Given the growing competition in the global market, it is becoming increasingly important for companies to retain their existing customers, that is, to preempt frequent switching. A fruitful way of gaining knowledge about customers' switching behavior is to examine the role of various factors in their switching processes. This qualitative study, based on data from telecom operators, offers new insights by identifying and defining the role of prejudice in customers' rationale for leaving one telecom operator in favor of another. The research also identifies whether the customers are actively or passively engaged in the switching process, which seems to be important in terms of linking prejudice to frequent switching. The findings have important implications for the successful management of customer relationships because they point to instability in customer populations.
Ahluwalia, Rohini, Robert E. Burnkrant, and Rao H. Unnava (2000), “Consumer Response to Negative Publicity: The Moderating Role of Commitment,” Journal of Marketing Research, 37 (2), 203-15.
2.
Bhattacharya, C.B. and Sankar Sen (2003), “Consumer—Company Identification: A Framework for Understanding Consumers' Relationships with Companies,” Journal of Marketing,67 (April), 76-88.
3.
Bolton, Ruth N. (1998), “A Dynamic Model of the Duration of the Customer's Relationship with a Continuous Service Provider: The Role of Satisfaction ,” Marketing Science, 17 (1), 45-65.
4.
——— and Katherine N. Lemon (1999), “A Dynamic Model of Customers' Usage of Services: Usage as an Antecedent and Consequence of Satisfaction ,” Journal of Marketing Research, 36 (May), 171-86.
5.
Dambrun, Michaël and Serge Guimond (2004), “Implicit and Explicit Measures of Prejudice and Stereotyping: Do They Assess the Same Underlying Knowledge Structure? ” European Journal of Social Psychology, 34, 663-76.
6.
Eagly, Alice H. and Shelly Chaiken (1993), The Psychology of Attitudes. Orlando, FL: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
7.
Edvardsson, Bo (1988), “Service Quality in Customer Relationships: A Study of Critical Incidents in Mechanical Engineering Companies,” The Service Industries Journal, 4 (July), 427-45.
8.
Fazio, Russel H. (1986), “How Do Attitudes Guide Behavior?” in Handbook of Motivation and Cognition: Foundations of Social Behavior , R. M. Sorrentino and E. T. Higgins, eds. New York: Guilford Press, 204-43.
9.
Fornell, Claes (1992), “A National Customer Satisfaction Barometer: The Swedish Experience,” Journal of Marketing,56 (1), 6-21.
10.
Ganesh, Jaishankar, Mark J. Arnold, and Kristy E. Reynolds (2000), “Understanding the Customer Base of Service Providers: An Examination of the Differences between Switchers and Stayers,” Journal of Marketing,64 (3), 65-87.
11.
Garbarino, Ellen and Mark S. Johnson (1999), “The Different Roles of Satisfaction, Trust, and Commitment in Consumer Relationships,” Journal of Marketing,63 (2), 70-87.
12.
Gopinath, C. (2005), “Recognizing Decline: The Role of Triggers ,” Mid-American Journal of Business, 20 (1), 21-7.
13.
Gustafsson, Anders and Michael D. Johnson (2002), “Measuring and Managing the Satisfaction-Loyalty-Performance Links at Volvo,” Journal of Targeting , Measurement and Analysis for Marketing, 10 (3), 249-58.
14.
———, ———, and Inger Roos (2005), “Managing Customer Satisfaction, Image, and Strength of Relationship across Switching Paths,” Journal of Marketing, 69 (4), 210-18.
15.
Hastie, Reid and Bernadette Park (1986), “The Relationship between Memory and Judgment Depends on Whether the Judgment Task Is Memory-Based or On-Line,” Psychological Review,93 (3), 258-68.
16.
Jackson, Linda A., Linda A. Sullivan, and Philip D. Gardner (1992), “Explaining Gender Differences in Self-Pay Expectations: Social Comparison Standards and Perceptions of Fair Pay,” Journal of Applied Psychology, 77 (5), 651-54.
17.
Johnson, Michael D. and Fred Selnes (2004), “Customer Portfolio Management: Toward a Dynamic Theory of Exchange Relationships,” Journal of Marketing, 68 (2), 1-17.
18.
Keaveney, Susan M. (1995), “Customer Switching Behavior in Service Industries: An Exploratory Study,” Journal of Marketing , 59 (April), 71-82.
19.
LaBarbera, Priscilla A. and David Mazursky (1983), “A Longitudinal Assessment of Consumer Satisfaction/Dissatisfaction: The Dynamic Aspect of the Cognitive Process,” Journal of Marketing Research, 20 (November), 393-404.
