Developing a scale of social commerce service quality: an exploratory study

Kybernetes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mona Jami Pour ◽  
Fateme Ebrahimi Delavar ◽  
Ghazale Taheri ◽  
Sanaz Kargaran
Keyword(s):  
Service Quality ◽  
Social Trust ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Social Commerce ◽  
Design Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
Study Results

Purpose Following the emergence of Web 2.0 technologies, social commerce has been viewed as an inseparable part of today’s business environment. Social commerce is a recent version of e-commerce, which has rapidly become a new interesting field for both practitioners and academics. To improve social commerce success, managers should be aware of what encompasses social commerce quality, how consumers sense it and how it is assessed. Though, despite the importance of social commerce, designing of scales for measuring the social commerce quality has rarely been explored. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to develop a new scale for measuring the social commerce service quality comprehensively. Design/methodology/approach To obtain the research objective, in the first step, a comprehensive literature review along with focus group discussions was conducted to theoretically conceptualize service quality dimensions and measures. Then, for evaluating the proposed scale via social commerce customers, the survey method was used. Finally, the verified measures were weighted and ranked using fuzzy analytic hierarchy process. Findings The findings showed that social commerce service quality is a hierarchical and multidimensional construct consisting of six key dimensions including information quality, social interaction quality, design quality, functional quality, social trust/security and social support. Research limitations/implications The study results assist managers to improve the quality of social commerce services through increasing the awareness of customers’ perceptions and expectations concerning social service quality. They further help managers to understand systematically all dimensions of social commerce service quality, which may lead to reduce the risk of social commerce adaptation failure and consequently increase the customers’ satisfaction. Originality/value The role of service quality in acceptance and success of social commerce has been emphasized by many academics and practitioners. However, review of the previous literature shows that inadequate studies in this field have been conducted so far. The main contribution of this study is conceptualization and development of a validated scale for measuring the social commerce service quality. This scale provides a useful instrument for researchers who wish to measure the service quality of social commerce and for managers who want to improve the perceived quality of their services.

Exploring backpackers’ perceptions of the hostel service quality

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (8) ◽  
pp. 1839-1855 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Brochado ◽  
Paulo Rita ◽  
Carlos Gameiro
Keyword(s):  
Service Quality ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Hotel Industry ◽  
Online Reviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
Mixed Approach ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of backpackers’s evaluation of service quality provided by hostels by developing a battery of items to assess perceptions of the overall hostel experience. Design/methodology/approach – Scale development took a mixed approach that combines qualitative and quantitative research. First, the authors performed a content analysis of reviews provided by guests in hostel booking web sites, in-depth interviews with hostel managers and focus groups with guests, to develop a battery of items to assess the hostel experience from the guests’ perspective. Then, a quantitative survey (n = 222) was conducted, to explore the dimensionality of service quality in this sector. Lisbon hostels are the target of this study, as they received several awards based on the online reviews of backpackers. Findings – The results revealed that service quality is a multidimensional concept and includes six dimensions, namely, social atmosphere, location and city connection, staff, cleanliness, security and facilities. Regression results revealed that the social atmosphere appears to be a core service dimension crucial to create a sense of hostel guest’s overall quality. Originality/value – The findings suggest that service quality scales should incorporate the specific characteristics of the hotel industry. The quality of the staff and the social atmosphere are of utmost importance to enhance the hostel backpacker experience.

Gap assessment and comparison of the quality of services between central libraries of the University of Tehran and Allameh Tabataba'i University

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leila Jabbari ◽  
Ali Jalali Dizaji ◽  
Mila Malekolkalami
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Service ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
User Satisfaction ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Quality Of Services ◽  
Level Of Service ◽  
Minimum Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The University

