The Link Between Causal Attribution and Recovery Satisfaction in Mobile Money Transaction Failures: The Mediating Role of Negative Emotions

• Published in: Tržište 2020-01, Vol.32 (2), p.169-185
• Main Authors: Hussein Malombe, Hamza, Choudhury, Deepjyoti
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Business Economy / Management; controllability; emerging economy; Emerging markets; Emotions; mobile money; negative emotions; Questionnaires; recovery satisfaction; Socio-Economic Research; stability
• ISSN: 0353-4790; 1849-1383
• DOI: 10.22598/mt/2020.32.2.169

Purpose – Despite the remarkable growth and importance of mobile money technology, there are reported concerns about transaction failures. This research study evaluates customer perception of and response to transaction failures and recovery in an emerging market context. Specifically, the study proposes a model to analyze the direct effect of causal attribution of mobile money transaction failure, employing dimensions of controllability and stability on recovery satisfaction as well as indirect effects through negative emotions. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected through an online survey using a structured questionnaire on 344 mobile money subscribers who experienced transaction failures in the past six months.Findings and implications – The hypotheses of this research study were tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS 3 software. The study found that both the causal attribution dimensions of controllability and stability significantly influenced negative emotions and recovery satisfaction. Besides, negative emotions significantly influenced recovery satisfaction. The results also revealed that negative emotions mediate the relationship between causal attribution and recovery satisfaction. Therefore, service providers are advised to reduce preventable and stable transaction failures. Limitation – Since there was no database of mobile money subscribers who experienced transaction failures, a public online survey with screening questions was employed. Respondents filled in the questionnaire based on voluntary response, so care should be employed when generalizing. Originality – This is one of the few studies on service failure in an emerging market. It is the first time that attribution theory has been applied as the main theory to explain the perception of and response to transaction failures in a mobile money setting.