Online reservation and billing

1. Project RationaleComputer today is a vital tool for the management of information within the organization. Today, most of the hotels and resorts provide goods and services using computer system. It helps to perform task in an easy way with less time consumed. Some companies become fully automated while others strive for the similar setting. Today, many systems have used an automation process like using computer system, due to the efficient and accuracy. Hotel Reservation System with Billing System and automated SMS is proposed to help the company to reduce some common problems that exist. This system will help the establishment as regards to their online reservation system. The main function of the proposed online reservation system is to help the company to promote, advertise and easy booking for the guest, will also make their operation efficient and effective.The proponents conduct a study towards the topic because we noticed some of the hotels and resorts are using online hote l reservation system while the Cliffside Resort is still using manual reservation. Therefore, the proponents aim to find out how to increase the number of customer using computerize online reservation and with billing system and automated SMS. The hotel reservation system will provide service to online customers, travel agents, and an administrator.Online customers and travel agents can make searches, reservations and cancel an existing reservation on the hotel reservation’s web site. It helps the customer to reserve rooms through the internet, see the available rooms; the rates of it and at the same time the system will automatically total the rate of the reserved room. Administrator can add/update the hotel and the room information approve/disapprove a new travel agent’s account application and generate a monthly occupancy rate report for the hotel. The online reservation system with billing system aims to simplify the manual reservation faster and accurate.The study aims to develop a computerized operation at Cliffside Resort to improve efficiency of its daily business transactions thus, enhancing the quality of service for its guests. This chapter will cover the background of the company and the problems that confront the company in relation to operations.2. Project Description2.1 Statement of the Problem2.1.1 General ProblemHotel customers choose important considerations in choosing a place to stay like location, price/value and service. These are very important because these are the primary basis of a customer to be attracted in that business. Since the researchers found out that manual procedure are still used in processing their billing and reservation transactions, it greatly affects their customer’s need.2.1.2 Specific Problem2.1.2.1 Difficulty in location of guest files: due to the large number of guests’ files, location of guest files during checking in, updating of daily expenditures, receipt generation and checking out is extremely difficult for the hotel employees.2.1.2.2 Large storage space: the physical files occupy too much space of about two rooms full of storage cabinets. This occupies the hotel’s space that could have otherwise been used for income generation by the hotel.2.1.2.3 Human and computational errors: many errors enabled by the present system, which is the manual system, due to tedious computations required during data processing cost the hotel management heavily.2.1.2.4 The hotel billing statement doesn’t provide specific or detailed information regarding on customer’s payment or charges.2.1.2.5 Complains from guests: due to poor management of documents encouraged by the manual system, several cases were reported where guests complained of overcharging, charging of services not used by the guests.2.1.2.6 Poor communication: due to poor communication between the departments, guests are often served with services they didn’t order.2.1.2.7 Difficulty in data analysis: The accountants usually found it difficult to analyze the guests’ data during generation of expenditure bills due to missing of some records.2.1.2.8 Inefficient monitoring of room’s availability.3. Proposed Project Research3.1.1 General ObjectivesOur goal is to provide software system that helps Cliffside Resort to increase revenue because it saves processing time and helps to provide better management for room reservation booking system. To create a Webpage Development Information System of the hotel; to provide a secured database storage for the hotel information; for fast and accurate processing in promoting Hotel Web Information Development System; and to provide a communication of the guest through Internet.3.1.2 Specific ObjectivesThe study aims to develop and improve the existing manual reservation system of Cliffside Resort. The study intends to carry out the following specific objectives:3.1.2.1 To enable online booking via the internet.3.1.2.2 To enable automated data entry methods.3.1.2.3 Ensure efficient and reliable communication within the hotel.3.1.2.4 To be able to add and update the admin users, rooms, and services that is only accessible by the administrator.3.1.2.5 To be able to display the entire guest in terms of information.3.1.2.6 To be able to provide an easiness of reservation for online and walk-in guests.3.1.2.7 To be able to impart accuracy in terms of allowing the system in terms of adding of guests, viewing of the available room and adding of bills.3.1.2.8 To be able to generate cash-in report by month that is only accessible by the administrator.3.1.2.9 Enforce security measures to avoid unauthorized access to guest records.3.1.2.10 Enable fast and easy retrieval of guest records and data for fast reference activities.

