A grounded theory study of factors and conditions associated with customer trust recovery in a retailer

Božič, B., Siebert, S. and Martin, G. (2020) A grounded theory study of factors and conditions associated with customer trust recovery in a retailer. Journal of Business Research, 109, pp. 440-448. (doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.12.032)

Abstract

Although in recent years academic interest in trust repair following a breach has grown significantly, we still know very little about how trust repair happens and in what contexts. This study focuses on customer trust repair following a major food adulteration scandal. Through a grounded theory study of customer experiences of real-life trust breakdown and recovery, we identify four factors (absence of further transgressions, positive personal experience with the retailer, the retailer’s normal functioning, and the normal behavior of other customers) and three contextual conditions (passage of time, institutional context, and immediate trust repair strategies) associated with customers’ trust recovery in food retailers. In addition, we show that trust recovery is not necessarily a direct result of the trustee’s trust repair activities, as theorized previously, before discussing the implications of our findings for theory and practice.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Bozic, Mr Branko and Martin, Professor Graeme and Keston-Siebert, Professor Sabina
• Authors: Božič, B., Siebert, S., and Martin, G.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School; College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Management
• Journal Name: Journal of Business Research
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 0148-2963
• ISSN (Online): 1873-7978
• Published Online: 28 December 2019
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc.
• First Published: First published in Journal of Business Research 109: 440-448
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy