Identification With the Retail Organization and Customer-Perceived Employee Similarity: Effects on Customer Spending

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Netemeyer, Richard G.; Heilman, Carrie M.; Maxham, James G., III
• 署名单位: University of Virginia
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0021-9010
• DOI: 10.1037/a0028792
• 发表日期: 2012
• 页码: 1049-1058
• 关键词: customer and employee identification; customer-perceived employee similarity; customer spending

摘要

Two constructs important to academicians and managers are the degree to which employees and customers identify with an organization, employee organizational identification (employee OI) and customer company identification (customer identification), respectively. This research examines the effects of these identification constructs and the related construct of customer perceived similarity to employees on customer spending. Via a 1-year multilevel study of 12,047 customers and 1,464 store employees (sales associates) covering 212 stores of a specialty apparel retailer, our study contributes to the literature in 2 critical ways. First, we expand the theoretical network of employee OI and customer identification by examining the related construct of a customer's perceived similarity to store employees. We examine the incremental (not fully mediated) main and interaction effects of customer-perceived similarity to employees and employee 01 on customer spending. Second, we examine the effect of customer identification on customer spending relative to the effect of customer satisfaction on customer spending. Thus, our study also contributes by demonstrating a potential complementary route to achieve customer spending (customer identification), a route that may be more readily affected by management than the efforts required for a sustained increase in customer satisfaction. Implications for academics and managers are offered.