Customer Complaint Behavior

Consumers’ complaint behaviour. Taxonomy, typology and determinants: Towards a uni? ed ontology Received (in revised form): 16th August, 2003 Dominique Crie ? is Professor of marketing at the University of Sciences and Technologies of Lille, in the Business Administration Department (IAE). He manages the postgraduate degree course: statistical specialisation for marketing databases. He is also a marketing consultant and statistician, member of the Association Francaise de Marketing and of the Societe Francaise de Statistiques. ? ? ? ?His research focuses on the customer relationship, particularly in relation to satisfaction, loyalty and retention. Abstract Complaint behaviour is a set of consumer dissatisfaction responses. It is an explicit expression of dissatisfaction, but dissatisfaction is only one determinant of this behaviour. Complaint behaviour can be analysed as various types of response but also as a process. This paper proposes an integrated framework of the various theories of complaint behaviour leading toward a uni? ed ontology and to interpreting it from a new perspective. Dominique Crie ?IAE de Lille, 104, Avenue du Peuple Belge, 59 043 Lille Cedex, ? France. Tel: 33 (0)3 20 12 34 64; Fax: 33 (0)3 20 12 34 48; E-mail: [email  protected] com INTRODUCTION This paper reviews a concept still relatively rarely considered by companies: consumer complaint behaviour. Within the framework of the relationship paradigm, complaint behaviour is a powerful signal which companies should take into account. On the one hand, it gives an organisation a last chance to retain the customer, if the organisation reacts appropriately, on the other hand it is a legitimate and ethical act toward the consumer.Generally, but not exclusively, complaint behaviour is one of the responses to perceived dissatisfaction in the post-purchase phase. In the ? rst section of the paper, a taxonomy of response styles used by dissatis? ed consumers is proposed. Then consumer com plaint behaviour (CCB) is de? ned and situated with regard to these various types of response. Finally, after clustering ‘complainers’ and ‘non-complainers’, this paper tries to track down the main dimensions of the CCB taxonomy through a structuralisation of its determinants within a diachronic approach — the objective being to propose a clari? d conceptual and theoretical framework to integrate the large variety of works on the subject. The conclusion highlights a synthesis of this conceptual structure with regard to a uni? ed ontology. A TAXONOMY OF THE TYPES OF RESPONSE TO DISSATISFACTION A dissatis? ed consumer may adopt several types of response, classi? cation of which may be delicate. The taxonomy of responses ? rst requires a distinction between the notions of response and of action to be established. Indeed, the term ‘action’ implies a very speci? c behaviour, 60Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60â €“79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003) Consumers’ complaint behaviour Table 1: A taxonomy of the types of response to dissatisfaction Towards enitity Response type Behavioural Public (Sellers, manufacturers, of? cial organisations, associations, justice) Complaint Legal action Return of the item Request for repair No action, with or without modi? cation of the attitude Forget or forgive Private (Family, friends, relations) Word of mouth Boycott/leaving Non-behavioural hile the term ‘response’ contains several modalities which are not exclusively behavioural, notably change of attitude or inactivity. This distinction establishes a ? rst dimension. The second is represented by the entities towards which responses are directed: the public one includes sellers, manufacturers and consumer associations or legal action; the private one includes family, friends or relatives. Finally, responses show different intensities according to the two previous dimensions. Responses may vary from inactivity to legal action — either simply to express dissatisfaction or to obtain repair or compensation (Table 1).The heterogeneity of these various response types may be partially explained by the cause and intensity of dissatisfaction and by the nature and importance of the product or service of concern. On the other hand, consumers may mix or connect several response types for the same dissatisfaction. This aspect is relatively neglected by the literature, although Hirschman1 notes that complaint and exit are not two symmetric elements: when a customer leaves the company, he/she loses ‘the opportunity’ to use their voice, while if he/she uses the complaint ? rst, he/she is always free to leave later if the complaint does not succeed.So exit can be a substitute for and complement to a complaint. The more expensive and complex the product, the more consumers are inclined to initiate public action, however the greater likelih ood is that they will stay inactive or choose private action. 2–4 The authors of the ? rst stream of literature are numerous, but Hirschman’s work remains standard in the conceptualisation of responses to dissatisfaction through the model ‘Exit, Voice and Loyalty’. Exit is an active and destructive response to dissatisfaction, exhibited by a break of the relationship with the object (brand, product, retailer, supplier. . ). The verbal response (Voice) is a constructive response with an expectation of change in an organisation’s practices, policies and responses; it is characterised by complaints towards friends, consumer associations and relevant organisations. The third type of response (Loyalty) has two aspects, constructive and passive, the individual hoping that things will evolve in a positive way. For Brown and Swartz,5 it is especially a feeling of impotence that is the cause of this behavioural loyalty. ‘The neglect of the incident and the inherent inactivity’ can, however, be considered as evidence for loyalty.Research designed to explain the various types of response to dissatisfaction is limited. Scales have been created for this purpose by Day et al. 6 but they are without methodological and Henry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 61 Crie ? psychometric validation. Only Bearden and Teel7 have investigated the various types of response using a Guttman scale. The data are collected from ? ve items of increasing intensity: (1) family and friends warning, (2) return of the item and/or complaint, (3) contact with the manufacturer, (4) contact with consumer associations or of? ial organisations and (5) legal action, notably when the customer does not obtain satisfaction with the seller. 8 Empirically validated, this scale does not, however, take into account the non-behavioural responses highlighted by previous research, and a sin gle item relates to private action. 9 Of a rather formative nature, every item contributes in its own way to the development of the intensity of the responses. Day10 con? rms the relevance of the use of such a scale. The main aim of this taxonomy is to clarify the various responses a dissatis? d consumer could use, in order to track down more precisely those which the company can observe directly. DEFINING CONSUMER COMPLAINT BEHAVIOUR Among the various types of response to dissatisfaction, some of them more direcly concern CCB. The ? rst conceptual base of this phenomenon concerning post-purchase was stated at the end of the 1970s. 11 Jacoby and Jaccard12 de? ne it as ‘an action begun by the individual who entails a communication of something negative to a product (service), either towards the company or towards a third entity’. For Day et al. 13 it is the consequence ‘of a given act of consumption, following which the consumer is confronted with an experience gen erating a high dissatisfaction, of suf? cient impact so that it is, neither likened psychologically, nor quickly forgotten’. Fornell and Wernerfelt14 consider that the complaint is ‘an attempt of the customer to change an unsatisfactory situation’. Finally, Singh15 suggests that this behaviour, activated at an emotional or sentimental level by a perceived dissatisfaction, is part of the more general framework of responses to dissatisfaction which consists of two dimensions (see also Day and Landon16).The ? rst dimension, grounded completely or in part in actions initiated by the consumer (conveying expression of his/her dissatisfaction not only to the seller, but also to third parties, friends or relations17,18), is behavioural but does not necessarily entail action towards the company; it is essentially within this dimension that CCB should be considered. The second dimension refers to absence of action by the consumer, for example when he/she forgets a generati ve episode of dissatisfaction. 19,20 In this way, CCB must, rather, be conceived as a process, ie its ? al manifestation does not directly depend on its initiating factors but on evaluation of the situation by the consumer and of its evolution over time. So, CCB really constitutes a subset of all possible responses to perceived dissatisfaction around a purchase episode, during consumption or during possession of the good (or service). In fact, the notion of ‘complaint behaviour’ includes a more general terminology which also involves the notions of protest, communication (word of mouth) or recommendation to third parties21 and even the notion of boycott.This notion is conceptually inserted in a set of explicit demonstrations, generally towards the seller, of a consumer’s dissatisfaction. It seems then that it is necessary to include in the de? nition of CCB a set of responses, heterogeneous in their targets — the study of this behaviour not being separable from understanding of all the responses to dissatisfaction. 62 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003) Consumers’ complaint behaviour DISSATISFACTION Behavioural response Non-behavioural response Towards company Perceptible by the companyTowards market Not perceptible by the company Inactivity Change of attitude Complaint Legal action Leaving Negative word of mouth Repeat purchase or behavioural loyalty Simple complaint Repair compensation Figure 1: Responses to dissatisfaction and complaint behaviour In the rest of this paper, therefore, the term ‘complaint behaviour’ is used in the conceptual meaning of a public behavioral response to dissatisfaction. So, for a company, only part of these responses will be perceptible, including complaint in the sense described previously (Figure 1). On the other hand, it is the retailer who will be most affected by CCB.The manufacturer is se ldom sought out, so such crucial information reaches him only rarely, and often not at all. 22,23 A TYPOLOGY OF DISSATISFIED CONSUMERS Several authors have tried to individualise groups of consumers with regard to the type of response adopted in the wider framework of dissatisfaction. Most researchers offer a ‘normative typology’ within which the ‘complainers’ can be placed but without really distinguishing particular groups. These are opposed to the ‘non-complainers’,24–27 in this way these works are more concerned with responses to dissatisfaction than CCB in its strict sense.They are poor in terms of possible categories and are not grounded in a rigorous analysis of response styles. Certain typologies nevertheless allow a few speci? c behaviours in the expression of CCB to be extracted, for example the ‘irritated actives’,28,29 the ‘activists’,30 the ‘complainers’, the ‘irates’,31 th e ‘voicers’,32 the ‘slightly offended’ or the ‘champions’. 33 For Hirschman34 the complaint must be considered as feedback on the quality delivered by the company, the ‘complainers’ are called ‘alert customers’ (because they allow the company to improve the product or service) asHenry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 63 Crie ? Table 2: Main types of complainers Behaviour Complaint (prostestation) Public action Voicers Champions Complainers Authors Dart and Freeman Weiser36 Etzel37 Shuptrine38 Bearden39 Day40 Gronhaug and Zaltman41 Singh42 Keng43 Masson44 Warland45 Singh46 Weiser47 Pfaff48 Warland49 Singh50 Dart51 Lost in action Weiser55 35 Private action Slightly offended Irates Authors Weiser52 Dart53 Singh54Request for repair Measures of retaliation Active upsets Irritated Detractors Activists opposed to ‘inert customers’. Th e complaint is then a factor of enhancement for company performance. Taken as a whole the typology of dissatis? ed consumers overlaps with that of the responses to dissatisfaction and develops its structure at the same time as the intensity of the CCB modalities chosen by consumers, going from simple complaint to retaliatory measures in a register of public or private actions (Table 2).Generally speaking, the various typologies outlined do not allow retailers or manufacturers to appreciate the complexity and variety of CCB in order to respond in an effective way, but it is likely that certain behaviours will be more speci? c in a given situation. For example, within the framework of a dissatisfaction bound to durable goods (high price and high commitment), one would tend to observe among ‘complainers’ a stronger proportion of ‘irritated actives’ or ‘irates’. In a weakly competitive market they will tend to be ‘activists’.If the usu al quality level of products is weak, ‘detractors’ and ‘irates’ will be observed. Finally, within the framework of a well-established relationship a majority of ‘champions’ or ‘slightly offended people’ would be expected. TOWARDS A DIACHRONIC APPROACH TO CCB The literature does not propose a systematisation in the organisation of antecedents and determinants of CCB. This de? ciency is essentially due to the fact that CCB is regarded as an immediate act and not as a process. In fact, this concept lacks a clearly identi? ed theoretical framework which allows the rganisation of a heterogeneous set of factors that initiate and modulate it and which can take into account resemblances and differences that also comply with the more global notion of dissatisfaction responses. Indeed, an ambiguity in the study of CCB results from the fact that it should not include, by semantic de? nition, the non-behavioural aspect of responses to dissatis faction or customers leaving. The 64 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003) Consumers’ complaint behaviour iachronic nature of the phenomenon of complaint could probably explain similarities and differences which exist between these two concepts. The number of implied variables strengthens the idea that CCB is not an instantaneous phenomenon, it is the outcome of a process of preliminary evaluations under the in? uence of initiating and modulating factors. This approach also raises the question of the effect of time on a consumer’s initial impulse to complain. CCB occurs after increasing re? ection by the consumer. 56–57 and Stephens and Gwinner,58 offer the ? rst longitudinal approach to CCB on the basis of in-depth interviews.For them, CCB results from a double cognitive evaluation. 59 The ? rst is de? ned as a process by which the individual estimates how much in? uence a p articular situation, in a given environment, has on his/her well being. The second may be analysed as a problem resolution strategy. The CCB depends then on the situation and on the psychological resources of the individuals. Within this framework, it is then relevant to think that generally the intention to complain or protest must occur at the same time as dissatisfaction and under the in? uence of initiating factors.This primary intention is then the object of various distorting or modulating factors meaning that the ? nal outcome is often different from that intended, it can be highly altered or just not come about at all. This idea then leads to the consideration of a number of non-behavioural responses to dissatisfaction or responses not perceptible by the company (cf. Figure 1) as being in some way failed CCBs. It is thus relevant to analyse how this intention arises and changes over time. After a phase of initiation represented by the initial level of dissatisfaction, then a phase of re? ction necessary for the integration of its cause and for the evaluation of the possible responses, there follows a phase of decision and of action which will in fact re? ect only the residual dissatisfaction at the conclusion of the process. This remaining dissatisfaction can nevertheless be reinforced to reach a higher level than that of the initial dissatisfaction, for example if the consumer is strengthened in his/her decision, either by the problem worsening, by the salesperson’s attitude or by the encouragement of third parties. In that case, measures taken by the consumer can be more signi? ant than those initially intended. Nevertheless the process does not stop with the voicing of the complaint, it also includes evaluation of the company’s response and concludes with the ? nal behaviour which ensues from it (repurchase or exit). It is then advisable to restore, in a diachronic framework, various streams of literature whose main object is to explai n the result of this process. Indeed, when researchers take time into account in CCB, it is essentially the available time to protest that is considered60 and not the period separating the episode of dissatisfaction from the response to it.But, the procedural knowledges are connected in time. They echo information relative to processes, that is to say sequences of actions, or sequences of reasoning in the sense that they order, or at least structure, the progress of several operations, possibly several procedures. This cognitive approach to complaint behaviour places it totally within the framework of a decision process. TOWARDS AN INTEGRATION OF THE VARIOUS ANTECEDENTS AND DETERMINANTS OF CCB In a simplistic way and besides its diachronic aspect, it is possible to distinguish within the conceptual part of the literature related to the determinantsHenry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 65 Crie ? Psycholo gical sphere – Sociocultural factors – Frustration/assurance – Learning – Attribution – Attitude/complaint – Experiences – Educational level DISSATISFACTION Negative word of mouth Economic sphere – Structure of the market – Frequency of purchases – Interactions buyer / seller – Costs of the complaint – Probability of success – Expected profit – Incomes – Switching barriers – Equity – Loyalty – InformationTYPE OF RESPONSE Complaint Legal action Inactivity Leaving Ethical sphere Figure 2: Antecedents and determinants of CCB of CCB, three spheres of factors which interact with different weights to lead, eventually, to CCB or to other modalities of response to dissatisfaction such as de? ned above. The psychological sphere is made up of individual variables re? ecting the propensity to CCB. The economic sphere groups together elements of cost and exchange structu res. Finally, the ethical sphere incorporates transactional equity, concentrating on the erception of the value of the link with the company and on the accuracy and helpfulness of the information given, for example, regarding ways to resolve the disputes, etc (Figure 2). On the other hand, the diachronic approach to CCB requires its various antecedents and determinants to be anchored on two points: ? rst on the initiating factors and secondly on the factors modulating the mode of complaint. This point of view allows not only integration of the various explanatory theories and the synthesis described above but also for a short path to complaint to be distinguished from a long one.This distinction, notably, can take into account the role of time and of both types of factors on CCB. In a short path the in? uence of the modulating factors is less, the complaint occurring mostly at the sale point, almost simultaneously with delivery of the product or service. It is an immediate emotional reaction rather than an extended process. In a long, extended path, however, there are more modulating factors which seem to shape the type of response. (The variables of the ethical sphere work as initiators, those of the economic sphere have a modulator role and those of the psychological sphere can be classi? d as either type. ) On the whole, four entities are directly involved in CCB: the product or service, the customer, the supplier and the episode of dissatisfaction. These various actors allow, within the framework of a diachronic approach, the multiple antecedents and determinants of CCB (Table 3) to be re-ordered. 