Underlying Mechanisms of Brand Feedback's Mixed Effects in E-Commerce: Roles of Perceived Controllability, Stability, and Brand Trust

The study (N = 879) investigated underlying mechanisms of the effects of brand feedback (a business' written response) to negative electronic word of mouth (eWOM) messages (e.g., online product reviews) using the theoretical framework of the attribution theory. Findings suggest that brand feedback can positively (via an indirect route) as well as negatively (via a direct route) affect prospective consumers' purchase intentions. Brand feedback positively affects purchase intentions in part through a reduction in consumers' perceptions of the brand's volitional control over the problem (controllability) and long-lasting nature (stability) of the cause of the problem described in a negative eWOM. Brand trust also partially mediates these indirect positive effects.