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to measure the gap and compare the quality of services provided by the Central Library of the University of Tehran and Allameh Tabataba'i University and identify the components of service that need improvement in these libraries.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, a descriptive survey method is used for data collection. The study sample contains 205 people selected out of 31,000 members of Tehran University and 100 people out of 15,000 members at Allameh Tabataba'i University. The LibQual tool is used to measure different levels of users' perceptions of library service quality.FindingsBased on the findings of the study, the level of service received at the University of Tehran was higher than the minimum expected level, and at Allameh Tabataba'i University, the level of service received was lower than the minimum level of expected, which indicates users' satisfaction at this index at the University of Tehran and users' dissatisfaction at Allameh Tabataba'i University. In the index of information control and library as a place in Tehran University, the level of service received was higher than the minimum level and in Allameh Tabataba'i University, the level of service received was lower than the minimum level, which indicates the satisfaction of users in this index at the University of Tehran and users' dissatisfaction at Allameh Tabataba'i University.Practical implicationsService quality, or quality of service, is the measurement and comparison of the size of service provided with users' expectations. The following principles illustrate the dimensions of service quality: Quality of service is much more difficult to measure than the quality of goods. The quality of service is based on users' expectations. Quality of service varies in status, meaning that the quality of a service is measured against the customer's initial expectations of that service (Parasuraman et al., 1985).Originality/valueBeing the first performance evaluation, community synchronization, economic justification, user satisfaction and customer orientation are the values of the present study.

Service quality evaluation of automobile garages using a structural approach

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ajith Tom James ◽  
Jasmin James
Keyword(s):  
Graph Theory ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
Quality Index ◽  
Service Industry ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Quality Evaluation ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to evaluate the service quality automobile garages through development of a service quality index based on the factors influencing service quality.Design/methodology/approachA structural methodology of graph theory and matrix approach is applied for developing the service quality index.FindingsThe automobile maintenance can be considered as a service industry and in order to sustain in the competitive business environment, the service providers must ensure quality in their services. There are several factors that influence the service quality. Each factor is comprised of several sub-factors. Moreover, the factors are interrelated with each other. Modelling of these factors and their interrelations with due consideration of their structure is accomplished through the graph theory. The directed graph (digraph) of the service quality is defined; the nodes of this symbolize the quality influencing factors, while the edges represent their degrees of interrelationships. An equivalent matrix developed from the digraph establishes a service quality function which leads to evaluation of service quality index (SQI). A greater value of the service quality index displays that the organization and functioning of the garage is adequate.Practical implicationsThe methodology can be applied for evaluating as well as comparing service quality of different garages. The observations would be helpful to the managers the garages to make strategies for improving their service quality.Originality/valueThe paper establishes the interrelations among various factors that influence the service quality at automobile garages and develop a numeric index for the evaluation of the same.

P-TRANSQUAL: a service quality model of public land transport services

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 534-558 ◽  
Author(s):  
I Gede Mahatma Yuda Bakti ◽  
Sik Sumaedi
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
Public Transport ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Public Land ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Transport Services ◽  
The Stability

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test a model of service quality of public land transport services, especially paratransit services. Design/methodology/approach – This study used quantitative approach. Data were collected through a survey method using questionnaire. The respondents of the study are 880 passengers of paratransit services in Indonesia. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were performed in order to identify the dimensions of service quality and test the convergent and discriminant validity of the dimensions. Cronbach’s α analysis was carried out to test the reliability of the dimensions. In addition, criterion-based validity and the stability of the service quality model were also tested. Findings – A model of service quality of public land transport, namely P-TRANSQUAL, was tested. P-TRANSQUAL consists of four dimensions, which are comfort, tangible, personnel, and reliability. The model has been proven to have good validity, reliability, and stability for measuring service quality of paratransit services in Indonesia. Research limitations/implications – This research was carried out in a single developing country, namely Indonesia. Hence, the stability of the model needs to be tested in different cultures. Practical implications – Public transport managers can use P-TRANSQUAL to monitor, measure, and improve the service quality of the public transport they manage. Originality/value – This paper has tested a new model of service quality for public transport services, especially paratransit services.

