Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
Article information:
Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by 434496 []
For Authors
If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for
Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines
are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/2040-8269.htm
The paths to
customer loyalty
239
Zuhrem Yaman
Department of Health Management, Selcuk University, Konya, Turkey, and
Mustafa Gulmez
Department of Tourism, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey
Abstract
Purpose The aim of this study is to determine the paths between the five SERVQUAL dimensions,
customer satisfaction and customer loyalty.
Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on a sample of 505 supermarket customers
in Turkey who have completed a self-administered questionnaire. The paper uses means, such as
standard deviation and multiple regression analysis, to analyze and propose the conceptual model on
supermarket management.
Findings The paper concludes that empathy, tangibility, responsiveness, and assurance are factors
that are positively related to customer satisfaction, which in turn is positively related to customer
loyalty.
Originality/value The paper provides certain suggestions to supermarket managers regarding the
terms of service quality dimensions, satisfaction, and loyalty.
Keywords Service quality dimensions, Customer satisfaction, Customer loyalty, Supermarkets, Turkey
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
The importance of the service sector in the global economy is rapidly increasing.
Services are estimated to constitute nearly 75 and 80 percent of the value of the US
economy (Laroche et al., 2004). The supermarket sector, which was a growing sector in
the USA in the 1920s, emerged in Turkey in 1954 with Migros and Gima (the most
popular supermarkets in Turkey) and became widespread between the dates 1960 and
1970. By the year 2000, a significant increase in the numbers of the supermarkets, and
especially hypermarkets, was clearly evident. In 2001, there were 435 supermarkets in
Turkey. By 2003, that figure reached 968 and in 2005 soared to 1,872. It has been
declared that the estimations for 2012 are that there will be 2,840 supermarkets in
Turkey (http://arsiv.sabah.com.tr).
The sector in question, which has risen to become a locomotive industry in Turkeys
economy, with both its growth and employment figures, continued to perform in the
first nine months of 2011. According to the employment index of Kariyer.net, one of the
MRR
36,3
240
largest human resources platforms, in the first nine months of the year, there was an
increase of 45 percent in employment figures from the supermarket sector (www.
haberler.gen.al).
Prior to providing the literature review, which is related to the factors of the present
study, it will be helpful to provide information on the service structure of the Turkish
supermarket in order to avoid concerns regarding the effects of service levels on the
consumer perceived service quality. Accordingly, in Turkish supermarkets, the service
encounter process is still an important tool for supermarkets to differentiate themselves
from competitors. In supermarkets where homogenous products are sold in general,
specific factors such as store atmosphere, providing sufficient and dependable service,
accessibility, courteousness, suave, and sophisticated employees who are willing to help
the consumer, directly affect the consumers service quality perceptions. Therefore,
improving customer satisfaction and delivering better quality service than competitors
helps service providers to differentiate their offerings (Jamal and Anastasiadou, 2007).
It is well known that service quality, customer satisfaction, and customer loyalty are
becoming the most important factors of successful business competition for service
providers (Rust et al., 1995; Zeithaml, 1996). The nature of the relationship between
service quality and customer satisfaction has always been an attractive field of
study (Tam, 2004). Quality and satisfaction, along with value, were propounded as
service-oriented constructs which should be investigated to understand the dynamics
of loyalty based on behaviors such as repurchase and word-of-mouth (WOM) referrals
(Hutchinson et al., 2009). Therefore, as the development of service quality has been
identified as a key strategy to increase the level of customer satisfaction and intention
to revisit, providing quality service for customers poses great importance for both
retention and customer satisfaction (Lee et al., 2011), which is described as a precondition
for customer loyalty (Tam, 2004). As a result, service managers and researchers have
directed their efforts towards understanding the customers perceptions of service
quality, and towards the manner in which these perceptions are reflected on customer
satisfaction and behavioral intentions (Olorunniwo et al., 2006).
It is very difficult, however, to find studies related to service quality dimensions and
their effects on customer satisfaction and its customer satisfaction on the factors of
customer loyalty such as positive word-of-mouth (p-WOM) and repurchase intention in
the supermarket sector. As Jamal and Anastasiadou (2007, p. 398) stated, despite a
significant interest in service quality and its dimensions, very little research has
investigated the effects of specific dimensions of service quality on satisfaction and
loyalty. In conclusion, the purpose of our study is to investigate the path of service
quality ! customer satisfaction ! customer loyalty. We find this study particularly
to be interesting because there have been no such studies conducted in Turkey,
concerning customer loyalty for supermarkets.
