Equity theory was applied to retail exchange situations to test hypotheses about subjects’ perceptions of inequity and behaviors they would perform. Subjects in Group 1 made evaluative ratings of 16 hypothetical situations in which two sources of inequity, high price and poor service, were introduced, along with varying levels of shopping frequency and item cost. Subjects perceived high price inequity situations as less fair than low ones, and high service inequity situations as less fair than low ones when price inequity was low. When price inequity was high, subjects perceived high shopping frequency situations less fair than low ones. Subjects in Group 2 chose the behavior they would be most likely to perform in each situation. When inequity was present, most subjects chose leaving the store, although several chose complaining about price or service when shopping frequency was also high.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AdamsJ. S.“Toward an Understanding of Inequity,”Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 67(1963), 422–36.
2.
AdamsJ. S.“Inequity in Social Exchange,” in BerkowitzL., ed., Advances in Experimental Psychology, Vol. 2. New York: Academic Press, 1965.
3.
AdamsJ. S., and FreedmanS.“Equity Theory Revisited: Comments and an Annotated Bibliography,” in BerkowitzL., and WalserE., eds., Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, Vol. 9. New York: Academic Press, 1976.
4.
AndersonW. T., and CoxE. P., and FulcherD. G.“Bank Selection Decisons and Market Segmentation,”Journal of Marketing, 40(January 1976).
5.
AustinW., and WalsterE.“Reactions to Confirmation and Disconfirmation of Expectancies of Equity and Inequity, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 30 (1974), 208–16.
6.
BellG. D.“The Automobile Buyer After the Purchase,”Journal of Marketing, 31(July 1967), 12–6.
7.
BestA., and AndreasenA. R.Talking Back to Business: Voiced and Unvoiced Consumer Complaints.Washington, D.C.: Center for Study of Responsive Law, 1976.
8.
BrickmanP., and BryanJ. H.“Evaluation of Theft, Charity, and Disinterested Transfers that Increase or Decrease Equality,”Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 31(1975), 156–61.
9.
BrownF. E.“Who Perceives Supermarket Prices Most Validly,”Journal of Marketing Research, 8(February 1971), 110–3.
10.
BurnsteinE., and KatzS.“Group Decisions Involving Equitable and Optimal Distribution of Status,” in McClintockC. G., ed., Experimental Social Psychology.New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, Inc., 1972, 412–48.
11.
CronbachL. J.“Coefficient Alpha and the Internal Structure of Tests,”Psychometrika, 16(1951), 297–334.
12.
CummingsW. H., and VenkatesanM.“Cognitive Dissonance and Consumer Behavior: A Review of the Evidence,”Journal of Marketing Research, 13(August 1976), 303–8.
13.
DayR. L., and LandonE. L.“Collecting Comprehensive Consumer Complaint Data by Survey Research,” in AndersonB. B., ed., A dvances in Consumer Research, Vol. 3. Association for Consumer Research, 1976.
14.
EnisB. M., and CoxR. R., and StaffordJ. E.“Students as Subjects in Consumer Behavior Experiments,”Journal of Marketing Research, 9(February 1972), 72–4.
15.
FestingerL.The Theory of Cognitive Dissonance.Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1957.
16.
KerbyJ. K.“Semantic Generalization in the Formation of Consumer Attitudes,”Journal of Marketing Research, 4(August 1967), 314–7.
17.
KheraI. P., and BensonJ. D.“Are Students Really Poor Substitues for Businessmen in Behavioral Research?”Journal of Marketing Research, 7(November 1970), 529–32.
18.
KirkR. E.Experimental Design: Procedures for the Behavioral Sciences.Belmont, California: Brooks/Cole, 1968.
19.
LawlerF. E.“Equity Theory as a Predictor of Productivity and Work Quality,”Psychological Bulletin, 70(1968), 596–610.
20.
LehmannD. R., and O'ShaughnessyJ.“Difference in Attribute Importance for Different Industrial Products,”Journal of Marketing, 38(April 1974), 36–42.
21.
LessigV. P.“Consumer Store Images and Store Loyalties,”Journal of Marketing, 37(October 1973), 72–4.
22.
LeventhalG. S., and BergmanJ. T.“Self-Depriving Behavior as a Response to Unprofitable Inequity,”Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 5(1969), 153–71.
23.
LeventhalG. S., and MichaelsJ. W.“Locus of Cause and Equity Motivation as Determinants of Reward Allocation,”Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 17(1971), 229–35.
24.
LeventhalG. S., and MichaelsJ. W., and SanfordC.“Inequity and Interpersonal Conflict: Reward Allocation and Secrecy About Reward as Methods of Preventing Conflict,”Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 23(1972), 88–102.
25.
LeventhalG. S., and MichaelsJ. W., and WhitesideH. D.“Equity and the Use of Reward to Elicit High Performance,”Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 25(1973), 75–83.
26.
LoSciutoL. A., and PerloffR.“Influence of Product Preference on Dissonance Reduction,”Journal of Marketing Research, 4(August 1967), 286–90.
27.
McGuireW. J.“The Current Status of Cognitive Consistency Theories,” in FeldmanS., ed., Cognitive Consistency.New York: Academic Press, 1966.
28.
MittelstaedtR.“A Dissonance Approach to Repeat Purchasing Behavior,”Journal of Marketing Research, 6(November 1969), 444–6.
29.
MooreL., and BaronR. M.“Effects of Wage Inequities on Work Attitudes and Performance,”Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 9(1973), 1–16.
30.
OshikawaS.“Can Cognitive Dissonance Theory Explain Consumer Behavior?”Journal of Marketing, 33(October 1969), 44–9.
31.
PermutS. E., and MichelA. J., and JosephM.“The Researcher's Sample: A Review of the Choice of Respondents in Marketing Research,”Journal of Marketing Research, 13(August 1976), 278–83.
32.
PritchardR. D.“Equity Theory: A Review and Critique,”Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 4(1969), 176–211.
33.
ShethJ. N.“Are There Differences in Dissonance Reduction Behavior Between Students and Housewives,”Journal of Marketing Research, 7(May 1970), 243–5.
34.
WalsterE., and BerscheidE., and WalsterG. W.“New Directions in Equity Research,”Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 25(1973), 151–76.
35.
WarlandR. H., and HermannR. O., and WillitsJ.“Dissatisfied Consumers: Who Gets Upset and Who Takes What Action?”Journal of Consumer Affairs, 9(1975), 148–63.
36.
WellsW. D., and LoSciutoL. A.“Direct Observation of Purchasing Behavior,”Journal of Marketing Research, 3(August 1966), 227–33.
37.
WickerA. W., and BushweilerG.“Perceived Fairness and Pleasantness of Social Exchange Situations; Two Factorial Studies of Inequity,”Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 5(1970), 63–75.