66 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003) Consumers’ complaint behaviour Table 3: Various determinants of CCB according to the stage and the actorStage of CB Actor Product/service Initiation of CB Dissatisfaction level Modulation of CB Structure of the market Alternative s Purchase rate Price, complexity of the product/service Attitude, Experience/CB Learning, Information/CB Loyalty Education, Age, Sex Ethnicity Way of life Secondary evaluation of response possibilities Absence of management of post purchase Ease of access to the company Switching barriers Switching costs Customer/seller interactions Size of the company, business sector Expected pro? t Transaction costs of CB Probability of success Importance of consumer organisations CustomerPerceived frustration Perceived inequity Assurance (self control) Will to act Primary evaluation of the dissatisfaction Supplier Quality defect Incident/product or service Episode Situation, circumstances Dissatisfaction attribution Time-spatial simultaneity of the dissatisfaction and response possibilities Initiating factors of CCB Several factors may lead to CCB. Introducing and determining, partly, a consumer’s choice of a given type of response to dissatisfaction, they allow on the one hand a better understanding of consumers’ motivation for CCB and, on the other hand, a forecast of what response will be the most likely to be adopted.Ordinarily consumers need to be dissatis? ed in order to complain but other variables are necessary to switch from dissatisfaction to complaint. Such variables may lie in attribution of the cause of dissatisfaction or in psychosociological characteristics of the individual consumer (see Table 3). Dissatisfaction Dissatisfaction is a necessary antecedent of CCB, but is often not suf? cient61,62 (see also Jacoby and Jaccard,63 Westbrook64 and Ping65 on the notion of complaint without dissatisfaction66). It is the activating factor of the process. 7 Besides, Oliver68 underlines the existing relationship between the intensity of the dissatisfaction and this behaviour. 69 Grandbois et al. ,70 Richins,71 Maute and Forrester72 prove that the gravity of the problem is correlated in a positive way with the various responses to dissatisfaction includi ng CCB. The more the dissatisfaction increases, the more the verbal complaint strengthens and the more the probability of leaving the company grows. For Singh and Pandya,73 the relationship ‘intensity-type of response’ is not linear and admits threshold effects.When the level of dissatisfaction exceeds a given threshold consumers tend to use either negative word of mouth or leaving or appeal to a third party. On the other hand, the relationship between attitude to the Henry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 67 Crie ? complaint and CCB itself can be modulated by the intensity of the dissatisfaction. 74–76 Attribution of the cause of the dissatisfaction Psychosociological factorsTo lead to CCB, the consumer has to identify clearly the party responsible for his or her dissatisfaction during a given consumption episode (Table 3). In numerous cases it is the consumer himself/herself, for ex ample when he/she judges he/she did not make the right choice. So, even if for Valle77 the attribution of responsibility for dissatisfaction operates as an intermediary between the confusion and the response which follow, it is advisable to classify it as an initiating factor of CCB. According to Weiner et al. 78 a success or failure can be attributed either to elements under the control of the individual (internal cause[s]), or to environment or situational factors (external cause[s]). On the other hand, the performance can be attributed to invariant factors (stable) or evolving with time (unstable). The type of attribution achieved by the consumer determines a priori the response that may be chosen. If an external attribution is necessary for a private type action, a legal action or a request for repair, in the case of an internal attribution it is especially inactivity which dominates. 9 Usually, consumers who perceive the cause of their dissatisfaction as being stable (the same problem may recur) or controllable (the individual thinks that the retailer could have prevented the trouble) are more inclined to leave the product or the company and to engage in negative word of mouth than those who think that the problem has little chance of recurring and that the supplier could not prevent it (see also Folkes80). Some individual characteristics are to be considered as initiators of CCB, although they can also play a modulating role according to the situation (Table 3).Fornell and Westbrook,81 according to Mischel,82 associate CCB with the feeling of frustration felt by a dissatis? ed consumer. Frustration arises not only when the objective assigned to a given behaviour is blocked or interrupted before its ful? lment, but also when the result achieved has a lower level than that sought, or when its realisation requires more resources than the consumer can, wants or expects to spend to reach the desired objective. This feeling is also present when the means to re ach the satisfaction, both at the resources level and at the wanted object level (product or brand), are reduced or suppressed.Along the same lines, frustration can arise in situations of purchase intention (unavailability of the product or of the brand) or in post-purchase situations (dissatisfaction of use or of ownership). The more substantial the frustration, the greater the risk of aggressiveness and CCB. For Stephens and Gwinner83 the stress of dissatisfaction adds to the daily stress and CCB is connected to a double evaluation of the situation during a cognitive process. Three constituents form the primary evaluation of the stress: (1) the level of modi? ation of the individual objectives; (2) the incongruity between these objectives and the incident; (3) the level of the person’s ego infringement (humiliation, self-esteem, ethical values). A second evaluation of possible response strategies is then initiated according to: (1) the responsibility attribution for the con fusion; (2) the possibility of solving the problem (capacities of the individual, probability of success); (3) the feeling that things will go better afterwards. If 68Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003) Consumers’ complaint behaviour the resulting stress of the primary evaluation can be reduced by a solving strategy (secondarily estimated), the probability of CCB is great. If, on the other hand, this strategy risks increasing the initial stress, the main probability turns out to be a non-behavioural response or a response towards the market (see Figure 1). Other individual characteristics may also in? ence the start of a complaint process,84 eg loyalty to the brand, product or supplier; the level of quality assessment, the educational level and tastes; the ability to detect quality differences (a function of experience) and the acquired level of information; perception of the ‘cost /pro? t’ ratio of the possible actions. For Lapidus and Pinkerton,85 the consumer–retailer relationship is one of social exchange and, therefore, equity theory may be applied in order to explain the initiation of CCB.The consumer compares his/her inputs/outputs ratio with those that he/she perceives to be received by the seller. Naturally this comparison can be biased according to the trend (positive or negative) of the revealed inequity. The complaint appears then as an attempt to reduce the perceived inequity (see also Blodgett et al. 86). Secondly, the costs inherent in the complaint and its perceived outcome can be considered as inputs and outputs of this theory. Finally, learning theory can also be mentioned: the inclination to CCB is essentially a function of past experiences87–90 and of their outcome. 1 Modulator factors of CCB Dissatisfaction can be organised around two congruent factors: the former is situational, the latter temporal. It can indeed occu r where the product is purchased or the service is delivered and thus be immediate, but it can also take place at a distance from the act of purchase. In the same way, the response to dissatisfaction can be either immediate or deferred. So the CCB can consist of rather a short path in the case of a dissatisfaction on the spot and of an immediate response, or a long circuit in the case of delayed dissatisfaction with regard to the purchase act or of a postponed response.It is then, especially in this last situation, that numerous variables can intervene to modify the consumer’s actual response, by moderating or aggravating it: ultimately the intensity of the CCB will thus depend on an evaluation of the situation during a temporal process. The market structure, sociocultural characteristics or evaluation of the various costs associated with CCB will act as modulators of the process outcome. The market structure The market structure can be regarded as an element in? uencing the response type choice adopted by a dissatis? ed consumer (see Table 3).For Hirschman,92 consumers are ready to voice their complaints in two circumstances: (1) the way they balance the certainty of leaving and the uncertainty of an improvement in the product or service quality and (2) the estimation they make of their capacity to in? uence the organisation by voicing their concerns. These two factors are far from being independent. Fornell and Didow93 situate CCB in the larger ? eld of rational choice — with the slight difference that choice in economic theory is in the pre-purchase period, while CCB is generally a post-purchase phenomenon.The objects of choice are also different: products and services in the ? rst case, type of response in the second. In this theoretical framework, they show that verbal action can be Henry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 69 Crie ? expressed as a preference functi on and as the possibility of purchasing elsewhere. Indeed, in a restricted competitive environment, verbal action will be the only possible action for a dissatis? ed consumer. 4,95 In contrast, when competitors are numerous, the customer’s leaving becomes the most likely reaction and his/her action is then situated at the market level (see Figure 1). Therefore, the market structure appears as a powerful determinant of CCB. On the other hand, and within this framework, sensitivity of the various customer segments, either to price or quality, shapes the dominant response type to dissatisfaction. Those sensitive to price may leave the company, those sensitive to quality are more inclined to complain. 6 It also seems that buyer–seller interaction frequency (ie purchase rate) plays a part in the preference for verbal action. 97 The more frequent these interactions the fewer the public actions. 98 On the other hand, Barksdale et al. 99 report that the lower the level of purc hase at the same supplier, the greater the tendency to CCB. New purchases lead to more complaints and the usual suppliers receive more complaints than the new ones. For Weiser,100 the degree of ease of access to the company and the willingness of the customer to complain are determining elements in the choice of a response type. In a more speci? way, Andreasen101 emphasises, within the framework of nearly monopolistic markets or markets perceived as such, that the response type is a function of the: perceived heterogeneity of the offer quality; level of knowledge; level of perceived switching costs; probability of success of a verbal action both for the individual and the community; supposed complaint level of other consumers; and the degree of loyalty to the product, brand or supplier. The attractiveness of the alternatives or the availability of substitutable goods shows a strong relationship with the response type adopted by the consumer. 02 In the same way, the more important th e company the more the number of complaints. 103,104 Day et al. 105 classify in three categories the factors which can in? uence the propensity to CCB: (1) the circumstances de? ning the interests at work and evaluation of the costs and likely pro? ts of a search for compensation; (2) the characteristics of the individuals or the situation surrounding the costs and the purely psychological pro? ts of alternative actions, as well as the general tendency of the mediation interventions; (3) market conditions and the legal climate.For Day et al. , this latter category determines the probability of a favourable outcome to the action taken. Generally speaking this type of action will also depend on the nature of the product or service, the usable channels of complaint and the third parties which could intervene. On the other hand, for Andreasen and Best,106 the inclination of consumers to perceive problems depends on the nature of the exchange. For services this propensity is greatest, be cause they are, by nature, more dif? cult to assess (see Shuptrine and Wenglorz,107 Bearden and Masson108).But there is also a unit of time and place during service delivery which favours CCB. Referring to the attribution theory, Zeithaml and Bitner109 consider that because the customer is an actor in service delivery, the customer appropriates more willingly a part of responsibility in his/her dissatisfaction and tends to protest less often. Sociocultural factors Some sociocultural factors have to be acknowledged as modulators of the complaint process (see Table 3). For Day 70 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003)Consumers’ complaint behaviour et al. ,110 (1) the standards of life and the effectiveness of the marketing system, (2) the degree of regulation and control of economic activities and marketing practices and (3) the availability of information to help consumers make their choice or to know where to complain, represent three groups of characteristics to be taken into account for a cross-cultural approach to the phenomenon. Richins,111 within the framework of an international comparison, shows that in the USA the factors most correlated to CCB are price, the dif? ulty the consumer faces in resolving the confusion by himself and the attribution of the cause of dissatisfaction. In the Netherlands Richins found the correlating factors were price, responsibility for the damage and its felt intensity. The most determinative variables remain the attribution of responsibility and the perceived consequences of a complaint, two variables less correlated to CCB in the American sample. Cornwell, Bligh and Babakus112 clearly highlight that ethnic origin plays an important role in CCB especially through values and the way of life.Webster113 also ? nds an in? uence of ethnic factors when the effect of social variables is controlled. Furthermore, women generally have a grea ter inclination to complain and people living in rural areas are more prone to negative word of mouth. 114 For Farhangmehr and Silva,115 educational level is a determining variable; the higher it is the more consumers tend to complain in a dissatisfaction situation (see Gronhaug,116 Morganosky and Buckley117). In their study, the reasons for silence on the part of the consumer are: the effort and waste of time involved (44. per cent) which can be compared with the expected gain; the feeling of not being understood or that the problem will not be resolved (30. 3 per cent); and not knowing where and how to complain (21. 1 per cent) which is related to the consumer’s information level. Obviously these proportions can vary with the opinion that consumers have about the possibility of resolution of their problem according to the sector or company concerned. 118 Gronhaug and Zaltman119 show that economic indicators such as income have only a weak explanatory power and that it is th e same for demographic factors. 20–123 For Singh124 the ‘complainers’ tend to have superior incomes, a higher educational level, are still working and are younger (also Bearden et al. 125). Laforge126 indeed shows that elderly people complain less, this in agreement with the sociological theory of learned helplessness which makes the individual passive because he/she perceives the situation as uncontrollable. The costs of the complaint In reference to the works of Landon,127 the pro? t of a complaint is a function of the result minus the cost of complaint.This result is itself estimated with regard to the importance and the nature of the damage sustained. The consumer’s preference for verbal action is then related to the expected value of the complaint outcome (connected with the importance of the dissatisfaction) minus the associated costs. 128 The latter depend notably on the image of the company, especially in the resolution of disputes, on the consumer ’s experience of CCB and on the nature of the dispute. An arbitration is thus achieved between cost and pro? of every possible action so as to gain maximum utility. 129 Gronhaug and Gilly130 use transaction costs theory131 in order to explain the various consumer responses to dissatisfaction. Three dimensions of this theory (speci? city, uncertainty and exchange frequency) can be invoked to Henry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 71 Crie ? explain CCB. Does approaching the distributor or manufacturer entail speci? c costs? Generally, CCB requires time and effort thus generating a mixture of ifferent types of costs, eg opportunity cost of the elapsed time, deliberation costs, transportation costs — these can be called CCB transaction costs. These costs are speci? c to the envisaged response type whether it is actual or not. They cannot be paid off afterwards, at best they could be used as a l earning stage in order to reduce them during a later complaint. Uncertainty arises from any transaction (ie complaint) and the consumer looks for information to reduce this uncertainty to a bearable level. Finally, the complaint frequency has a direct in? ence on its organisation, possibly becoming a ‘routine’, thus reducing the associated costs. This theory thus explains more frequent CCB when consumers have superior educational level: they know their rights so the level of uncertainty associated with the complaint is reduced and there is, therefore, a global decrease of the perceived costs of a complaint. Nevertheless, as a general rule, the majority of dissatis? ed customers do not complain. Kolodinsky132 insists moreover on the assessment, by the consumer, of the temporal cost of the choice of an appropriate response.Furthermore, as the search for a new product or supplier also generates numerous costs, it is often the case that the dissatis? ed consumer refrains fr om any action. 133,134 MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS FOR HANDLING COMPLAINTS Businesses are, too often, completely hopeless at dealing with complaints, although complaint management has become an important issue for many companies. Some elements of the various theories mentioned above allow managers to understand better the complaint process in order to cope with it better.First of all, and within the framework of relationship marketing, complaint management is a major strategic issue. On the one hand complaint management has a retention function in the sense that where a customer satis? ed with the treatment of his/her complaint gets a second-order feeling of satisfaction his/her con? dence with the company is strengthened. Thus companies that respond to consumer dissatisfaction and complaints with appropriate recovery strategies and satisfactory complaint resolution can turn dissatis? ed consumers into satis? ed ones, positively in? uencing repurchase rates (eg Bearden and Oliver135).To decrease the effect of dissatisfaction and the incidence of further negative actions, companies need to show, at the least, that they are responsive to legitimate complaints. But, if problems are resolved poorly, they are only the beginning of a multitude of ‘hidden’ actions which do not come to the attention of the business. So, proper handling of customer complaints improves repeat patronage intentions and reduces negative word of mouth. 136 Finally, in dealing with complaints, truly marketing-oriented companies must examine not only the costs of the remedy, but also the cost of not settling the complaint.The usual rationale is that complaints represent valuable feedback to companies that allows them to take corrective action vis-a-vis the defective product or ` service as regards either the critical incidents137 or adjustment of the offer to match customer expectations. Both actions are of strategic nature: the ? rst is concerned with customer relationship managemen t and retention, the second with an equally long-term strategy, ie continuous improvement of the product or service in order to ? t customer expectations. 