The remainder of the paper is organized as follows: following a brief presentation of
the perceived service quality, satisfaction and loyalty, the research hypotheses are
proposed and the research methodology is detailed. The analysis of the collected data
and the testing of the hypotheses are complemented by a discussion of the main results
in relation to the complementing literature. The article ends with a revision of the main
findings and limitations of this study, and also includes suggestions for future
research.
Gronroos (1984) stated that service firms should define perceived service quality and
determine the influence of service quality in order to compete successfully. Accordingly,
he explained the perceived service quality as being the outcome of an evaluation process.
In this process, the customer compares expectations and perceptions with the result of the
process, referred as perceived service quality.
Accordingly, a year after Gronroos study, Parasuruman et al. (1985) suggested a
conceptual model. Similarly, they claimed that service quality is a comparison between
expectations and performance. They conceptualized the perceived service quality as
follows (Parasuruman et al., 1988, p. 16):
A global judgment, or attitude, related to the superiority of the service.
Within the framework of the European thought process which is also known as the
Scandinavian school, Gronroos (2001) stated that the technical quality and the
functional quality dimensions of a service replace the physical features of a product.
The image dimension has entered into the model as a dynamic factor. That is due to the
fact that customers then transfer their general perceptions and previous experiences
with them to the next service encounter process.
Among the consumer satisfaction theories, some researchers, including
Parasuruman and his colleagues, define service quality as the gap between service
perceptions and customer expectations (Vinagre and Neves, 2008).
The North American School has focused its research on the intangible factors with the
assumption that there are very few tangible factors in the service encounter process
(Perez et al., 2007). The most important advocates of this tradition, Parasuruman and
his colleagues have greatly contributed to the field of service quality with the SERVQUAL
scale they developed in light of the Scandinavian service management school
and especially the pioneering work done by Gronroos (Chowdhary and Prakash, 2007).
The paths to
customer loyalty
241
MRR
36,3
242
The research focused on the notion that quality evaluation should not only focus on
service output but should also embody the service encounter process (Kang, 2006).
The Gap Model, which was first developed by Parasuruman and his colleagues, is
considered the most eminent work done on the topic (Jun et al., 2004), and focuses on the
differences between consumers viewpoints and marketers viewpoints (Svensson,
2006), has evoked a revolution (Redman and Mathews, 1998), and encouraged many
researchers to investigate service quality contributors as part of the marketing concept
(Chowdhary and Prakash, 2007). The debates and contributions within the framework
of measuring and conceptualizing service quality have evolved around the SERVQUAL
scale (Espinoza, 1999), and the roots of the efforts of conceptualizing service quality
have now reached to that model and scale (Hamer, 2006). The pioneer work of
Parasuruman et al. (1988), propounded that service quality leans on multi-dimensional
factors (Saunders, 2008). This conceptual model provides an advantage on easily
understanding service quality components (Kuei and Lu, 1997).
Parasuruman et al. (1985) mentioned the presence of five gaps that negatively affect
service quality:
Gap 1. Consumer expectations vs management perceptions.
Gap 2. Management perceptions vs service quality specifications.
Gap 3. Service quality specifications vs service encounter process.
Gap 4. Service encounter process vs outsider communication.
Gap 5. Expected service vs perceived service.
The aforementioned studies are invaluable for service quality management. Especially,
the Parasuruman team with Zeithaml and Berry has especially greatly contributed to the
development and expansion of the service quality field (Caruana et al., 1998).
The service quality concept is focused on how the service meets the consumers needs
and demands (Lewis et al., 1994). All of these definitions lean towards the assumption
that consumers may evaluate an object only after she/he has interpreted or perceived
it and parallel-wise, they may then comprehend the service quality by comparing
the perceptions and expectations after having received the service (Lee et al., 2000).
