It is clear from Figure 1.1 that, prior to purchasing and consuming major electrical household appliances, consumers form expectations regarding its performance in a particular use situation. After or while using an appliance item, consumers evaluate its perceived performance in terms of their initial expectations regarding the functional and symbolic performance dimensions of the appliance. Whereas functional performance refers inter alia to durability, ease of use, ease of care and physical performance (how well the appliance does what it is supposed to do), symbolic performance refers to a “psychological” level of performance that is derived from the consumer’s response to the physical product (Swan & Combs, 1976:26; Erasmus & Donoghue, 1998; Hawkins et al., 2001:641; Erasmus, Makgopa Kachale, 2005). Consumers’ evaluation of the functional and symbolic performance of products unquestionably varies in terms of consumer characteristics (i.e. gender, age, level of education, monthly household income and culture) (Brown & Rice, 1998:46-47; Hawkins et , 2001:641). When the appliance’s performance does not meet the consumer’s expectations (i.e. when a performance failure occurs or when the product performs poorly), negative disconfirmation occurs, leading to feelings of dissatisfaction.
However, feelings of dissatisfaction are mediated by attributional reasoning, i.e. the cognitive process of wanting to find out why a negative outcome or event occurred. The perceived cause (attributions) for the product’s failure and its dimensional quality (in terms of Weiner’s (1986) locus, stability and controllability), influence consumers’ reaction in terms of their emotions (the level of anger experienced in response to the product failure) and behaviours. Additionally, the dimensional characteristics of dissatisfied consumers’ attributions may be influenced by demographic variables (i.e., gender, age, level of education, monthly household income and culture).
Consumer responses to dissatisfaction are generally referred to as “consumer complaint behaviour” (Singh, 1988:93; Maute & Forrester, 1993:220). Once dissatisfaction occurs the consumer may engage in behavioural and non-behavioural responses to resolve it (Day & Landon, 1977:229-432; Broadbridge & Marshall, 1995). Three major options are available to consumers who are dissatisfied with their purchase: no action, private action or public action. Consumers may refrain from action by rationalising and forgetting about the problem. Consumers may engage in private actions such as switching brands or retailers, boycotting the type of product or warning family and friends. Or, consumers may engage in public action such as seeking redress (i.e. a refund, an exchange or free repairs and replacement of defective parts – depending on the nature of the product and particular circumstances) directly from the retailer or manufacturer, complaining to the retailer or manufacturer, a public consumer protection agency, a voluntary organisation or the media, or taking legal action against the retailer or manufacturer.
However, consumer-related factors and product-specific factors are likely to affect the consumer’s complaint behaviour. Consumer-related variables refer to characteristics that are associated or determined primarily by consumers. Demographic factors (i.e. gender, age, level of education, monthly household income and culture), as consumer-related variables, influence consumers’ complaint behaviour. Product-specific variables, specifically the severity of the problem (product failure) will be addressed in this study. For the purpose of this study, the type of product failure (functional/symbolic) is not subsumed under product-specific variables (as explained in terms of complaint behaviour theory, Chapter 2, par.2.3.3.2). With regard to the expectancy disconfirmation model (satisfaction/dissatisfaction literature), the type of product failure is considered to be part of the performance failure concept.
Problem statement and objectives
The research problem was stated formally in terms of the unit of analysis, research goal and approach, as follows:
To explore and describe the role of specific consumer-related variables, product-specific variables, and causal attribution in dissatisfied consumers’ complaint behaviour concerning the performance failure of selected major electrical household appliances.
The main research problem was divided into subcomponents, which were stated in the form of objectives and sub-objectives. By looking at the main problem in terms of its component parts, the researcher gains a broader perspective of the research problem (Leedy & Ormrod, 2005:51-53). “The subcomponents describes the scope of the work and, taken together, defines the entire problem to be tackled as summarised in the main problem” (Walliman, 2005:34).
