Emotional intelligence similarity in service recovery

Service failure and recovery research has primarily explored employees' emotional intelligence but has largely overlooked customers' emotional intelligence. This study considers both em-ployees' and customers' emotional intelligence by investigating the recovery effect of perceived emotional intelligence similarity. We test why and how perceived emotional intelligence sim-ilarity promotes customer forgiveness through experiments. Findings reveal the positive effect of perceived emotional intelligence similarity on customer forgiveness and the sequentially mediating effects of psychological distance and customer trust. Additionally, results indicate that interdependent self-construal and indulgence moderate the perceived emotional intelli-gence similarity effect. Findings enrich theories on emotional intelligence in the service failure and recovery field. Additionally, this research offers tourism companies suggestions on address-ing service failures based on perceived emotional intelligence similarity.(c) 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This study investigates the impact of employees' and customers' emotional intelligence on service failure recovery and finds that perceived emotional intelligence similarity has a positive effect on customer forgiveness, mediated by psychological distance and customer trust. The study also reveals that interdependent self-construal and indulgence moderate the effect of perceived emotional intelligence similarity. These findings contribute to the development of emotional intelligence theories in the service failure and recovery field and provide suggestions for tourism companies in addressing service failures.