The interest in the service quality field and the complexity of the factors defining
service quality has given rise to the generation of numerous multi-dimensional models
(Ekinci, 2002; Brogowicz et al., 1990). Some of the most important research conducted
on the topic includes: Gronroos (1984), Parasuruman et al. (1985), Haywood-Farmer
(1988), Parasuruman et al. (1988), Brogowicz et al. (1990), Babakus and Mangold (1992),
Mattsson (1992), Teas (1993), Cronin and Taylor (1994) and Philip and Hazlett (1997).
It can be concluded from these studies that service quality has numbers of dimensions;
however there is no concrete agreement on the exact nature of the dimensions (Murray
and Howat, 2002). The SERVQUAL model has been pointed to as being the most
extensively and successfully used service quality measurement in the twenty-first
century (Kassim and Abdullah, 2010). The five dimensions of SERVQUAL: tangibles,
reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy are shown in Table I.
In an early study on customers service quality perceptions, Becker et al. (1997)
measured customers perceptions and expectations in floral service quality. The results
of that study exposed the finding that the reliability was the most important and the
tangibles dimension was the least important of the five SERVQUAL dimensions.
In a study by Bougoure and Lee (2009), a comparison between wet markets and
supermarkets was made in the context of SERVQUAL dimensions, and the results
revealed that supermarkets were perceived to be more reliable and more responsive
than wet markets; in addition they offered better tangibles and greater level of
personalization. In a similar study performed by Torlak et al. (2010), discount stores and
supermarkets in Turkey were investigated via the customer perception of service
quality dimensions. Accordingly, supermarket customers perceived physical aspects
and store policy dimensions to be at a higher level, in contrast, discount store customers
gave more priority to personal interaction. There are several studies which indicate that
perceived service quality is the antecedent of satisfaction (Lee et al., 2000; Murray and
Howat, 2002) or that it has direct and indirect effects on behavioral intentions such as
loyalty and p-WOM (Ladhari, 2009) or that there is a positive relationship between
service quality, satisfaction, and revisit intension (Lee et al., 2011) or that service quality
positively influences customer satisfaction (Kuo et al., 2009). Service quality has
established itself as being an important determinant of both customer satisfaction
(Falk et al., 2010) and WOM communication (Matos and Rossi, 2008). One of the main
purposes of the present study is to determine the dominant service quality dimensions
for supermarkets. By doing so, the interrelationships between these dimensions and
customer satisfaction and loyalty will be investigated and their contribution to
cumulative satisfaction determined. Hence our prior hypotheses are:
The paths to
customer loyalty
243
Explanations
Tangibles
Reliability
Responsiveness
Assurance
Empathy
Source: Lee et al. (2011)
Table I.
Five dimensions
of SERVQUAL
MRR
36,3
244
Methodology
The survey questionnaire consists of two parts. The first part includes statements to
measure the level of service quality and the satisfaction and loyalty levels of customers.
For measuring the service quality 17 statements are used. These questions were adapted
from Kueh and Voon (2007). In accordance with the original model (Parasuruman et al.,
1985) tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy are included as
quality dimensions. Each of these dimensions is measured with three or four statements
in the questionnaire.
Three statements were used to measure the customer satisfaction and two
statements measured customer loyalty. These items were adapted from Laroche et al.
(2004) and Nam (2008).
The second part includes items to determine the demographic profiles of the
respondents. In part one, a five-point Likert scale was used for data collection with 1 as
completely agree and 5 as completely disagree (Likert, 1934). Reliability and
internal consistency of statements are measured by Cronbachs a coefficient values.
The data were collected from customers of Oncu Supermarket which is planning to be
a national supermarket chain with 60 branches (actual number is 30) in Turkey.
A systematic sampling technique was used (Nakip, 2003). The questionnaire was pilot
tested in early November 2011 by 20 supermarket customers. Respondents in the pilot
test did not have problems with the questionnaire, although a few minor changes of
wording were suggested.
Following the pilot test, a large-scale consumer questionnaire was administered by
50 research students (of a local university). The survey took place in 30 branches of Oncu
Supermarket in a period between 28 November and 15 December 2011. They interviewed
510 consumers. Five were not included in the analysis because of incompleteness error.
505 questionnaires were considered as useful which represents a 99 percent response
rate. The questionnaire was in Turkish. Face-to-face interviews were conducted in order
to ensure a high response rate and to reduce the missing data in the questionnaires.
