Role of Actor’s Internal Disposition in Value Co-Creation: A Case in Retail Industry

This paper aims to explore the role of an actor’s disposition for value co-creation. Specifically, it explores the drivers which influence an employee’s disposition to prevent shoplifting (a voluntary action) in supermarkets. Within an interpretive paradigm, this research uses phenomenology as the research design. Data was collected using interviews from 26 shop-floor employees from two national supermarket chains in New Zealand. The participants regularly hop at their workplace (i.e., supermarket) and in a way were regular customers of their respective stores. The findings suggest characteristics of drivers which influence an employee’s internal disposition to initiate value co-creation in the form of shoplifting prevention such as the actor’s engagement quality, nurturing work environment, future growth opportunities, employee ownership, and employee’s willingness towards shoplifting prevention. First, the study contributes to the service marketing literature by conceptualizing internal disposition. Second, it explores the role of employee’s disposition in value co-creation. By doing so, it contributes towards a more balanced theoretical foundation for service-dominant (S-D) logic.