Schadenfreude and Sympathy: Observer Reactions to Malicious Joy During Social Media Service Recovery

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dc.authorid0000-0002-9303-5768
dc.authorid0000-0003-0451-9021
dc.authorid0000-0003-3065-4083
dc.contributor.authorBacile, Todd J.
dc.contributor.authorElmadag, A. Banu
dc.contributor.authorOkan, Mehmet
dc.contributor.authorDineva, Denitsa
dc.contributor.authorRynarzewska, Ania Izabela
dc.date.accessioned2026-04-04T18:55:56Z
dc.date.available2026-04-04T18:55:56Z
dc.date.issued2025
dc.departmentİstanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi
dc.description.abstractComplex social dynamics occur when complaints are voiced on firms' social media channels. In combination, a complainer criticizes a firm, which may be responded to uncivilly by different online personas (i.e., internet trolls or loyal customers), with virtually present observers watching how a firm responds. This research examines customer-to-customer (C2C) uncivil commentary from troll and loyal customer personas perceived by observers to elicit schadenfreude (malicious joy due to another's adverse event). Three studies show how C2C schadenfreude targeting a complainer elicits sympathy from observers, which influences observers' future purchase intent. Study 1's online content analysis using field data shows the frequency of C2C schadenfreude during social media service recovery. Study 2 uncovers moderated mediation of C2C schadenfreude-sympathy-purchase intent, with loyal customer persona comments producing more observer sympathy than troll persona comments. Study 3 finds the harmful effect of observer sympathy on purchase intent varies based on how or if a firm addresses the C2C dialogue. This research uses a novel cognition (perceived schadenfreude from another's comment), examines a lesser-studied emotion in marketing (sympathy), and is the first marketing-related work to incorporate backlash theory from organizational management to exemplify how loyal customer comments produce a backlash effect in observers.
dc.identifier.doi10.1177/10949968241246252
dc.identifier.doi10.1177/10949968241246252
dc.identifier.endpage64
dc.identifier.issn1094-9968
dc.identifier.issn1520-6653
dc.identifier.issue1
dc.identifier.startpage44
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1177/10949968241246252
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/11411/10631
dc.identifier.volume60
dc.identifier.wosWOS:001229750200001
dc.identifier.wosqualityQ1
dc.indekslendigikaynakWeb of Science
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherSage Publications Inc
dc.relation.ispartofJournal of Interactive Marketing
dc.relation.publicationcategoryMakale - Uluslararası Hakemli Dergi - Kurum Öğretim Elemanı
dc.rightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess
dc.snmzKA_WoS_20260402
dc.subjectSchadenfreude
dc.subjectSympathy
dc.subjectService Recovery
dc.subjectThird-Party Observer Reactions
dc.subjectSocial Media
dc.subjectBacklash Theory
dc.subjectTrolls
dc.subjectCustomer-To-Customer Interactions.
dc.titleSchadenfreude and Sympathy: Observer Reactions to Malicious Joy During Social Media Service Recovery
dc.typeArticle

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