72 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy ManagementVol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003) Consumers’ complaint behaviour From an operational point of view, the complaints handling process begins before the customer addresses his/her complaint to the seller or manufacturer. All must be done in order that the various costs associated with this behaviour are reduced, so that complaints are encouraged, facilitated and even solicited in order for companies to take corrective action. Kotler138 suggests that the best thing a retailer can do is to make it easy for a customer to complain.For example, Saint Maclou, a French nationally-advertised carpet manufacturer and retailer, indicates on each bill the name of the person to contact if a problem arises and, if the trouble remains unresolved, th e name of a more empowered executive is given. Access to the company thus has to be multichannel. The customer must be assured that he/she will be listened to and that his/her problem will probably be successfully resolved. Lastly, and according to justice theory, the consumer must be conscious that the failure will be corrected fairly, that is to say with impartiality, transparency, effectiveness and fairness.As the majority of dissatis? ed consumers leave the company without complaining, managers have to overcome customers’ natural disinclination to complain. Thus this process is concerned with service recovery, that is to say, the recti? cation of mistakes or compensation of customers. Service recovery is de? ned as the response a provider makes to a service failure;139 service failure usually requires dissatisfaction on the part of the customer. It begins with thanks for the approach by the customer: salespeople or staff need to learn to use ‘complaint welcomingâ₠¬â„¢ procedures.Then the complaint must be listened to. Psychologically speaking it is important for the customer to cope with his/her frustration through a kind of debrie? ng by oral or written expression of the trouble. For instance, complaint letters to Railtrack in the UK rose to an all time high in 2001, without the writers realistically expecting any immediate bene? t other than the ability to articulate their frustration. Complaint, especially voice, gives the customer an opportunity to ‘tell their side of the story’ which serves as a kind of reward for the customer. 40 Furthermore, Levy and Weitz141 argue that a salesperson’s willingness to listen can be an important source of consumer dissatisfaction and complaint intentions. A salesperson’s willingness to listen has been described as the degree of attentiveness a person shows. 142 According to Palmroth,143 a salesperson must ask questions until s/he understands the full nature of the complaint wi thout appearing to place blame on the customer. These salespeople should be seen as trustworthy, friendly, expert, honest, helpful and concerned.The third step is concerned with the acknowledgment of the failure, if justi? ed. (If not, it is necessary to explain why and, according to the attribution theory, to gently point out the misuse of the service or product. It should also be noted that some consumers may complain not out of dissatisfaction but in an effort to gain fraudulently from retailers or manufacturers. ) This is, however, related to the salesperson’s familiarity with the product and awareness of any possible problems with the merchandise in question.Apologies are the next step and empowered contact employees must be able to offer immediate redress where possible or advice on the way to proceed, always in order to reduce customers’ costs and frustration. Indeed, of customers who register a complaint, about 60 to 75 per cent will do business with the provid er again if their complaint has been resolved, and this Henry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 73 Crie ? gure goes up to 95 per cent if the customer feels that the complaint was resolved quickly. Furthermore, providing compensation is a common response to customer complaints. In addition to the tangible bene? ts received, customers typically see the compensation as a symbolic expression of regret by the provider. 144 In a word, courteous and fast treatment by front of? ce personnel can enhance favourable post-complaint responses145 and staff must persuade the customer that all will be done to ensure that the trouble does not recur. Other authors provide some rules of thumb.For example, Davidow146 presents a model framework that divides the organisational responses to complaint into six separate dimensions: timeliness, facilitation, redress, apology, credibility and attentiveness. Nevertheless, according to Mitchell,147 a study shows that 51 per cent of his sample who had complained about a service and 23 per cent about products were less than completely satis? ed with the responses they received. The importance of regulatory authorities in determining how complaints should be managed in a marketing sense, and their active involvement in researching this area and etting standards should also be noted. Generally speaking the legal analysis assumes that it is important that companies are involved in ? xing problems with consumers. But more often, sector-based organisations are proactive and promulgate codes of conduct or of deontology in order to provide a conventional frame for a wide range of business activities, including complaints. For instance, Consumer Complaint Form (CCform; coordinated by the Federation of European Direct Marketing) is a European Commission Information Society Technology funded project to reach a consensus between business, consumers, academics and egulators on new, more ef? cient and transparent processes for complaints management. The CCform project aims to develop an online, multilingual complaint form and a best practice business process. With CCform, consumers will be able to make complaints in their own language, and then the form will be translated into the companies’ preferred tongue. Note that cultural norms appear to change the way people react to dissatisfaction and so the response type. Consumers will be able to track the progress of their complaint, and, if necessary, escalate their grievance to a dispute resolution service or regulator.CCform can be used by any company doing business by e-commerce, distance selling or local retail operations. 148 Complainants may have recourse to a third party and an escalation in the process can result. In this sense, the complaint handling can also be seen as a dispute prevention mechanism. On the other hand, and from a customer relationship management point of view, CCB is an imp ortant early warning. Furthermore, Powers and Bendall-Lyon149 have shown that the number of complaints increased as a result of the introduction of a complaint management programme in an hospital context.Complaint management programmes enable organisations to receive complaint information in order to identify and accommodate dissatis? ed customers and identify common failure points in order to improve service quality. Each complaint either by phone, face to face, letter or e-mail, should be recorded in the database. The manager should be able to link each product, customer and complaint together. For example, a customer with an increasing complaint rate may be in a leaving phase and should be carefully monitored. Indeed, and although customer 4 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003) Consumers’ complaint behaviour relationship management aims to establish and maintain ongoing customer relati onships by focusing on the speci? c customer’s needs in order to deliver high levels of customer satisfaction and company loyalty, one major aspect of customer relationship management is the effective handling of customer complaints. CONCLUSION AND FUTURE RESEARCH This paper allows CCB to be placed and de? ed within the larger framework of responses to dissatisfaction and then suggests an integrating framework of diachronic nature. Until now research into CCB has taken a deductive approach, researchers trying to deduce its causes from contextual or individual elements without being really interested in the process taking place in a temporal space of variable duration. The various works of literature studied offer different explanations for CCB but few of them consider the sequence and interaction of initiating or modulating factors in a process.CCB is indeed essentially described in its immediate nature, that is to say as an instantaneous event. Nevertheless, the nature and i ntensity of response to dissatisfaction certainly depend on the type of experience and on the responsible product/service but they also involve two other actors (the supplier and the customer) in a diachronic framework. The variability of individual reactions, notably revealed by the lack of a clear typology of ‘complainers and noncomplainers’, results from a different weighting of constitutive elements of the process over time.The joining together and organisation of these elements, from which three large areas can be isolated (the utilitarian sphere of the economists, the ethical sphere of equity and the psychological sphere, notably represented by attribution), supply a synthetic approach by describing CCB in two stages: initiation and modulation. The initiation phase is related to the dissatisfaction level which determines the opening of the process. It is then followed by a search for attribution of the problem and by the perception of the inequitable character of the transaction engendering frustration or stress which the individual will try to minimise.It is during the evaluation of the problem resolution strategies that modulators, such as experience and attitude towards the complaint, personality of the individual and his/her sensitivity to quality, will or will not allow the process to evolve towards the actual complaint. Other factors of this type can be isolated, such as loyalty level and information level, the degree of nearness (commitment) in the relationship with the supplier, the market structure (particularly the possibility of choice alternatives) and ? ally, the hoped/expected utility of the complaint with regard to the perceived costs as well as the accessibility of the company for CCB. If CCB is taken to be a process it becomes easy to link together all the response types following an episode of dissatisfaction and this knowledge is helpful for complaints handling, eg in encouraging the customer to complain or in avoiding his leaving. The TARP study150 indeed indicates that 90 per cent of dissatis? ed consumers initiate no action and leave the product, brand or company.So, the managerial implications arise not only from contextual factors but also from the diachronic aspect of the phenomenon. Although initiators are only weakly accessible to action by the manager, except by avoiding dissatisfaction and by strengthening the perceived equity of transactions, some Henry Stewart Publications 1741-2439 (2003) Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 75 Crie ? modulators can be amended so as to lead the dissatis? ed customer to complain more frequently. Thus the company can contribute to the modi? ation of consumers’ attitudes towards CCB by: rendering more favourable the perception of previous experiences; restoring a feeling of equity after a complaint; decreasing the costs, particularly the psychological ones; and ? nally, establishing interpersonal relationships th at reduce the attraction of alternatives. It is necessary to reward customers who complain by including them in this step and by getting them used to this cultural change. It is necessary to insist on the urgency of a dissatisfaction communication to the company and to shorten the response delay (free phone number, speci? coupon, website, CCform. . . ) in order to minimise the negative constituents of the modulators. From a passive role of complaint reception, the company has to evolve towards a proactive stage in the genesis and the actual expression of CCB. It is then necessary to gather information about dissatisfaction as quickly as possible in order to divert a process which would otherwise probably lead to the customer leaving. So, complaints must be regarded more as a marketing tool than as a cost (better service to the customer and customer retention); they constitute a fundamental element of relationship marketing.This synthesis should encourage the number of research studi es into the diachronic side of CCB, in the sense that any dissatisfaction (of external attribution) requires that the consumer get in touch with the company. So, the relationship between dissatisfaction, complaint intention and actual response deserve to be clari? ed in connection with time. It is also advisable to analyse more exactly consumers’ expectations of complaints. It is indeed by satisfying these expectations that marketers can hope to increase the number of ‘complainers’. References 1 Hirschman, A. O. (1970) ‘Exit, voice and loyalty: Responses to decline in ? ms, organizations and states’, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA. 2 Day, R. and Landon, E. Jr. (1977) ‘Toward a theory of consumer complaining behavior’ in Woodside, Sheth and Bennett (eds) ‘Consumer and industrial buying behavior’, North Holland Publishing Co. , Amsterdam, pp. 425–437. 3 Richins, M. L. (1987) ‘A multivariate analysis of re sponses to dissatisfaction’, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 15, No. 4, pp. 24–31. 4 Levesque, T. J. and McDougall, G. H. G. (1996) ‘Customer dissatisfaction: The relationship between types of problems and customer response’, Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, Vol. 3, No. 3, pp. 264–276. 5 Brown, S. and Swartz, T. (1984) ‘Consumer medical complaint behavior: Determinants of and alternatives to malpractices litigation’, Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, Vol. 3, pp. 85–98. 6 Day, R. L. , Grabicke, K. , Schaetzle, T. and Staubach, F. (1981) ‘The hidden agenda of consumer complaining’, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 57, No. 3, pp. 86–106. 7 Bearden, W. O. and Teel, J. E. (1983) ‘Selected determinants of consumer satisfaction and complaint reports’, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 20, No. 1, pp. 21–28. 8 Barnes, J. and Kelloway, K. R. 1980) ‘Consumerists: Complaining behavior and attitude toward social and consumer issues’, Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 7, pp. 329–334. 9 Singh, J. (1988) ‘Consumer complaint intentions and behavior: De? nitional and taxonomical issues’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 52, No. 2, pp. 93–107. 10 Day, R. L. (1984) ‘Modeling choices among alternative responses to dissatisfaction’, Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 11, pp. 496–499. 11 Day and Landon (1977) op. cit. 12 Jacoby, J. and Jaccard, J. J. (1981) ‘The sources, meaning and validity of consumer complaining behavior; A psychological review’, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 57, No. , pp. 4–24. 13 Day et al. (1981) op. cit. 14 Fornell, C. and Wernerfelt, B. (1987) ‘Defensive marketing strategy by customer complaint management: A theoretical analysis’, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 24, No. 4, pp. 337–346. 15 Singh (1988) op. cit. 16 Day and Landon Jr. (1977) op. cit. 17 Day (1984) op. cit. 18 Richins, M. L. (1983) ‘Negative word of mouth by dissatis? ed consumers: A pilot study’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 47, No. 1, pp. 68–78. 19 Hirschman (1970) op. Cit. 20 Day and Landon Jr. (1977) op. cit. 76 Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management Vol. 11, 1, 60–79 Henry Stewart Publications 1741–2439 (2003)Consumers’ complaint behaviour 21 Mooradian, T. A. and Olver, J. M. (1997) ‘I can’t get no satisfaction: The impact of personality and emotion on postpurchase processes’, Psychology and Marketing, Vol. 14, No. 4, pp. 379–393. 22 Kolodinsky, J. (1995) ‘Usefulness of economics in explaining consumer complaints’, The Journal of Consumer Affairs, Vol. 29, No. 1, pp. 29–54. 23 Lovelock, C. H. (1996) ‘Services marketing’, 3rd ed. , Prentice Hall, New Jersey, pp. 473–480. 24 Day, R. (1980) ‘Research perspectives on consumer compl aint behavior’, Lamb and Dunne (eds) ‘Theoretical developments in marketing’, AMA, Chicago IL, pp. 11–215. 25 Shuptrine, K. and Wenglorz, G. (1980) ‘Comprehensive identi? cation of consumer’s marketplace problems and what they do about them’, Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 8, pp. 687–692. 26 Gronhaug, K. and Zaltman, G. (1981) ‘Complainers and non-complainers revisited: Another look at the data’, Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 8, pp. 83–87. 27 Bearden and Teel (1983) op. cit. 28 Masson, J. B. and Himes, S. H. (1973) ‘An exploratory behavioral and socio-economic pro? le of consumer action about a dissatisfaction with selected household appliances’, Journal of Consumer Affairs, Vol. , No. 1, pp. 121–127. 29 Warland, R. H. , Hermann, R. O. and Willis, J. (1975) ‘Dissatis? ed consumers: Who gets upset and who takes action’, Journal of Consumer Affairs, Vol. 9, No. 2, pp. 148–163. 30 Pfaff, M. and Blivice, S. (1977) ‘Socioeconomic correlates of consumer and citizen dissatisfaction and activism’, in Day R. ‘Consumer satisfaction, dissatisfaction and complaining behavior’, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, pp. 115–123. 31 Singh, J. (1990) ‘A typology of consumer dissatisfaction response styles’, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 66, No. 1, pp. 57–98. 32 Dart, J. and Freeman, K. 1994) ‘Dissatisfaction response styles among clients of professional accounting ? rms’, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 29, No. 1, pp. 75–82. 33 Weiser, C. (1995), ‘Customer retention: The importance of the ‘‘Listening Organisation’’ ’, Journal of Database Marketing, Vol. 2, No. 4, pp. 344–358. 34 Hirschman (1970) op. cit. 35 Dart and Freeman (1994) op. cit. 36 Weiser (1995) op. cit. 37 Etzel, M. and Siverman, B. (1981) ‘A managerial perspective on directions for retail customer satisfaction research’, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 57, No. 3, pp. 124–136. 38 Shuptrine and Wenglorz, (1980) op. cit. 39 Bearden, W. , Crockett, M. nd Teel, J. (1980) ‘A past model of consumer complaint behavior’, in Bagozzi, R. P. (ed. ) ‘Marketing in the 80’s: Changes and challenges’, AMA Proceedings, Chicago, IL, pp. 101–104. 40 Day (1980) op. cit. 41 Gronhaug and Zaltman (1981) op. cit. 42 Singh (1988) and (1990) op. cit. 43 Keng, K. A. , Richemond, D. and Han, S. (1995) ‘Determinants of consumer complaint behaviour: A study of Singapore consumers’, Journal of International Consumer Marketing, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 59–67. 44 Masson and Himes (1973) op. cit. 45 Warland (1975) op. cit. 46 Singh (1988) and (1990) op. cit. 47 Weiser (1995) op. cit. 48 Pfaff and Blivice (1977) op. it. 49 Warland, R. H. , Hermann, R. O. and Moore, D. E. (1984) ‘Consumer and community involvemen t: An exploration of their theoretical and empirical linkages’, Journal of Consumer Affairs, Vol. 18, No. 1, pp. 64–79.. 50 Singh (1988) and (1990) op. cit. 51 Dart and Freeman (1994) op. cit. 52 Weiser (1995) op. cit. 53 Dart and Freeman (1994) op. cit. 54 Singh (1988) and (1990) op. cit. 55 Weiser (1995) op. cit. 56 Kolodinsky (1995) op. cit. 57 Conlon, D. E. and Murray, N. M. (1996) ‘Customer perceptions of corporate responses to product complaints: The role of explanations’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 9, No. 4, pp. 1040–1056. 58 Stephens, N. and Gwinner, K. P. (1998) ‘Why don’t some people complain? A cognitive-emotive process model of consumer complaint behavior’, Journal of The Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 26, No. 3, 172–189. 59 Lazarus, R. S. (1966) ‘Psychological stress and the coping process’, McGraw Hill, New York. 60 Kolodinsky (1995) op. cit. 61 Day (1984) op. cit. 62 Oliver, R. L. ( 1987) ‘An investigation of the interrelationship between consumer (dis)satisfaction and complaint reports’, Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 14, pp. 218–222. 63 Jacoby and Jaccard (1981) op. cit. 4 Westbrook, R. A. (1987) ‘Product/consumption based affective responses and postpurchase processes’, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 24, No. 3, pp. 258–270. 65 Ping, R. A. (1993) ‘The effects of satisfaction and structural constraints on retailer exiting, voice, loyalty, opportunism and neglect’, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 69, No. 3, pp. 320–352. 66 These authors mention the possibility of complaint by satis? ed consumers, either to try to obtain more from the company, or for fear of a future breakdown or because of doubt in the performance of the product or because of propensity to complain. 67 Singh, J. 1989)

