Theory of relationship marketing

The Commitment-Trust Theory of Relationship Marketing
Author(s): Robert M. Morgan and Shelby D. Hunt
Source: Journal of Marketing, Vol. 58, No. 3 (Jul., 1994), pp. 20-38
Published by: American Marketing Association
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1252308 .
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RobertM. Morgan Shelby D. Hunt
&

The

Commitment-Trus
Theory of

Relationship
Marketing
Relationship marketing-establishing, developing, and maintaining successful relational exchanges-constitutes a major shift in marketing theory and practice. After conceptualizing relationship marketing and discussing its ten forms, the authors (1) theorize that successful relationship marketing requires relationship commitment and trust,
(2) model relationship commitment and trust as key mediating variables, (3) test this key mediating variable model using data from automobile tire retailers, and (4) compare their model with a rival that does not allow relationship commitment and trust to function as mediating variables. Given the favorable test results for the key mediating variable model, suggestions for further explicating and testing it are offered.

Thecooperative of behavior

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