Triggers and outcomes of customer-to-customer aisle rage

Incidents of customer-to-customer aisle rage are on the rise, which raises questions about their triggers and outcomes, including customer responses that may affect the firm where the incidents take place. The results of 329 Critical Incident Technique interviews categorize triggers as interpersonal or situational, and suggest situational triggers that are under the firm's control (e.g., hunger, crowdedness, long waits for service) frequently co-occur with behaviors that negatively impact the firm (e.g., physical expressions of rage, exit, and revenge). Another important contribution is the identification of new responses to rage, including: commiserating with other customers, responding with humor/sarcasm, and boycotting the service provider because of shame or regret about personal reactions to the rage-inducing incidents. The results build on Affective Events Theory (AET) and contribute to our understanding of customer coping in customer-to-customer interactions.