The article by Eugene W. Anderson explores the relationship between customer satisfaction and word of mouth (CS-WOM), addressing the question of whether dissatisfied customers engage in more or less word of mouth than satisfied customers. The study develops a utility-based model to understand this relationship, hypothesizing an asymmetric U-shape where word of mouth increases as satisfaction or dissatisfaction increases, but the impact of dissatisfaction is greater. Data from U.S. and Swedish samples are used to test the model, and the results support the hypothesis of an asymmetric U-shape. The findings indicate that dissatisfied customers do engage in more word of mouth than satisfied customers, but the difference is not as large as commonly believed. The study also assesses the generalizability of the model across the two countries, finding that while there are differences in overall levels of satisfaction and word of mouth, the relationship between CS and WOM is relatively stable. The article concludes by discussing the implications for future research and the need to understand how the CS-WOM relationship varies across different categories and firms.The article by Eugene W. Anderson explores the relationship between customer satisfaction and word of mouth (CS-WOM), addressing the question of whether dissatisfied customers engage in more or less word of mouth than satisfied customers. The study develops a utility-based model to understand this relationship, hypothesizing an asymmetric U-shape where word of mouth increases as satisfaction or dissatisfaction increases, but the impact of dissatisfaction is greater. Data from U.S. and Swedish samples are used to test the model, and the results support the hypothesis of an asymmetric U-shape. The findings indicate that dissatisfied customers do engage in more word of mouth than satisfied customers, but the difference is not as large as commonly believed. The study also assesses the generalizability of the model across the two countries, finding that while there are differences in overall levels of satisfaction and word of mouth, the relationship between CS and WOM is relatively stable. The article concludes by discussing the implications for future research and the need to understand how the CS-WOM relationship varies across different categories and firms.