Consumer dissatisfaction with self-service technologies : an empirical exploration of its antecedents

Self-service technologies (SSTs) are commonplace for consumers\u27 use, which is reflected in the growing body of literature that pertains to SSTs. The bulk of this literature has focussed on the adoption of SSTs, while relatively little attention has been given to consumers\u27 consumption and evaluation of SSTs. Arguably, this is an area worthy of exploration in the light of frequent reports of consumers\u27 dissatisfaction with SSTs. Therefore, this paper examines the antecedents of consumers\u27 overall dissatisfaction with an SST encounter, and finds that consumers\u27 dissatisfaction with the attributes of the SST and consumers\u27 perceptions of causal controllability explain 50 per cent of the variance in consumers\u27 overall dissatisfaction with the SST Insights into removing the causes of SST dissatisfaction are offered to managers, which are, arguably, important for consumer retention.