SPSS 18.0 for Windows was used for data analysis. Descriptive statistics such as means,
standard deviation, regression and factor analysis, frequency tests were calculated.
Findings
Table II summarizes the demographics of the respondents.
The sample of consumers contained more males (56.4 percent) than females
(43.6 percent). About 34.5 percent of the respondents were between 21 and 30 years of
age which is followed by 31-40 age group (22.4 percent) and 41-50 age group
(15.2 percent). Most of the respondents were married (71.9 percent). About 44.6 percent
of the respondents have graduate degree, followed by high school degree group
(26.3 percent), primary school degree (17.6 percent), and secondary school degree group
(8.7 percent). The most of the participants incomes are 750 TL and lower (37.6). About
26.9 percent of the sample perceived their incomes as much lower and 43.2 percent
as little lower. A significant result that shows the economic status of the consumers
is that just 2.5 percent and 3.1 percent of the participants considered their incomes,
respectively, as little higher and much higher. The rate of the consumers who
thought they had an average income is 25.6 percent (Table II).
Results of descriptive statistics and Cronbachs a are illustrated in Table III. The
Cronbachs a value for three items of satisfaction is 78.6 percent. For the three items in
The paths to
customer loyalty
245
MRR
36,3
246
Table II.
Demographic breakdown
of the respondents
Age
20 and lower
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61 above
Total
Level of education
Literate
First school
Second school
High school
Graduate degree
Master or doctorate degree
Total
Gender
Female
Male
Total
Income c
750 TL and lower
751-1,250 TL
1,251-1,750 TL
1,751-2,250 TL
2,251 TL and more
Total
Jobs
Student
Pensioner
Officer
Employee
Housewife
Self-employed
Total
(F)a
(P)b
60
174
113
77
57
24
505
11.8
34.5
22.4
15.2
11.3
4.8
100
5
89
44
133
225
9
505
1.0
17.6
8.7
26.3
44.6
1.8
100
220
285
505
43.6
56.4
100
190
136
73
67
39
505
37.6
26.9
14.5
13.3
7.7
100
124
43
80
38
103
110
505
24.6
8.5
15.8
7.5
20.5
21.8
100
responsiveness dimension alpha is 76.1 percent; for three items in empathy dimension
alpha is 74 percent; for four items in assurance dimension alpha is 73.9 percent; for two
items in loyalty alpha is 71.3 percent; for three items in reliability dimension alpha is
70.8 percent and finally for four items in tangibility dimension alpha is 64.5. The mean
values, maximum and minimum values, standard deviations, number of items and
reliability analysis are summarized in Table III.
Table III indicates that customers placed highest marks for the following
statements: supermarket uses modern equipments (4.48), I would like to revisit
the supermarket that I have already dealt with (4.28) and your entire experience with
the supermarket; overall you are very satisfied with the supermarket (4.22). Generally,
arithmetic means of model variables are in a range from 3.43 to 4.48. On the other
hand, standard deviations of individual statements range from 0.917 to 1.283.
Variables
Empathy
Employees in the supermarket understand particular
needs of their customers
Employees in the supermarket dedicate enough personal
attention to customers
The supermarket leaves an impression that what is best
for a customer is always the supermarkets priority
Reliability
The supermarket provides its services without making
mistakes
Promises given to customers are being met within
agreed time frame
Employees in the supermarket show sincere efforts to
solve customerss problems
Responsiveness
Employees in the supermarket provide prompt and
actual service to customers
Employees in the supermarket are ready to assist clients
at any moment
Employees in the supermarket provide customers with
all necessary information
Tangibility
Supermarket uses modern equipment
Employees in the supermarket have a professional
looking
Interior of the supermarket is attractive
Materials such as informative signs regarding
supermarket are visually appealing and easy to
understand
Assurance
Employee behavior raises customers confidence
Customers of the supermarket feel confident regarding
all travel arrangement elements (product transport from
supermarket to customers home)
Employees in the supermarket are polite to their
customers
Employees in the supermarket have necessary
knowledge to answer all questions raised by customers
Satisfaction
Assuming you view your entire experience with the
supermarket, overall you are very satisfied with the
supermarket
In general, my satisfaction level related to the
supermarket that I have already deal with is high
Complete service offer by a supermarket is significantly
above expected
Loyalty
I would like to revisit the supermarket that I have
already deal with
I recommend my close environment to visit the
supermarket that I have already deal with
Cronbachs a
Mean
SD
0.740
3.80
1.157
3.74
1.198
3.76
1.145
3.92
3.86
1.129
1.315
3.67
1.210
3.92
1.155
4.00
4.02
1.179
1.101
4.03
1.025
4.14
1.098
3.89
3.92
4.48
1.182
1.147
0.917
3.62
3.78
1.256
1.186
3.80
4.05
4.19
1.229
1.063
1.045
4.06
1.080
4.24
0.974
3.74
3.91
1.154
1.026
4.22
0.926
4.08
0.973
3.43
4.11
1.181
1.119
4.28
0.956
3.95
1.283
0.708
0.761
0.645
0.739
0.786
0.713
The paths to
customer loyalty
247
Table III.
