Theories such as Expectation-Disconfirmation, Equity Theory, and Comparison-Level Theory attempt to explain customer satisfaction (Skogland & Siguaw, 2004) and Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory is arguably the most influential and has received the widest acceptance (Ekinci, Massey, & Dawes, 2008).
Expectancy-Disconfirmation Theory examinesthe formation of expectations and the disconfirmation of those expectations through performance comparison. Expectations reflect a pre-consumption perception associated withgoods and services, whereas performance is the basis of the customer’s perception of goods and services.
Disconfirmation arises from the discrepancy between prior expectation andactual performance of the goods and services. This disconfirmation concept occupies a central position as a crucial intervening variable in the Expectancy - Disconfirmation paradigm(Gale, 1994).