Does tone matter? The effect of tone of voice and the moderating role of failure severity in service recovery

Abstract

This study investigates how two types of tone of voice (CHV vs. corporate voice) interact with the severity of a service failure (high vs. low) to influence customer perceptions of interactional justice and sincerity. Drawing on Justice theory and prior service recovery literature, this research examines the effectivity of CHV in varying failure severity situations. An experimental design was used to examine how different combinations of tone of voice and failure severity affects participants’ perceptions. Results show no significant differences between CHV and corporate voice in interactional justice and perceived sincerity. Furthermore, no significant interaction effect was found between tone of voice and failure severity. However, a difference in perceived sincerity was found between CHV and corporate voice, but due to the significance level this finding must reviewed carefully. These findings contribute to the growing body of service recovery literature by highlighting the contextual effectiveness of tone of voice in digital complaint handling, offering both theoretical and practical implications for customer service strategies