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Understanding text as it is meant to be - Essay Example When trying to maneuver through such information, an important issue that arises comes down to a fundamental idea. That is, the question of where exactly the meaning of the subject matter lies within.The written word is one of the most beautiful things ever to be created.Beauty that can differ.In terms of biblical interpretation, a common term to come about in research is that of Hermeneutics. "It is more broadly used contemporary philosophy to denote the study of theories and methods of the interpretation of all texts and systems of meaning.Is it with the author, within the text body, or is it something that actually lies within the reader themselves through their individual understanding and interpretation of what it is they are trying to read and learn about in the first place. The concept of "text" is here extended beyond written documents to any number of objects subject to interpretation, such as experiences. A hermeneutic is also defined as a specific system or method for inte rpretation, or a specific theory of interpretation. However, the contemporary philosopher Hans-Georg Gadamer has said that has said that hermeneutics is an approach rather than a method and, further, that the Hermeneutic circle is the central problem of interpretation," Going on to say that, "Essentially, hermeneutics involves cultivating the ability to understand things from somebody else's point of view, and to appreciate the cultural and social forces that may have influenced their outlook. Hermeneutics is the process of applying this understanding to interpreting the meaning of written texts and symbolic artifacts (such as art or sculpture or architecture), which may be either historic or contemporary," ("Hermeneutics" p.1). Throughout the course of time, history has played an important role in the creation of some of the greatest works of literary art that have survived the ages. "In the last two millennia, the scope of hermeneutics has expanded to include the investigation and interpretation not only of oral, textual and artistic works, but of human behaviour generally, including language and patterns of speech, social institutions, and ritual behaviours (such as religious ceremonies, political rallies, football matches, rock concerts, etc.). Hermeneutics interprets or inquires into the meaning and import of these phenomena, through understanding the point of view and 'inner life' (Dilthey) of an insider, or the first-person perspective of an engaged participant in these phenomena," ("Hermeneutics" p.1). As they set out to create their work, the author uses their understanding of the material to set forth a creation of literary discovery that seeks to aid in furthering greater study on a wide variety of subject matter, whatever the subject may be. In the case of the bible, "In the history of interpretation the rise of the historical-critical method opened a new era. With it, new possibilities for understanding the biblical word in its originality opened up. Just as with all human endeavor, though, so also this method contained hidden dangers along with its positive possibilities. The search for the original can lead to putting the word back into the past completely so that it is no longer taken in its actuality. It can result that only the human dimension of the word appears as real, while the genuine author, God, is removed from the reach of a method which was established for understanding human reality," ("Interpretation" p.1). The source goes on to discuss that, "Accordingly, the text of the document inquires into how the meaning of Scripture might become known-this meaning in which the human word and God's word work together in the singularity of historical events and the eternity of the everlasting Word, which is contemporary in every age. The biblical word comes from a real past. It comes not only from the past, however, but at the same time from the eternity of God and it leads us into God's eternity, but again along the way through time, to which the past,

