This study integrates expectation disconfirmation theory and cognitive dissonance theory into a model to explain why individual customers choose to return purchased products. The study uses survey results to test the impact of negative expectation disconfirmation and post-purchase dissonance on consumers’ return intention and confirm that they work as dual mechanisms to independently predict customers’ product returns; importantly, the research emphasizes the multidimensionality of post-purchase dissonance (i.e., cognitive and emotional dissonance) and their joint impact on customers’ intention to return. Moreover, the current study explores the impact of a large group of factors, including online reviews, product-related factors, and shopper-related factors on product returns through the dual mechanisms. Regarding online review factors, the results highlight the critical roles of aggregated indicators (i.e., review consistency) and individual review content (i.e., emotions expressed in reviews) in affecting customers’ return intention, through the mediation of cognitive dissonance and emotional dissonance. Significant effects are also identified between product-related factors (e.g., price) and negative expectation disconfirmation, and between shopper-related factors (e.g., income) and post-purchase dissonance. theoretical and managerial implications of the findings are discussed.

本研究将期望否定理论和认知失调理论整合到一个模型中，以解释为什么个体顾客选择退货。该研究利用调查结果检验了负面期望否定和购买后失调对消费者退货意愿的影响，并证实它们作为双重机制独立预测客户的产品退货；重要的是，该研究强调了购买后失调（即认知和情感失调）的多维性及其对顾客退货意愿的共同影响。此外，本研究通过双重机制探讨了包括在线评论、产品相关因素和购物者相关因素在内的大量因素对产品退货的影响。关于在线评论因素，结果强调了聚合指标（即评论一致性）和个人评论内容（即评论中表达的情感）通过认知失调和情感失调的中介作用，在影响顾客退货意图方面的关键作用。产品相关因素（例如价格）和负面期望否定之间以及购物者相关因素（例如收入）和购买后失调之间也存在显着影响。讨论了研究结果的理论和管理意义。