Coping with Negative Emotions in Intercultural Service Encounters

As consumers increasingly interact with service providers from diverse national backgrounds, intercultural service encounters have become more common. Yet, consumers may respond to foreign providers in varied ways, and existing research has not fully explained what drives distinct negative emotions and subsequent behavioral responses. We find that consumer animosity toward the service provider’s country of origin shapes whether consumers experience discomfort or anger, which in turn leads to avoidance- or approach-oriented coping responses. Furthermore, we demonstrate that global consumer positioning and local consumer culture positioning can serve as effective marketing strategies to mitigate the detrimental effects of ICSEs.