Satisfaction as a function of user justice: a social exchange theory perspective

ABSTRACT

This study investigates complaint behaviour as a function of post-satisfaction behaviour stemming from perceptions of justice and security. Grounded in social exchange theory, we propose an integrated framework in which security, expectation confirmation, and dimensions of justice (distributive, procedural, and interactional) influence satisfaction, affecting complaint behaviour towards the eCommerce Digital Supply Chain (DSC) process. Data were collected through a quantitative online survey involving 316 Amazon eShoppers of tech products from the European region. The confirmatory factor analysis results validated the second-order reflective justice construct, encompassing distributive, procedural, and interactional dimensions. Furthermore, the structural relationship results revealed (i) justice and security have a significant impact on eShoppers’ satisfaction; (ii) a significant relationship exists between word of mouth, satisfaction, and eShoppers’ complaint intention. This framework contributes to the existing knowledge base and offers valuable insights for stakeholders in the eCommerce DSC.

KEYWORDS:

• Justice
• security
• complaint intention
• digital supply chain

Acknowledgements

The earlier short paper version is presented at the 20th conference of the Italian Chapter of AIS (itAIS 2023), October 13 and 14, 2023, Turin, Italy. http://www.itais.org/itais2023-proceedings/pdf/ItAIS2023_paper_36.pdf

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Mehwish Waheed

Mehwish Waheed (PhD) is an Associate Professor of Management Information System at Institut Mines-Télécom Business School, Université Paris-Saclay, Paris France. Her research interests focus on innovative digital systems, business intelligence and analytics, artificial intelligence, digital transformation, and industry 4.0. Her research work publishes in the Decision Support System, Information Technology & People, Internet Research, and Journal of Computer Assisted Learning. Previously, she was an AvH Post-Doc at Technische Universität, Dortmund, Germany.

Noor Ul-Ain

Noor Ul-Ain (PhD) is an information systems management assistant professor at Léonard de Vinci Pôle Universitaire, Research Center, Paris La Défense, France. Her research interest includes information system adoption and use, business intelligence and analytics, and digital transformation and systems. Her research work has been published in Decision Support Systems, Information Technology & People, Information Development, and Behaviour & Information Technology. Previously, she worked as a research fellow at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Italy.

Jan Riezebos

Jan Riezebos (PhD) is a Professor in the department of Operations, Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Groningen, The Netherlands. He is Academic Director of Career Services and Corporate Relations and President of the European QRM center. He published in European Journal of Operational Research, Omega, Computers in Industry, and International Journal of Production Research. His areas of expertise are Educational Innovation, Operations Management, Process Optimisation, Pull system design (including Polca systems), and the application of Lean in education.

Patrick Mikalef

Patrick Mikalef is a Professor at the Department of Computer Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway. In the past, he has been a Marie Skłodowska-Curie post-doctoral research fellow working on the research project ‘Competitive Advantage for the Data-driven Enterprise’ (CADENT). His research interests focus on the strategic use of information systems and IT-business value in turbulent environments. He has published work in many international conferences and peer-reviewed journals mainly the Journal of Business Research, British Journal of Management, Information and Management, Decision Support Systems, and Information Systems Frontiers.