Descriptive statistics
of variables
MRR
36,3
248
Finally, an adequate level of reliability is notable among all variables except tangibility
variable (Cronbachs a values were higher than 0.7).
Multiple regression analysis is used to test the relationships between variables.
The results of multiple regression analysis are shown in Table IV. The general purpose of
multiple regressions is to learn more about the relationship between several independent
or predictor variables and a dependent or criterion variable (Nakip, 2003, p. 310).
The results in Table IV show that independent variables together describe 56 percent
of customer satisfaction variability. The value of R 2 coefficient is significant (F 126.753,
p , 0.01). The impacts of four service quality variables on consumer satisfaction are
significant. The Beta coefficients of empathy, responsiveness, tangibility, and assurance
are, respectively, 0.244, 0.102, 0.237, and 0.218. Empathy dimension (t 5.579, p 0.000),
responsiveness dimension (t 2.172, p 0.030), tangibility dimension (t 5.537,
p 0.000), and assurance dimension (t 4.012, p 0.000) dimensions are significantly
connected with customer satisfaction. Reliability dimension has not a significantly
positive influence on customer satisfaction. From the beta estimates, it can be said that
empathy dimension is strongly connected to customer satisfaction than other four service
quality dimensions. On the other hand, employees in the supermarket understand needs
of their customers.
Application of regression analysis assumes that the variables have a linear relationship
with each other. The scatterplot matrices in Figure 1 show that, all assumptions are
accepted. Therefore, it is considered that no further transformation is required for the
independent variables.
The results in Table V show that customer satisfaction significantly contributes
on repurchase intention (F 326.788, p 0.000) at the 1 percent significance level and
predicts 40.2 percent of the variance in repurchase intention. The Beta coefficients of
customer satisfaction is 0.701 which shows that customer satisfaction (t 18.401;
p 0.000) is significantly connected with repurchase intention. From the beta estimate,
it can be said that customer satisfaction is strongly connected with repurchase intention.
The results in Table VI show that customer satisfaction significantly contributes
on p-WOM (F 170.484, p 0.000) at the 1 percent significance level and predicts
25.3 percent of the variance in p-WOM. The Beta coefficients of customer satisfaction is
0.701 which shows that customer satisfaction (t 13.057; p 0.000) is significantly
connected with p-WOM. From the beta estimate, it can be said that customer
satisfaction is strongly connected to the p-WOM.
Independent variables
Table IV.
Multiple regression
analysis of SERVQUAL
dimensions towards
customer satisfaction
(Constant)
Empathy
Responsiveness
Reliability
Tangibility
Assurance
Beta coefficients
t-value
p-value
0.401
0.244
0.102
0.081
0.237
0.218
2.648
5.579
2.172
1.882
5.537
4.012
0.008
0.000 * *
0.030 *
0.060
0.000 * *
0.000 * *
TAN
SAT
The paths to
customer loyalty
ASS
EMP
RES
REL
249
SAT
TAN
REL
RES
ASS
Figure 1.
