CONSUMER SATISFACTION AND PERCEIVED QUALITY - COMPLEMENTARY OR DIVERGENT CONSTRUCTS

Conflicting models exist in the literature of the process through whic h perceived quality and/or satisfaction affect behavioral intentions. Further, virtually no theoretical framework has been explicitly develo ped to help combine perceived-quality models with satisfaction models. This article applies a theoretical framework to help build a model th at attempts to explain the relationships among disconfirmation of expe ctations, perceived quality, satisfaction, perceived situational contr ol, and behavioral intentions. The study compares the ability of two m odels to help explain the relationship among these variables. The resu lts of the study suggest that the focal and contextual dimensions of d isconfirmation of expectations affect perceived quality enroute to the ir influence on behavioral intentions. Additionally, the results indic ate that perceived quality affects satisfaction and behavioral intenti ons is affected by satisfaction.