The following research objectives and sub-objective were formulated for this study:
Objective 1: To explore the nature of the performance failure that caused consumers to be dissatisfied with major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 1.1To explore the functional/symbolic performance failure causing consumers’ dissatisfaction concerning major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 1.2To describe the association between demographic variables (i.e. gender, age, level of education, household monthly income and culture) and the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 1.3To describe consumers’ degree of dissatisfaction experienced concerning the functional/symbolic performance failure of household appliances
Objective 2: To describe the nature of, and the reasons for, dissatisfied consumers’ complaint behaviour concerning the performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 2.1 To describe the types of consumer complaint behaviour responses that dissatisfied consumers engage in concerning their dissatisfaction with the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 2.2 To describe dissatisfied consumers’ reasons for engaging in consumer complaint behaviour concerning the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Objective 3:To describe the relationship between causal attribution and dissatisfied consumers’ complaint behaviour concerning the performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 3.1 To describe dissatisfied consumers’ attributions for the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 3.2 To describe the causal dimensional characteristics of dissatisfied consumers’ attributions for the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 3.3To describe the association between the dimensional characteristics of dissatisfied consumers’ attributions for the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances and demographic variables (i.e. gender, age, level of education, monthly household income and culture)
Sub-objective 3.4 To describe the association between the causal dimensions (i.e. locus, stability and controllability) and dissatisfied consumers’ complaint behaviour concerning the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 3.5To describe the relationship between dissatisfied consumers’ anger reactions concerning the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances and consumer complaint behaviour
Objective 4:To describe the relationship between specific consumer-related variables and dissatisfied consumers’ complaint behaviour concerning the performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 4.1To describe the relationship between demographic variables (i.e. gender, age, level of education, household monthly income and culture) and dissatisfied consumers’ complaint behaviour concerning the functional/symbolic performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Objective 5:To describe the relationship between product-specific variables and dissatisfied consumers’ complaint behaviour concerning the performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 5.1 To describe dissatisfied consumers’ perceptions of the severity of the performance failure of major electrical household appliances
Sub-objective 5.2 To describe the relationship between dissatisfied consumers’ perception of the severity of the functional/symbolic performance failure concerning major electrical household appliances and their consumer complaint behaviour
LIST OF TABLES
LIST OF FIGURES
LIST OF ACRONYMS
LIST OF ADDENDA
CHAPTER 1 THE STUDY IN PERSPECTIVE
1.1 INTRODUCTION
1.2 THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
1.3 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK, PROBLEM STATEMENT AND OBJECTIVES
1.4 SAMPLING PROCEDURE AND DATA COLLECTION METHOD
1.5 PRESENTATION AND STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS
CHAPTER 2 POST-PURCHASE CONSUMER COMPLAINT BEHAVIOUR
2.1 INTRODUCTION
2.2 THE EXPECTANCY DISCONFIRMATION PARADIGM
2.2.1 Expectations about product performance
2.2.2 Product performance
2.2.3 Satisfaction/dissatisfaction
2.3 CONSUMER COMPLAINT BEHAVIOUR
2.3.1 Conceptualising consumer complaint behaviour.
2.3.2 Models of consumer complaint behaviour
2.3.2.1 Hirschman’s exit, voice and loyalty typology
2.3.2.2 Day and Landon’s taxonomy of consumer complaint behaviour
2.3.2.3 Singh’s taxonomy of consumer complaint responses
2.3.3 Factors affecting consumer complaint behaviour.
2.3.3.1 Consumer-related variables
2.3.3.2 Product-specific variables
2.3.3.3 Redress environment variables
2.3.4 Reasons why consumers do not complain
2.4 IMPLICATIONS OF COMPLAINING FOR THE MARKET PLACE AND INDIVIDUAL CONSUMER
2.5 CONCLUSION
CHAPTER 3 ATTRIBUTION THEORY – A THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE FOR RESEARCHING CONSUMER COMPLAINT BEHAVIOUR
3.1 INTRODUCTION
3.2 SOCIAL COGNITION AND CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
3.3. ATTRIBUTION THEORY
3.4 WEINER’S ATTRIBUTIONAL THEORY IN SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY AND CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
3.5 CONSUMERS’ ATTRIBUTIONS FOR THE FAILURE OF DURABLE PRODUCTS
3.6 CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR THIS STUDY
CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
4.1 INTRODUCTION
4.2 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK, PROBLEM STATEMENT AND OBJECTIVES
4.3 RESEARCH STRATEGY, APPROACH AND DESIGN
4.4 SAMPLING PLAN
4.5 CHOICE DESCRIPTION AND APPLICATION OF DATA COLLECTION METHOD
4.6 DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUE
4.7 DATA-ANALYSIS.
4.8 QUALITY OF THE DATA
4.9 DATA PRESENTATION
CHAPTER 5 RESEARCH RESULTS
5.1 INTRODUCTION
5.2 DEMOGRAPHIC AND OTHER DESCRIPTIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SAMPLE
5.3 RESULTS OF OBJECTIVE 1
5.4 RESULTS OF OBJECTIVE 2
5.5 RESULTS OF OBJECTIVE 3
5.6 RESULTS OF OBJECTIVE 4
5.7 RESULTS OF OBJECTIVE 5
5.8 CONCLUSION
CHAPTER 6 DISCUSSION AND INTERPRETATION
6.1 INTRODUCTION.
6.2 CONSUMERS’ PERCEPTION OF MAJOR ELECTRICAL HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE FAILURE
6.3 CONSUMERS’ ATTRIBUTIONS FOR THE PERFORMANCE FAILURE OF MAJOR ELECTRICAL HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES
6.4 CONSUMERS’ DISSATISFACTION WITH THE PERFORMANCE OF MAJOR ELECTRICAL HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES
6.5 CONSUMERS’ COMPLAINT BEHAVIOUR CONCERNING THE PERFORMANCE FAILURE OF MAJOR ELECTRICAL HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES
6.6 THE ROLE OF ATTRIBUTION, CONSUMER-SPECIFIC VARIABLES AND PRODUCT-SPECIFIC VARIABLES IN CONSUMERS’ COMPLAINT BEHAVIOUR
6.7 CONCLUSION
CHAPTER 7 CONCLUSIONS, EVALUATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
7.1. INTRODUCTION
7.2 CONCLUSIONS
7.3 EVALUATION OF THE RESEARCH
7.4 CONTRIBUTION TO THE THEORY
7.5 IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
7.6 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
LIST OF REFERENCES
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