SERVQUAL application and adaptation for educational service quality assessments in Russian higher education

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Railya B. Galeeva
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Quality Analysis ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Educational Service ◽  
Difference Scores ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Quality Assessments

Purpose The purpose of this study is to demonstrate an adaptation of the SERVQUAL survey method for measuring the quality of higher educational services in a Russian university context. We use a new analysis and a graphical technique for presentation of results. Design/methodology/approach The methodology of this research follows the classic SERVQUAL method in terms of data acquisition but provides a new approach for data analysis and presentation of findings. The technique is intended to improve upon the original method by including an importance-quality analysis grid and extending it with an innovative graphical tool for presenting results to decision-makers that is based on area-based ratios rather than difference scores. Findings The report includes survey results of two waves of research conducted in 2009 and 2014. Each wave consisted of 1,000 respondents from 20 branches of study and 11 higher education institutions, respectively. Research limitations/implications It is argued that the SERVQUAL method can be improved significantly with the proposed technique. However, the validity and reliability of the importance, expectation and perception summary scores need to be further investigated. Also, alternative methods for quality assessment (SERVPERF/HEdPERF) should be tested and compared with the modified SERVQUAL method in Russian and other international education contexts. Practical implications Educational service quality assessments allow the management to acquire an image of the overall quality of an institution, as well as its strengths and weaknesses, thereby improving its strategic positioning to make improvements. It is hoped that the proposed improvement to the SERVQUAL technique will increase adoption of the method among academic institutions. Originality/value The improved SERVQUAL methodology demonstrated in this research replaces the widely criticised “difference scores” with an easily applied graphical display. The methodology also incorporates an importance-quality analysis providing a new perspective on the SERVQUAL data. The current findings provide valuable insights into the perceived quality of the Republic of Tatarstan’s higher education system in Russia, as given by its student customers.

Customers’ perception of service quality of banking sectors in Bangladesh

2018 ◽  
Vol 60 (4) ◽  
pp. 922-933
Author(s):  
Md. Abdur Rouf ◽  
Mostafa Kamal ◽  
Mohammed Masum Iqbal
Keyword(s):  
Service Quality ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Personal Characteristics ◽  
Descriptive Statistics ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Customer Perception ◽  
One Way Anova ◽  
Sampling Survey

Purpose The main purpose of the study is to find out the customer perception of service quality of banking sectors in Bangladesh and measure their relations with regard to the customer personal characteristics like gender, age, education and occupation. Design/methodology/approach The research method applied in this study is random sampling survey method. The data are analysed using descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, t-test and f-test. Findings The findings indicate that the overall customer perception is neutral level. Aspect like gender, age and occupation are found to be statistically significant, and education is not statistically significant. Originality/value The findings of the study will be a benchmark or the board for policymakers and implementers in torching the avenues of improvement in raising the level of customer satisfaction.

Using SERVIQUAL to investigate the quality of provided wireless communication services in UAE

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-132
Author(s):  
Wisam Abu Jadayil ◽  
Mwafak Shakoor ◽  
Adnan Bashir ◽  
Hamza Selmi ◽  
Mohamed Rafik N.N. Qureshi
Keyword(s):  
Service Quality ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Quality Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Five Dimensions ◽  
Critical Dimensions ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Wireless Telecommunication

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the service quality of wireless telecommunication services in the UAE. Design/methodology/approach This study uses the five dimensions of SERVQUAL instrumentation (reliability, assurance, tangibility, empathy and responsiveness) that are believed to represent service quality to approach a result of service quality level through comparing customers’ expectations to their perceptions. A SERVQUAL survey was constructed and distributed among a total number of 100 Etisalat users from four different age groups. Findings The results showed a significant difference between users’ expectations and the current level of quality of services in tangibility dimension of quality. The other variables were ranked in this order, assurance, reliability, responsiveness and empathy in service quality. Research limitations/implications The research findings encompass individuals from society only and may not be practical to generalize the findings to business organizations or industries as they have special offers and packages designed for their nature of the study. Practical implications This research is intensely valuable for Etisalat telecommunication company as it reflects and rates their service provided to the individuals of the society (citizens and residents) from five different critical dimensions. Consequently, it offers the firm the chance to improve the negative gaps in their services. Thus, higher customer satisfaction and loyalty. Originality/value This study demonstrated that a multi-cultural society could influence customers’ expectations and perceptions of service quality. The study results showed opposing expectations and perceptions to the same dimension from people of the same age group. The highest gaps were found to be in the tangibility and assurance dimensions whilst the lowest gap was found in the empathy dimension.

