The role of inferred motive in shaping tourists’ reactions to intentional failures

Abstract

Intentional failures, which refer to purposeful transgressions by the organisation or its employees against customers, are common across different industries including tourism, yet there is a lack of research on tourists’ perceptions and reactions to such failures. Using an experimental approach, we find that compared with unintentional failures, tourists are more sensitive to intentional failures as they lead to significantly higher electronic negative word of mouth (eNWOM) and revenge behaviours. We further show that intentional failures are less harmful when the inferred motive is positive (vs. negative). Drawing on psychological contract theory, we demonstrate the key role of perceived betrayal as the mechanism to explain these effects. The insights, though not legitimising intentional failures, offer managerial guidance particularly when tourism and hospitality firms must bow to external pressures. Specifically, managers in the tourism industry can reduce the negative consequences of intentional failures by highlighting the potential benefits for tourists, thus creating the impression of a positive motive.