These are the educator slides that summarise a publication customer misbehaviour in access based services (like car sharing) that has been published in the the Journal of Service Research. Abstract: Customer misbehavior in service settings is problematic for two reasons: (1) because of the direct damage it causes and (2) because of additional negative effects that arise from the contagion of such misbehavior. The authors extend existing theory of customer misbehavior by studying its contagious effect. The investigation focuses on access-based services, defined as transactions in which multiple consumers successively gain temporal, short-term access to a good, while legal ownership remains with the service provider (e.g., car sharing and fashion rentals). Due to the nature of these services, they are especially prone to indirect customer misbehavior, which is directed at the accessed product and occurs in the absence of others. Two online experiments provide the first empirical evidence for a contagiousness of misbehavior and reveal that this effect is driven by customers’ perceptions of the social norms among the customer group. Moreover, they indicate that greater strength of the accessed product’s brand as well as lower anonymity of the accessed product’s owner attenuate contagion. A field experiment shows that an increase in the communal identification among access-based service customers reverses the contagious effect, with customers more likely to remove signs of previous users’ misbehavior. The results suggest that access-based service providers should address customer misbehavior by (a) investing in the products they offer access to, (b) establishing more personal relationships with customers, and, foremost, (c) increasing communal identification among customers.

1. 1
Contagious effects of customer
misbehavior in Access Based Services
Schaefers, T./Wittkowski, K./Benoit, S./Ferraro, R.
Journal of Service Research, 19 (1), 3-21.

2. Customer misbehavior in service settings is problematic because:
– Causes direct damage
– Causes additional negative effects that arise from the contagion of
misbehavior
Types of Misbehavior
– Direct misbehavior: verbal/physical abuse; cutting the
queue; unwarranted complaining
– Indirect misbehavior: in absence of employee or other
customer, behavior directed at the service
Contagiousness effects of customer misbehavior in Access-Based Services 2
Why should we care about customer misbehavior?
Relevance: Customer misbehavior in service settings
Source: Schaefers, T./Wittkowski, K./Benoit, S./Ferraro, R. (2016), Contagious Effects of Customer
Misbehavior in Access-Based Services, Journal of Service Research, 19 (1), 3-21.
Read the entire article at doi: 10.1177/1094670515595047

3. Broken Windows Theory (Kelling and Wilson 1982)
– Predicts contagion of misconduct
– Postulates that urban decay (vandalized
urban environments) signals previous
misconduct and spawns criminal activities;
directly witnessing misbehavior is not
required
– Suggests encountering signs of previous
customer’s misbehavior is contagious
– Disordered environmental conditions offer a
cue that exhibiting similar misbehavior is
perceived to be normal (social norm)
Contagiousness effects of customer misbehavior in Access-Based Services 3
Would one broken window in a street be contagious?
Theoretical foundation: Broken Windows Theory
Source: Schaefers, T./Wittkowski, K./Benoit, S./Ferraro, R. (2016), Contagious Effects of Customer
Misbehavior in Access-Based Services, Journal of Service Research, 19 (1), 3-21.
Read the entire article at doi: 10.1177/1094670515595047

4. Contagiousness effects of customer misbehavior in Access-Based Services 4
Would the Broken Windows Theory hold in customers in “normal” service settings?
Studies: Customer misbehavior in Access-Based Services
Online Experiment with Questionnaire
363 German respondents of an online
panel, experiment tested contagious
effect of misbehavior; social norms and
brand strength as buffers (moderators)
of misbehaviors
Online Experiment with Questionnaire
352 German respondents of an online
panel, experiment tested contagious
effect of previous misbehavior and
product’s owner anonymity as a
buffers (moderator) of misbehaviors
Field Experiment
41 German students, experiment
tested contagious effect of previous
misbehavior and communal
identification among customers as a
buffer of misbehavior
Previous misbehavior increases misbehavior
(contagiousness)
Misbehavior increases when customers
believe it to be a social norm, i.e. “normal”
Perception that others engage in misbehavior
drives misbehavior contagion
Strong product brand acts as a buffer for
contagiousness of prior misbehavior
High communal identification reverses
misbehavior contagion; low communal
identification showed no contagion found
(in this study)
Agrees with study 1 findings; prior misbehavior
increases subsequent misbehavior
Stronger perception of misbehaver being the
social norm, which mediates contagion.
When the owner is an identified individual,
previous misbehavior is almost offset
Study 3
Study 1
Study 2
Source: Schaefers, T./Wittkowski, K./Benoit, S./Ferraro, R. (2016), Contagious Effects of Customer
Misbehavior in Access-Based Services, Journal of Service Research, 19 (1), 3-21.
Read the entire article at doi: 10.1177/1094670515595047

5. One customer who misbehaves causes other customers to engage in
similar misconduct. Following three buffers allow the reduction of
misbehavior to keep other customers from being affected.
Contagiousness effects of customer misbehavior in Access-Based Services 5
How Can Providers Combat Misbehavior Contagion?
Implications: Factors that buffer misbehavior contagion
Identified Buffers to Misbehavior
Contagion
Invest in brand building and
product maintenance
Decrease service provider
anonymity
Enhance identification with
community
Suggestions On How to Correct
Behavior
Use strong brands to reduce
contagiousness
Aim for more personal customer
relationship
Build a sense of brand community
Source: Schaefers, T./Wittkowski, K./Benoit, S./Ferraro, R. (2016), Contagious Effects of Customer
Misbehavior in Access-Based Services, Journal of Service Research, 19 (1), 3-21.
Read the entire article at doi: 10.1177/1094670515595047