Scatterplot matrix
of dependent and
independents variables
EMP
Independent variable
Beta coefficients
t-value
p-value
(Constant)
Customer satisfaction
1.542
0.701
10.104
18.401
0.000 *
Notes: Significant at: *p , 0.01 level; R 0.634; R 0.402; F 338.587; Sig. F 0.000
Independent variable
Beta coefficients
t-value
p-value
(Constant)
Customer satisfaction
1.028
0.747
4.490
13.057
0.000 *
Notes: Significant at: *p , 0.01 level; R 0.503; R 2 0.253; F 170.484; Sig. F 0.000
Table V.
Regression analysis of
customer satisfaction
towards repurchase
intention
Table VI.
Regression analysis of
customer satisfaction
towards p-WOM
MRR
36,3
250
Figure 2.
Research model and
the model results
The paths to
customer loyalty
251
MRR
36,3
252
Duffy, J.A., Duffy, M. and Kilbourne, W. (1997), Cross national study of perceived
service quality in long-term care facilities, Journal of Aging Studies, Vol. 11 No. 4,
pp. 327-36.
East, R., Hammond, K. and Wright, M. (2007), The relative incidence of positive and negative
word of mouth: a multi-category study, International Journal of Research in Marketing,
Vol. 24 No. 2, pp. 175-84.
Ekinci, Y. (2002), A review of theoretical debates on the measurement of service quality:
implications for hospitality research, Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, Vol. 26
No. 3, pp. 199-216.
Espinoza, M.M. (1999), Assessing the cross-cultural applicability of a service quality measure a
comparative study between Quebec and Peru, International Journal of Service Industry
Management, Vol. 10 No. 5, pp. 449-68.
Falk, T., Hammerschmidt, M. and Schepers, J. (2010), The service quality-satisfaction link
revisited: exploring asymmetries and dynamics, Journal of the Academy of Marketing
Science, Vol. 38 No. 3, pp. 288-302.
Ghobadian, A., Speller, S. and Jones, M. (1994), Service quality: concepts and models,
International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 11 No. 9, pp. 43-66.
Gilly, M.C., Graham, J.L., Wolfinbarger, M.F. and Yale, L.J. (1998), A dyadic study of
interpersonal information search, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 26
No. 2, pp. 83-100.
Gounaris, S.P., Stathakopoulos, V. and Athanassopoulos, A.D. (2003), Antecedents to perceived
service quality: an exploratory study in the banking industry, International Journal of
Bank Marketing, Vol. 21 No. 4, pp. 168-90.
Gronroos, C. (1984), A service quality model and its marketing implications, European Journal
of Marketing, Vol. 18 No. 4, pp. 36-44.
Gronroos, C. (2001), The perceived service quality concept a mistake?, Managing Service
Quality, Vol. 11 No. 3, pp. 150-2.
Hamer, L.O. (2006), A confirmation perspective on perceived service quality, Journal of Services
Marketing, Vol. 20 No. 4, pp. 219-32.
Haywood-Farmer, J. (1988), A conceptual model of service quality, International Journal of
Operations & Production Management, Vol. 8 No. 6, pp. 19-29.
Hutchinson, J., Lai, F. and Wang, Y. (2009), Understanding the relationship of quality, value,
equity, satisfaction, and behavioural intentions among golf travellers, Tourism
Management, Vol. 30, pp. 298-308.
Jamal, A. and Anastasiadou, K. (2007), Investigating the effects of service quality dimensions
and expertise on loyalty, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 43 Nos 3/4, pp. 398-420.
Johns, N. (1999), What is this thing called service?, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 33
Nos 9/10, pp. 958-74.
Jun, M., Yang, Z. and Kim, D. (2004), Customers perceptions of online retailing service quality
and their satisfaction, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 21
No. 8, pp. 817-40.
Kandampully, J. and Suhartanto, D. (2000), Customer loyalty in the hotel industry: the role of
customer satisfaction and image, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality
Management, Vol. 12 No. 6, pp. 346-51.
Kang, G. (2006), The hierarchical structure of service quality: integration of technical and
functional quality, Managing Service Quality, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 37-50.
Kassim, N. and Abdullah, N.A. (2010), The effect of perceived service quality dimensions on
customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty in e-commerce settings, Asia Pacific Journal of
Marketing, Vol. 22 No. 3, pp. 351-71.