20.
Lee, Thomas W., Terence R. Mitchell, Lowell Wise, and Steven Fireman (1996), “An Unfolding Model of Voluntary Employee Turnover,” Academy of Management Journal, 39 (1), 5-36.
21.
Liljander, Veronica (1994), “Modeling Perceived Service Quality Using Different Comparison Standards,” Journal of Consumer Satisfaction, Dissatisfaction and Complaining Behavior,7, 126-42.
22.
Meyer, Robert J. (1987), “The Learning of Multiattribute Judgment Policies,” Journal of Consumer Research, 14 (September), 155-73.
23.
Mittal, Vikas and Wagner A. Kamakura (2001), “Satisfaction, Repurchase Intent, and Repurchase Behavior: Investigating the Moderating Effect of Customer Characteristics,” Journal of Marketing Research, 38 (1), 131-42.
24.
Morgan, Robert M. and Shelby D. Hunt (1994), “The Commitment—Trust Theory of Relationship Marketing,” Journal of Marketing,58 (July), 20-38.
25.
Morris, Michael H. and Jeanne L. Holman (1988), “Source Loyalty in Organizational Markets: A Dyadic Perspective,” Journal of Business Research, 16 (2), 117-31.
26.
Parasuraman, A., Valarie A. Zeithaml, and Leonard L. Berry (1994), “Reassessment of Expectations as a Comparison Standard in Measuring Service Quality: Implications for Further Research,” Journal of Marketing,58 (January), 111-24.
27.
Park, C. Whan and Banwari Mittal (1985), “A Theory of Involvement in Consumer Behavior: Problems and Issues,” Research in Consumer Behavior , 1, 201-31.
28.
Park, Jong-Won and Choi Jiho (1998), “Potential Moderators for Comparison Standards in Consumer Satisfaction Formation: Some Exploratory Findings,” Advances in Consumer Research, 25 (1), 124-32.
29.
Pettigrew, Andrew M. (1992), “The Strategy and Significance of Strategy Process Research,” Strategic Management Journal, 13, 5-16.
30.
Reichheld, Frederick F. (1996), The Loyalty Effect: The Hidden Force behind Growth, Profits, and Lasting Value, with Thomas Teal. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
31.
Reinartz, Werner J. and V. Kumar (2003), “The Impact of Customer Relationship Characteristics on Profitable Lifetime Duration,” Journal of Marketing,67 (January), 77-99.
32.
Roos, Inger (1999), “Switching Processes in Customer Relationships ,” Journal of Service Research,2 (1), 376-93.
33.
———, Bo Edvardsson, and Anders Gustafsson (2004), “Customer Switching Patterns in Competitive and Non-Competitive Service Industries,” Journal of Service Research,6 (3), 256-71.
34.
———, Anders Gustafsson, and Bo Edvardsson (2005), “The Role of Customer Clubs in Recent Telecom Relationships,” International Journal of Service Industry Management, 16 (5), 436-54.
35.
———, ———, and ——— (2006) “Defining Service Quality for Customer-Driven Business Development—A Housing-Mortgage Company Case,” The International Journal of Service Industry Management, 17 (2), 207-23.
36.
Rust, Roland T., J. Jeffery Inman, Jianmin Jia, and Anthony Zahorik (1999), “What You Don't Know about Customer-Perceived Quality: The Role of Customer Expectation Distributions ,” Marketing Science, 18 (1), 77-92.
37.
———, Valerie A. Zeithaml, and Katherine N. Lemon (2000), Driving Customer Equity: How Customer Value Is Reshaping Corporate Strategy. New York: Free Press.
38.
Schrader, Brian W. and Dirk D. Steiner (1996), “Common Comparison Standards: An Approach to Improving Agreement between Self and Supervisory Performance Ratings,” Journal of Applied Psychology , 81 (6), 813-901.
39.
Stauss, Bernd (1993), “Using the Critical Incident Technique in Measuring and Managing Service Quality,” in The Service Quality Handbook, E. Scheuing and William F. Christopher, eds. New York : American Management Association, 408-27.
40.
Van de Ven, Andrew (1992), “Suggestions for Studying Strategy Process: A Research Note,” Strategic Management Journal, 13, 169-88.
41.
Vickery, William E. and Morris Edward Opler (1948), “A Redefinition of Prejudice for Purposes of Social Science Research,” Human Relations, 1, 419-28.