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Marketing Plan - Essay Example This type of marketing propaganda attracts old and new customers alike and sales of the products usually shoot up. In essence, creative and innovative marketing strategy is always preferred to promote sale of new and product of services. A good database of customers always helps in introducing new products and to increase the sales. It is always good to give something extra along with the product with the basic principle of giving less and getting more out of the customers and this strategy is always behind all the schemes that the company may come up with. Strategic marketing plans are crucial part of promoting products and services of an organization. The market plans are focused around 4Ps (product, prices, place and promotion) and a good market strategy always takes these points on a priority basis. It is equally important that while planning appropriate market strategy, proper use of SWOT (strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats) analysis is taken up. Awareness of strengths and weaknesses in the company’s resources facilitate and match the opportunities and threats so as to provide a competitive edge to their rivals. SWOT analysis is an important tool to up grade internal strengths of the company to meet the external opportunities and exploit them in a manner that would provide the companies with cutting edge advantage over their rivals. In the present case if the concept of coupon key ring is patented, nobody else would be able to copy this technique and it will present P&G with great opportunity to exploit this unique discount concept where customers need not bother with the regular discount coupons whenever new discount scheme or product is launched. Product is of vital importance and its pricing makes it salable item. Maintaining a good database of customers is important part of market strategy which

Has no topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Has no topic - Essay Example What was particularly revolutionary about this political movement was the achievement of liberty, dignity, and self-representation. Still many others opinion that the American Revolution cannot be considered as mighty a revolution as the ones witnessed in France or China because a true revolution results in distribution of power and demolition of old law and order which cannot be safely said about the American Revolution. The purpose of this essay is to contemplate the nature of the American Revolution in order to identify what was really revolutionary about it and what was not. Masses of North American settlers in this historical event gathered to break free from the British Empire in order to give themselves a proper and dignified identity. In order to fulfill this noble purpose, thirteen colonies in North America invested prodigious amounts of hard work and enthusiasm as a consequence of which the United States of America came into existence. This makes this critically important m ovement a true revolution because it gave the Americans that glorious identity which forms the hallmark of any nation. No nation in the world can claim to have any solid power without the safety of self-representation and independence. ... This movement should be considered truly revolutionary because it formed a defining moment in American history and effectively changed the pattern of life that would be lived by generations of Americans afterwards. It would not be a hyperbolic statement if said that this very revolution often forms any American child’s first encounter with history which says much about the credibility, authority, and influence of this historical movement. The Americans who participated in this late 18th century revolution were quite determined and defiant revolutionaries. Though they were loyal to the system of English law, still they wanted all their rights appropriately recognized and the right of independence made to top of the list. The unity between North Americans who started the movement of independence and participated in the war was extremely revolutionary. It was the result of that momentous unity that scintillating light broke through the dense darkness and the British Empireâ€℠¢s tough attempts at crushing the American Revolution met failure. It was also very revolutionary that a large percentage of defiant protestors did not lose courage and become repressed when the British legislation labeled the groundbreaking efforts as provocative actions and decided to punish the colonies for claiming rights. The British rulers indisputably miscalculated the perseverance and unified power of the American revolutionaries who had neither an army nor a navy and even lacked experienced commanding officers. In contrast to the American warriors, historical evidence suggests that the British possessed a properly structured professional army and the kind of navy which could not be found anywhere else in the world (Ferling). Added to that the world’s finest weaponry left little

Discuss how authors critique gender roles in thire noveles Season of Essay

Discuss how authors critique gender roles in thire noveles Season of Migration and Beer in the snooker club - Essay Example Salih writes about characters from poorer parts of northern Sudan while Ghali writes about city people in Egypt. The main characters in both of these books are male. The men in the books also meet a number of women and from time to time there is discussion of gender relations in British society and in their homeland also. Contact with Western society, and with London in particular, makes the authors think about potential changes to local family and social relationships, and especially to gender roles. In the first novel it is quite difficult to work out what the author’s views on the topic of gender are, because the male narrator has quite a different perspective from the other main character, Mustafa Sa’eed. The village in which they meet is rather traditional which means that life runs on the basis of Islamic law. The narrator describes his family, with emphasis on his grandfather who is a good male role model for him. There are also a number of elderly males who make a lot of sexist jokes about women. One of these characters, Wad Rayyes, seems to represent the dominant view : ‘He had been much married and much divorced, taking no heed of anything in a woman except that she was a woman, taking them as they came, and if asked about it replying â€Å"A stallion isn’t finicky†.’ (Salih: 66) The narrator observes this behaviour and repeats the animal comparison when he says (Salih: 81) â€Å"Wad Rayyes, who charged women as he charged donkeys†. This kind of womanizing behavior is also displayed by Mustafa Sa’eed who goes after several different British women when he is in London. He actually marries Jean Morris and she compares him to â€Å"a savage bull that does not weary of the chase† (Salih: 33). The fact that Sa’eed kills Jean Morris and drives several of his lovers to suicide underlines the aggression that this character feels in his romantic relationships. At one point Sa’eed describes his bedroom in

Marketing Strategies Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Marketing Strategies Development - Essay Example The essay "Marketing Strategies Development" aims to design a competitive and successful marketing strategy for the launching of the new mark of mobile phone Leviathan. In the last two decades, there have been major changes in the broader economic environment resulting from increasing globalization, deregulation, increased the competition and specialization of industries cited in Kotler. This has lead organizations to form cooperative agreements, such as alliances, resulting in a shift from stand-alone competition to the networked rivalry. The marketing mix has its origin in the marketing of goods for consumer markets and consists of the well known 4P’s: Price, Promotion, Place, and Product and must be carefully coordinated for the greatest success. Therefore, two methods were presented through which the divisions could be segmented. I suggested segmenting the market into geographical, demographical and time segment. Through these methods, the company is better placed to meet up with its objectives. The paper calls for a value adding and marketing strategy for increasing yields to the company for the benefits of the entire business. The company expects to target not only high-yielding niche market but low-income household as well with the introduction of the new products. Key success factors within the market will be MoTecH Ltd brand of innovative quality furniture and promotional gifts, individualized customer services – tailor made custom design providing customers with what they want, when and how they want it.