Kitapci, O. and Dortyol, I.T. (2009), The differences in customer complaint behaviour between
loyal customers and first comers in the retail banking industry: the case of Turkish
customers, Management Research News, Vol. 32 No. 10, pp. 932-41.
Kueh, K. and Voon, B.H. (2007), Culture and service quality expectations: evidence from
Generation Y consumers in Malaysia, Managing Service Quality, Vol. 17 No. 6, pp. 269-70.
Kuei, C. and Lu, M.H. (1997), An integrated approach to service quality improvement,
International Journal of Quality Science, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 24-36.
Kuo, Y., Wu, C. and Deng, W. (2009), The relationship among service quality, perceived value,
customer satisfaction, and post-urchase intention in mobile value-added services,
Computers in Human Behavior, Vol. 25, pp. 887-96.
Ladhari, R. (2009), Service quality, emotional satisfaction, and behavioural intentions,
Managing Service Quality, Vol. 19, pp. 308-31.
Lai, F., Griffin, M. and Babin, B.J. (2009), How quality, value, image, and satisfaction crate
loyalty at a Chinese telecom, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 62, pp. 980-6.
Laroche, M., Kalamas, M. and Cleveland, M. (2004), I versus we: how individualists and
collectivists use information sources to formulate their service expectations, International
Marketing Review, Vol. 22 No. 3, p. 293.
Lee, H., Lee, Y. and Yoo, D. (2000), The determinants of perceived service quality and its
relationship with satisfaction, Journal of Services Marketing, Vol. 14 No. 3, pp. 217-31.
Lee, J., Kim, H., Ko, Y.J. and Sagas, M. (2011), The influence of service quality on satisfaction and
intention: a gender segmentation strategy, Sport Management Review, Vol. 14, pp. 54-63.
Leisen, B. and Vance, C. (2001), Cross-national assessment of service quality in the
telecommunication industry: evidence from the USA and Germany, Managing Service
Quality, Vol. 11 No. 5, pp. 307-17.
Lewis, B.R., Orledge, J. and Mitchell, V. (1994), Service quality: students assessment of banks
and building societies, International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 3-12.
Likert, R. (1934), A simple and reliable method of scoring the turnstone attitude scales, Journal
of Social Psychology, Vol. 5, p. 228.
Matos, C.A. and Rossi, C.A.V. (2008), Word-of-mouth communications in marketing:
a meta-analytic review of the antecedents and moderators, Journal of the Academy of
Marketing Science, Vol. 36 No. 4, pp. 578-96.
Mattsson, J. (1992), A service quality model based on an ideal value standard, International
Journal of Service Industry Management, Vol. 3 No. 3, pp. 18-33.
Mazzarol, T., Sweeney, J.C. and Soutar, G.N. (2007), Conceptualizing word-of-mouth activity,
triggers and conditions: an exploratory study, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 41
Nos 11/12, pp. 1475-94.
Money, R.B., Gilly, M.C. and Graham, J.L. (1998), Explorations of national culture and
word-of-mouth referral behavior in the purchase of industrial services in the United States
and Japan, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 62 No. 4, pp. 76-87.
Murray, D. and Howat, G. (2002), The relationship among service quality, value, satisfaction,
and future intentions of customers at an Australian sports and leisure centre, Sport
Management Review, Vol. 5, pp. 25-43.
Murray, K. (1991), A test of services marketing theory: consumer information acquisition
activities, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 55, pp. 10-25.
The paths to
customer loyalty
253
MRR
36,3
254
Nakip, M. (2003), Pazarlama Arastirmasi: Teknikler ve Uygulamalar, 1st ed., Seckin Yayincilik,
Ankara.
Nam, S. (2008), The impact of culture on the framework of customer value, customer satisfaction
and customer loyalty, disseration, Golden Gate University, San Francisco, CA.
Olorunniwo, F., Hsu, M.K. and Udo, G.J. (2006), Service quality, customer satisfaction, and
behavioral intentions in the service factory, Journal of Services Marketing, Vol. 20/1,
pp. 59-72.
Parasuruman, A., Zeithaml, V.A. and Berry, L.L. (1985), A conceptual model of service quality
and its implications for future research, The Journal of Marketing, Vol. 49 No. 4, pp. 41-50.
