When stigmatized workers become consumers

Existing research on occupational stigma has focused primarily on workplace consequences, with less attention to how stigmatized service workers respond to service failures as consumers. Guided by cognitive appraisal theory, this sequential mixed-methods study integrates 20 interviews with a survey of 429 frontline workers in China. Qualitative findings show that perceived occupational stigma heightens sensitivity to disrespect and identity threat, whereas perceived work dirtiness shapes whether failures are attributed to situational constraints or preventable neglect. Quantitative results indicate that both constructs are positively associated with customer aggression and tolerance. Aggression may function as confrontational problem-focused coping, whereas tolerance reflects emotion-focused coping, and both are positively related to service recovery satisfaction. Service recovery performance strengthens these relationships. The study applies cognitive appraisal theory to an underexplored dual-role context and shows how distinct occupational perceptions shape appraisal, coping, and recovery evaluations.