EXAMINATON OF PRODUCT RECALLS IN TERMS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY IN THE MARKETING CONTEXT: A QUALITATIVE META-ANALYSIS

The product recalls have become a common practice for many firms in various industries since the number of defective and dangerous products are increasing. Even though this action –product recall – should aim to assure the well-being of consumers, it also creates opportunities to restore the damaged reputation of the corporation; by influencing the perceptions and expectations of the stakeholders. Understanding attribution theory and its applications may help scholars and marketers to choose the appropriate post crisis response strategies, to adjust messages and press releases, in order to shape the consumer attributions, which as a result may create opportunities to minimize the possible damage. The aim of this meta-analysis is to review the current global and Turkish literature in the light of attribution theory from the marketing context and propose a model. Results of this study show that there are number of factors that affect the consumer reactions to the product recalls. Those reactions appear as decrease in purchase intentions or purchases, loss of reputation, decreased firm value, and damage to the brand equity