Fast or slow recovery Executive summary Assignment

Fast or slow recovery Executive summary - Assignment Example Like wise to the economies of 1940s and 50s, the recovery was also followed by recession in 3 years. The new slump came as a result of fiscal stimulus plan from the government, but the consumers will see less sense due to less borrowing power to carry out spending. With consumers being cautious on spending, the economy will lack the main driving force to push it ahead hence collapsing again. The journalist is discussing the theories of a sharp rebound after a steep drop, a short rebound followed by a recession again and how anxiety keeps growth slow. In a sharp rebound after a steep drop, employers normally cut their payrolls and output so as to protect the company while customers delay majority of their purchases, when the growth return it will shoot up due to fierce expansion. In a short rebound followed by a recession again, the economy is build by fiscal stimulus program. Due to consumers who are unwilling to spend, the economy will go down once more due to lack of major driving force. The journalist assumes that the audiences are well educated and understand the present and past economic situation of the country. The author’s evidence is based on past economic events and comparing and contrasting them with the current

Organizational behaviour - HRM report Assignment

Organizational behaviour - HRM report - Assignment Example The healthcare organization can be considered as one of the largest organization in terms of bed capacity and employee strength. The employee strength of the organization is 1000. The organization has adopted the workplace diversity aspect in the business operation process. Strong multicultural workforce of the organization states that the organization believes in workplace diversity. Human resource management is considered as one of the important organizational departments that help to manage the overall performance of the organization. The functions or the activities of human resource department includes recruitment, selection, orientation, training, performance management, leadership, motivation, performance management, performance appraisal, compensation, reward distribution and employee retention. Now-a-days, several organizations within the healthcare industry are trying to improve the human resource management practices in order to increase the efficiency in the business perfo rmance. Effective human resource management practices help the organizations to maintain effective workplace environment that influence the employees of the organization to improve their performance level. Efficiency in this human resource department helps the management of the organization to motivate its employees. Several healthcare organizations are trying to maintain strong workplace diversity as the management of these organizations believe that the knowledge sharing and skill of entire workforce can get increased due to having multicultural employees in the organization. An organization cannot manage a diverse workforce without having effective managerial and leadership skill. In addition to this, employee motivation can be considered as an important aspect as several motivational techniques or tools help an organization to maintain effective relationship with the effective and skilled employees. These aspects will help the organization to retain their skilled employees. In a ddition to this, effective human resource management practices can help an organization to maintain sustainability and corporate ethics in each and every business operation processes. It is highly important for an organization to develop and maintain strong relationship with the external and internal stakeholders in order to develop a strong image within the competitive industry. It is clear that the Red Line Hospital can be termed as one of the largest private hospital due to its 200 bed capacity. Moreover, the healthcare organization has 1000 multicultural employees. Therefore, it is important to analyze the efficiency of human resource department and organization behaviour of the organization. Kurt Lewin’s change management model, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory, Herzberg’s motivation theory has been discussed in this study with respect to the workplace diversity and organization behaviour of Red Line Hospital. Different types of leadership styles has been discusses in this study in order to help the organization to improve its multicultural workplace performance. Lastly, the assignment will

An advertisement of children Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

An advertisement of children - Essay Example Children’s advertisers do certainly shape children’s understanding of the world, but not outright, and not all at once, rather, they analyze what it is the children already like, and then reinforce that through their marketing. The â€Å"Lego Friends† advertisement being studied in this essay is a perfect example of this. â€Å"Lego Friends† is a new type of Lego targeted towards girls, that, unlike original Lego, is not modular – you cannot build things not intended by the designers. It is more like Barbie than like Lego, in this way. This advertisement shows an incredibly well developed appreciation of the desire of young girls to relate to older girls, and to develop into fully grown women, through implied narrative, and the characters being sold. As mentioned previously, marketers have long found it necessary to attempt to understand their audience before making an advertisement. According to Eric Schlosser, marketers targeting children have to go to perhaps even more extraordinary lengths to â€Å"learn about their tastes† (Schlosser 225). Marketers â€Å"not only conduct surveys of children in shopping malls, they also organize focus groups for kids as young as two or three †¦ they advertise children’s artwork, hire children to run focus groups †¦ host slumber parties† and engage in a whole range of other activities to understand exactly what children want. And this advertisement demonstrates this fully. appeal to children. It opens with two girls making a heart symbol together with their hands. This immediately launches into an implied narrative of togetherness that children find appealing – the â€Å"best friend forever† narrative. This simple motion indicates to the children that they will be together forever. More than this best friends forever narrative, there is a more complex narrative underlying it. There is a subtle age difference constructed between the two girls – the left

Essay over the electoral college Essay Example for Free

Essay over the electoral college Essay In the United States today, we use the Electoral College to decide who is going to be the next president. The presidency is not necessarily won by popular vote. The founding fathers opted for the Electoral College, because they were afraid of the masses. They wanted the president to be chosen by those who are qualified, well informed, and have the ability to chose a president more efficiently then the so called mob. Although I believe the Electoral College needs many changes, it is necessary in order to have a successful government that is fair. Thee main argument against the Electoral College is that the presidency should be won by popular vote alone. It shouldnt be that one candidate could win the popular vote, but lose the election. At first I completely agreed with this, because we do live in a democracy, and I believe that a democracy is a government for the people by the people. This would mean that the mass population decides who is the president, not a hand picked group of men to vote on who they wish, because they do not always have to vote on the candidate in which the state has voted the majority on. Although the Electoral College may take away the presidency from the candidate that won the majority vote, it evens things out across the nation. The Electoral College is necessary to make every state important in the voting process. If you did not have the Electoral College, those who were running for office would only campaign in the major states, that way they could get the majority of the population. For example the candidate would advertise and campaign in New York, especially New York City, because there is such a vast amount of people who live there, so he would try to assure that he had the votes for this city, and majority of the state, and would not have to worry about Montana. They candidate would then not go to smaller less populated states like Montana, South or North Dakota. He would not worry about the states or cities that had little populations, because are all he needs to worry about is that the majority of the people in the United States vote for him. It would be much easier to win an election by getting more people in more populated cities to vote, and not worrying about the little populations. This in fact takes away from the idea of a democracy, because it conveys the message that the only thing a presidential candidate  needs to worry about is getting the majority of the votes, and this does not have to be all over the nation, because there are parts of the nation that the population well exceeds other parts. The founding fathers developed the electoral college because they were afraid of what the government would be like if the masses were allowed to determine who they wanted in office. They were aware that it would turn into a popularity thing, and that is not what was needed in order to run a government efficiently. Although the population must have a say in the government, there has to be some form of control, and that was the basis of the Electoral College. I think that in order for the Electoral College to be successful, and to function properly, there has to be some major changes to it. The biggest change needs to be the fact that the electors themselves need to be abolished. I think that it should be set up to where the popular vote in the state decides whom the electoral votes from the state go. The majority of the time this is what happens, but it does not have to. If an elector wanted to vote for someone other then that the state allotted popular vote to, they very well could. I do not think that it should be allowed, because by doing that it takes the democracy out of the government, because it is never a certain thing that the populace wish will be carried out. If you want to go even farther you could break it down into districts with in the state. Each district gets one Electoral College vote, and the vote goes to the candidate in which has the majority of that district. The Electoral College is definitely needed in this country in order for the election process to be fair to all states and thus to all constituents. Although winning by popular votes sounds like the way to go in a democracy, it is not. If that were the case then there would be no equality among states, and the fact that everybody matters in a democracy would not be. There would be very little concentration on other small or less populated states, because you could win the election without them.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its application in social services

Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its application in social services Explanation of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its application in social services Te Tiriti o Waitangi can be used in the social services through the application of four principle of the treaty, which are Partnership, Protection, Participation, and Permission. Partnership – in this principle the social service providers ensure that all the services they provide are bi-cultural in perspective. Also, the social service organizations ensure that the needs of Maori clients are taken into consider in terms of interaction with them and creation of policy that may affect Maori. For instance, before engaging with a Maori client, the social worker should build rapport and trust through effective and therapeutic communication. The social worker must provide consultation to the Whanau of the client then include them in the decision making of the client. Protection – in this principle the social service organization needs to respect the rights of every Maori client to enjoy their treasured resources. Maori clients have the right to make their own choices with regard to their cultural traditions and customary practices. Their rights should be acknowledge in order to protect them all the time. For instance, Maori clients are ensured that they are safe at all times like in consultation. They are given the freedom to speak Te Reo Maori. Participation – in this principle, Maori clients are ensured to participate at all times. They should be consulted with regard to the important matters that can impact their well being and life. For instance, the social service providers must ensure that they have consulted the whanau of the client before implementing any plan for the client. Permission – Maori client should be asked for their permission if they wanted to speak Te Reo Maori and if they wanted to participate in any Maori spiritual and cultural practices. For instance, the social service providers must ask permission if the Maori clients and their whanu would like to practice their culture like karakia, kai, powhiri and mihi when organizing a whanau hui. TASK 2 TASK 3 TASK 4 TASK 5 Application of social service theory Te Tiriti o Waitangi The social service provider committed, observed and practiced their services with regard to the four principles namely Partnership, Protection, Permission and Participation. These principles helped me build a strong relationship while working together with a Maori client, empowering and protecting Maori Tinorangatiratanga. For instance, social worker must observe and consider cultural practices, values, and beliefs of a Maori client and his Whanau when conducting whanau hui. The rights of Maori client must be observed and respected in terms of the services available and decision-making process to encourage autonomy of every Maori client. Social work service Users Clients were given the essential information with regard to their rights as a client thus, equality, fairness and quality services can be provided. This can build trust and rapport to clients in which I and the social worker established to have with the client and whanau. For instance, social service provider ensures that the rights of the client and his whanau are being acknowledged and practiced during the whanau hui. In addition, the gathered information about the client and his whanau must be treated as confidential and safe through documentation and avoiding open disclosure to other personnel not involved in the case. Social work ethics This serves as a guidelines and principles for social work practice to act and to work professionally and ethically to client and his whanau. This ensures boundaries and accountability of the social worker to every clients and whanau involved. For instance, social worker is well equipped and knowledgeable about ones role whenever rendering services to client and whanau. Social worker is aware of the responsibilities and obligations in the social work practice. In addition, social worker must maintain veracity and honesty to all clients and whanau in order to deliver safe social work practice. Reference: Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social workers: Social Work Practice. (2012). Backgorund of the Code of Ethics. Retrieved from http://anzasw.org.nz/social_work_practice/topics/show/157-background-of-the-code-of-ethics Hayward, J. (n.d.). Appendix: The principles of The Treaty of Waitangi. Retrieved from http://www.justice.govt.nz/tribunals/waitangi-tribunal/treaty-of-waitangi/tribunals/waitangi-tribunal/documents/public/treaty-principles-appendix-99 Te Ara. (2013). Story: Kaumatua – Maori elders and their role. Retrieved from http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/kaumatua-maori-elders/page-1 Te Ara. (2013). Story: Maori feasts and ceremonial eating – hakari. Retrieved from http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/maori-feasts-and-ceremonial-eating-hakari

