Rational and Adaptive Performance Expectations in a Customer Satisfaction Framework

This article develops and tests alternative models of market-level expectations, perceived product performance, and customer satisfaction. Market performance expectations are argued to be largely rational in nature yet adaptive to changing market conditions. Customer satisfaction is conceptualized as a cumulative construct that is effected by market expectations and performance perceptions in any given period and is affected by past satisfaction from period to period. An empirical study that supports adaptive market expectations and stable market satisfaction using data from the Swedish Customer Satisfaction Barometer is reported. Copyright 1995 by the University of Chicago.