How customer misbehavior affects the work withdrawal behavior of frontline salespeople in China

Frontline salespeople often face customer misbehavior, and the resulting emotional strain can damage their mental health and even lead to work withdrawal behavior. In this study I analyzed survey data obtained from 563 frontline salespeople to examine the associations among customer misbehavior and salespeople's basic psychological needs satisfaction, core self-evaluation, job routinization, and work withdrawal behavior. The results indicated that customer misbehavior was positively associated with frontline salespeople's work withdrawal behavior. Basic psychological needs satisfaction and core self-evaluation served as independent and sequential mediators of this association, and job routinization moderated the association between customer misbehavior and salespeople's work withdrawal behavior. These findings advance marketing and human resource management theories and provide practical guidance for service organizations to enhance employee engagement, and improve human resources management efficiency and organizational performance.