The different sources of cultural bias

The different sources of cultural bias Sources of Cultural Biases can be interpreting through different frameworks which meaning is attributed. Sue and Sue (1990) attributed class, culture bound values; differences in verbal, emotional, and behavioral expressiveness, differences in causes and effect orientation, and differences in patterns of communication. The discrepancy in attributional systems that are culturally different clients and counselors bring to their interactions may present a barrier. The interactions may fail because of underlying mechanisms of culturally mediated attributional differences. The relationship between subjective culture (Triandis, (1972) and attributional processes are illuminated by theoretical and empirical work conducted by social psychologists as well as important insights from the field of linguistics. The occurrence, form and meaning of a particular behavior in a particular situation may differ from culture to culture because of differences in norms, values, role perceptions, expectatio ns, and historical experience. Individuals from different cultural traditions bring to cross-cultural interactions different implicit, as well as explicit, frameworks for interpreting these experiences (Albert, 1983). These differences in interpretation may lead culturally different people to view the same situation or behavior very differently. There is a great range of within-group variation in the attribution and cause and meaning, between-group variation may account for failed interactions because of differential attributions likely to occur (Salzman, 1990). The silence of an individual from one culture may be interpreted by a culturally different as indifferent or hostility when it was intended as respectful noninterference. The behavioral consequences of this discrepancy could interfere with the development of mutually respectful, cooperative, professional and personal relationships. Attributions are inferences about the causes of behavior. Heider (1958) indicated that humans are constantly engaged in the process of making inferences about behavior that is observed. Even though the behavior in any interactions that are or not performed can be important, it is the interpretations that are given to these behaviors that are critical (Albert Triandis, 1979). A compliment can be interpreted as a way to manipulate, help can be seen as demeaning and a gift as a bribe. These interpretations have predictable behavioral consequences and may serve to define the interaction. Discrepant attributions have been found to result in misunderstandings, low personal attraction, rejection and even conflict (Albert, Trianis, 1979; Salzman, 1990). It is thought that such discrepancies are more likely to occur in cross-cultural interactions because of differences in norms, roles, values and expectation that each culture has developed in adapting to life geographically, economically and historical circumstances. Heider (1958) saw all people behaving as naÃÆ'Â ¯ve scientists, constantly engaged in making inferences about events and observed behaviors by attributing causes and motives. Casual attributions, then answer the why questions about behaviors. They serve as mediators between all stimuli encountered in the world and responses made to these stimuli. Humans do not respond directly to events around us, we respond to the meanings or interpretations given to these events (Albert and Triandis, 1979). Pedersen (1987) noted that one source of bias is the implicit assumption that normal means the same to people of different social, economic, political and cultural backgrounds. Instead he argued that what is considered normal will change according to the situation, the cultural background being judged and the time during which a behavior is being displayed or observed Pedersen (1987), p. 16). He pointed out the dangers of diagnostic errors when using definitions of normality generated from the perspective of one culture with people of different cultures. Rogers objected to therapists making diagnosis of clients on their own evaluations (Rogers, 1951). He believed however that the individual client should be the only one who should make specific evaluations and set goals. Rogers (1980) advocated the location of power in the person not in the expert. Rogers espoused the view that only the individual embedded in a particular social, cultural and historical context could define normal be havior for him or herself. Pedersen (1987) asserted that many counselors neglect the development of the family, organizations and society in favor of emphasis on the welfare of the individual. According to Pedersen, counselors are encouraged to focus on changes in the individual client, sometimes blaming the group demands for the client adjustment problems and disregarding the effects of individual change on the groups to which the client belongs. Traditional counseling approaches according to Pedersen (1987) have all too often neglected other academic disciplines that speak to problems and issues of humanity such as sociology, anthropology, theology and medicine. Counselors tend to view their clients problem from a very limited perspective; however their problems are not confined to the disciplines of psychology and counseling. Pedersen (1989) believed that it is important for counselors to go outside the boundaries of their specialized knowledge and interest, to examine the issue or problem from the clients cultural perspective. According to Pedersen (1989) many counselors downplay the role of family and peers in providing support to a troubled individual and instead emphasize their professional services. He argued that counselors should attempt to incorporate the client natural support system into a treatment plan, which in some cultures is more acceptable than disclosing intimate information to the counselor, who is likely to be a stranger. Pedersen (1987) argued that too often counselors assume that their role is to change the individual to fit the system and too often fail to question whether the system should be changed to fit the individual. Counseling and therapy has a history of protecting the status quo against change, at least as perceived by minority cultures, through what has become to be called scientific racism (D.W. Sue Sue 2003). Counseling psychology has been slow to respond to evidence of cultural bias. Sampson (1993) suggests that psychology and counseling have at best accommodated add on eclectic strategies in response to culturally different movements and special interest groups without fundamentally transforming conventional frameworks of understanding. Wren (1962) first introduced the concept of cultural encapsulation. The perspective assumes five basic identifying features. First, reality is defined according to one set of cultural assumptions. Second, people become insensitive to cultural variations among individuals and assume their own view is the right one. Third, assumptions are not dependent upon reasonable proof or rational consistency but are believed true, regardless of evidence to the contrary. Fourth, solutions are sought in technique oriented strategies or quick and simple remedies. Fifth every one is judged from the viewpoint of ones self-reference criteria without regard for the other persons separate cultural context. There is evidence that the profession of counseling is even more encapsulated now than it was then when Wren wrote his original article (Albee, 1994; Wren, 1995). Counselors bias coming from two sources, such as their own cultural backgrounds and their professional training were highlighted in studies their actions toward groups other than whites. In a study examining this particular source of bias, the degree of cultural stereotyping among practicing counselors was explored using structured interviews (Bloombaum, Yamamoto, James, 1968). The results indicated that counselors attitudes toward Mexican Americans, African Americans, Chinese Americans, Japanese Americans and Jews reflected the similar degree of cultural stereotyping usually found in the general population. Counselors must recognize racism, prejudice and discrimination, and accept them as real to better understand the living reality of clients who without the benefit of choice find themselves members of minority groups on the basis of differences from the dominant culture in our society, (Glauser, 1999). Each individual counselor must identify and accept his/her personal capacity to help or hinder clients whose life experiences, beliefs and physical makeup and or culture are different from their own. A counselor who is aware of his/her own limitations, when working with members of minority groups will conform to ethical guidelines and assure that their clinical efforts have the potential to help rather than do harm. Research has shown that prejudicial responses, in the form of stereotype activation, can persist long after an individual makes a conscious break with habitual prejudice thinking (Devine, 1989). Individuals in low prejudice tend to carefully scrutinize messages from minority groups to guard against unfair reactions. The care they take may interfere with the communication process in interaction with minority group and hinder full engagement by a counselor in the therapeutic setting (Petty, Fleming and White, 1999). The following examples indicate the types of cultural issues and their effects on the counseling situation. In the cultural value system of the Chinese American passivity rather than assertiveness is revered, quiescence rather than verbal articulation is a sign of wisdom and self-effacement rather than confrontation is a model of refinement(Ching and Prosen, 1980). Since humility and modesty is so valued it is difficult for counselors to draw out responses from a Chinese American in a group setting. The reticence which reinforces silence and withdrawal as appropriate ways of dealing with conflict may be interpreted as resistance by the uneducated counselor. Democratic counselors may also be uneasy with the role of the all knowing father that the Chinese respect bestows upon them (Ching and Prosen, 1980). African Americans place great value on family, especially their children, who are seen as a gift from God and on social relationships with a great emphasis on community and their pla ce in it. In this context social conflict resolution becomes important, so that peace and equilibrium may be restored to the community while personal conduct becomes secondary. (McFadden and Gbekobov, 1984). In his discussion of counseling the Northern Natives of Canada, Darou (1987) notes that counseling is seen as cultural racism when it does not fit native values. These values are cooperation, concreteness, lack of interference, respect for elders, and the tendency to organize by space rather than time and dealing with the land as animate not an inanimate object. Bernard and Flores-Ortiz (1982) point out that Latin cultures view the family as primary support for its members. Any suggestions that the family is not fulfilling that obligation can bring shame, added stress and an increased reluctance to seek professional services. Involving family members in treatment will most likely ensure successful counseling outcomes with Latinos. In examining the aspect of grief, the way the client reacts to it should be noted and respected this helps them to normalize their experience. The counselor should not try and fix the persons pain, but be as present as possible and pay attention to what the person is telling you in the moment. Give clients the permission to talk; they may have a need to tell their story over and over, as a part of the healing process. The counselor should give the client room to express their feelings and not censor them. It is okay to ask culturally different clients how grief and loss are addressed in their culture. As counselors we must be aware of our own feelings about grief and loss from personal experiences. Self-awareness helps avoid expecting clients to act like we would in a similar situation. Alcohol and other drug treatment programs continually report relatively low success rates among African-American participants. There is a need to consider treatment approaches that are more culturally competent. Counselors must view the identity and the development of culturally diverse people in terms of multiple interactive factors rather than strictly cultural framework (Romero, 1985). A pluralistic counselor considers all facets of the clients personal history, family history, and social and cultural orientation (Arcinega and Newlou, 1981).