Examining Consumer Losses and Dissatisfaction Due to Broken Sales and Service Agreements

Abstract

A taxonomy of damages is proposed and is used as a basis for decomposing consumer dissatisfaction due to sales or service agreements that are broken by sellers or service providers. Sets of different circumstances surrounding broken deals are presented to respondents in order to assess the relationship between different types of damages (as well as the irresponsibility of the seller) upon dissatisfaction. Weights are obtained indicating the contribution of different factors to dissatisfaction. The results offer implications for understanding consumer dissatisfaction and mental accounting as well as for shaping the legal rules guiding damage awards. Methodologically, a decompositional approach (conjoint analysis) is found to be an effective way to determine the factors that contribute to dissatisfaction caused by complex and multiple damages.