Navigating Negative Customer Experiences in the Digital Era: The Role of AI in Shaping Brand-Consumer Relationships

In a digital era marked by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and immersive technologies, customer experience (CX) has become central to brand-consumer relationships. While significant literature highlights positive impacts of CX on engagement, this paper explores an underrepresented facet: the dynamics of negative experiences and their implications for engagement and therefore, for loyalty and trust. Misaligned AI-driven tools, initially designed to enhance CX, can paradoxically lead to frustration, disengagement, and negative perceptions. Drawing from a qualitative review of recent academic contributions, the paper identifies key patterns and gaps. Findings reveal that unmet expectations and technological limitations elicit stronger psychological and behavioral responses than positive experiences, highlighting the asymmetry of human sensitivity to negative stimuli. Emotional attachment and engagement opposition play critical roles in shaping consumer responses. This analysis provides actionable insights to transform challenges into opportunities for strengthening brand-consumer relationships.