For Better or for Worse? Adverse Effects of Relationship Age and Continuance Commitment on Positive and Negative Word of Mouth

The authors aim to study the direct and moderating effects of relationship age, continuance commitment and satisfaction on the generation of positive and negative word of mouth (P/NWOM). Hypotheses based on the notion of liability of adolescence and the motivation to generate P/NWOM were tested with data collected through a survey of a random sample of customers of fixed-line telephone users. Relationship age adversely impacts PWOM and the effect of satisfaction on both P/NWOM. Continuance commitment increases NWOM and causes dissatisfied customers to generate greater NWOM while not affecting the PWOM of satisfied customers. Satisfaction shows a significant non-linear effect on WOM. Results offer strong evidence of a dark side to long-term customer relationships. Recommendations focus on managing long-term relationships and perceptions of continuance commitment to minimise adverse effects. As far as the authors know, this research is the first to offer a theoretically grounded explanation of the direct and moderating effects of relationship age on P/NWOM behaviour. Results challenge the premise of long-term customers being a panacea for numerous problems faced by firms. Findings also help explain the contradictory results in prior research on the effects of continuous commitment on WOM