The path of support-to-sales: mediating role of seller collaborative information exchange in social commerce

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Chen ◽  
Fengxia Zhu ◽  
Murali Mantrala
Keyword(s):  
Information Exchange ◽  
Instrumental Support ◽  
Trade Volume ◽  
Social Commerce ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
The Social ◽  
Source Data ◽  
Negative Effect

Purpose This paper aims to systematically investigate the direct and indirect effects of four types of support – peer instrumental support, peer emotional support, platform business support and platform communication support – on seller trade volume in social commerce. It also aims to uncover the path of support-to-sales of the seller from a platform perspective and provides a more complete picture of the social commerce phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses multi-source data including primary survey data and secondary data on trade volume to test the hypotheses. PROCESS mediation model is used to analyze the multi-source data set. Findings This study finds that the positive effects of peer instrumental support, platform business support and platform communication support on seller trade volume are fully mediated by seller collaborative information exchange. Also, peer emotional support has a significant negative effect on seller trade volume and collaborative information exchange can serve as a buffer to mitigate the negative effect. Research limitations/implications The authors provide new insights into what types of support are or are not conducive to improving transaction volume of individual sellers and highlight the mediating role of seller information exchange in this value generation process in social commerce. These findings advance current knowledge of how seller interactions increase value in social commerce. The chosen research setting may limit the generalizability of the findings of this study. Practical implications This paper offers valuable implications for social commerce platforms on how to better serve their sellers to achieve high growth. Specifically, the findings suggest that platforms should encourage instrumental support and information exchange among peer sellers. In addition, platforms should expand seller support from a single-focus on sellers’ business to a dual-focus on both sellers’ business and socialization in social commerce. Originality/value This paper fulfills an identified need to study how sellers can better derive value from the social interactions and how social commerce platforms can effectively influence transactions, support sales and serve as a selling platform.

Customer satisfaction with sommelier services of upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 532-554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tommy Lau ◽  
Man Lai Cheung ◽  
Guilherme D. Pires ◽  
Carol Chan
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Customer Satisfaction ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
Customer Loyalty ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Partial Least Square ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The abolishment of the wine tax in Hong Kong has led to increased wine consumption and increased demand for wine-related professionals, such as sommeliers. Yet the importance of sommeliers’ value-adding performance in the context of upscale Chinese restaurants has not been examined. To address this gap, the SERVQUAL framework is adopted to examine the influence of sommeliers’ service quality (SQ) on customer satisfaction (CS) and loyalty in the context of upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach The survey method is used to collect data from 302 units of the population of interest, partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) is used to test the links between constructs. Findings Four of the seven dimensions of sommeliers’ service quality, namely, empathy, tangibles, credibility and assurance, have a significant positive impact on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty, whereas the impact of perceived value and responsiveness on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty is positive but only marginally significant. Reliability has a weak and non-significant impact on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Research limitations/implications Examining a small number of upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong limits generalisation of the findings to other contexts. Replication of the research in different contexts will enhance generalizability. In terms of implications, the discussion highlights the importance of sommeliers’ service performance on customers’ SQ perceptions SQ, CS and loyalty, all of which are important variables for restaurateurs. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of the influence of the quality of sommelier’s SQ on CS and loyalty in upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong. Given the lack of attention to this service role in the literature, the study contributes theory from which further understanding can develop.

Portrayals of autism and social awareness: a scoping review

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosa Fontes ◽  
Margarita Pino-Juste
Keyword(s):  
Social Awareness ◽  
Social Categories ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Media Portrayals ◽  
Broadcast Media ◽  
News Broadcasts ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Trends ◽  
The Subject

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to look at recent trends in scientific literature on the portrayal of autism in published and broadcast media and social awareness of the subject. Design/methodology/approach A bibliometric analysis of content of such publications was performed. Findings Results show that portrayals of autism from books, newspapers, news broadcasts, films and TV series are being scrutinized. Research focuses on the social categories of resulting stereotypes, the quality of such depictions, the benefits and downsides, stigmatization of individuals (with autism) and how society responds to these portrayals. Originality/value It is important to understand if media portrayals of autism are creating a realistic and constructive awareness of autism in society.

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