Parasuruman, A., Zeithaml, V.A. and Berry, L.L. (1988), SERVQUAL: a multiple-item scale for
measuring consumer perception of service quality, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 64 No. 1,
pp. 35-48.
Perez, M.S., Gazquez, J.C., Carrillo, G.M.M. and Fernandez, R.S. (2007), Effects of service quality
dimensions on behavioral purchase intentions: a study in public-sector transport,
Managing Service Quality, Vol. 17 No. 2, pp. 134-51.
Philip, G. and Hazlett, S. (1997), The measurement of service quality: a new P-C-P attributes
model, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 14 No. 3,
pp. 260-86.
Redman, T. and Mathews, B.P. (1998), Service quality and human resource management:
a review and research agenda, Personnel Review, Vol. 27 No. 1, pp. 57-77.
Reeves, C.A. and Bednar, D.A. (1994), Defining quality: alternatives and implications,
The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 19 No. 3, pp. 419-45 (special issue: Total quality).
Rust, R.T., Zahorik, A.J. and Keiningham, T.L. (1995), Return on quality: making service quality
financially accountable, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 59, pp. 58-70.
Saunders, S.G. (2008), Measuring and applying the PAKSERV service quality construct:
evidence from a South African cultural context, Managing Service Quality, Vol. 18 No. 5,
pp. 442-56.
Sivadas, E. and Baker-Prewitt, F.L. (2000), An examination of the relationship between service
quality, customer satisfaction, and store loyalty, International Journal of Retail &
Distribution Management, Vol. 28 No. 2, pp. 73-82.
Soteriou, A.C. and Chase, R.B. (1998), Linking the customer contact model to service quality,
Journal of Operations Management, Vol. 16, pp. 495-508.
Svensson, G. (2006), New aspects of research into service encounters and service quality,
International Journal of Service Industry Management, Vol. 17, pp. 245-57.
Sweeney, J.C., Soutar, G.N. and Mazzarol, T. (2008), Factors influencing word of mouth
effectiveness: receiver perspectives, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 42 Nos 3/4,
pp. 344-64.
Tam, J.L.M. (2004), Customer satisfaction, service quality and perceived value: an integrative
model, Journal of Marketing Management, Vol. 20, pp. 897-917.
Teas, R.K. (1993), Expectations, performance evaluation, and consumers perceptions of
quality, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 57, pp. 18-34.
Torlak, O., Uzkurt, C. and Ozmen, M. (2010), Dimensions of service quality in grocery retailing:
a case from Turkey, Management Research Review, Vol. 33 No. 5, pp. 413-22.
Ueltschy, L.C., Laroche, M., Eggert, A. and Bindl, U. (2007), Service quality and satisfaction:
an international comparison of professional services perceptions, Journal of Services
Marketing, Vol. 21/6, pp. 410-23.
Ueltschy, L.C., Laroche, M., Tamilia, R.D. and Yannopoulos, P. (2004), Cross-cultural invariance
of measures of satisfaction and service quality, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 57,
pp. 901-12.
Ueltschy, L.C., Laroche, M., Zhang, M., Cho, H. and Yingwei, R. (2009), Is there really an Asian
connection? Professional service quality perceptions and customer satisfaction, Journal of
Business Research, Vol. 62, pp. 972-9.
Vinagre, M.H. and Neves, J.G. (2008), The influence of service quality and patients emotions on
satisfaction, International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 21 No. 1,
pp. 87-103.
Zeithaml, V.A. (1996), The behavioral consequences of service quality, Journal of Marketing,
Vol. 60 No. 2, pp. 31-46.
Further reading
Kelley, S. and Turley, L. (2001), Consumer perceptions of service quality attributes at sporting
events, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 54 No. 2, pp. 161-6.
Web sites
http://arsiv.sabah.com.tr/2005/12/07/res_gda 101-4-20051207.html
www.haberler.gen.al/2011-10-17/perakende-sektoru-istihdam-rakamlarinda-yuzde-45-artisyasandi
About the authors
Olgun Kitapci holds a PhD in Marketing at Cumhuriyet University. He is an Assistant Professor
of Marketing at Akdeniz University. His research interests include service marketing, service
quality and customer relationship management. Olgun Kitapci is the corresponding author and
can be contacted at: okitapci@yahoo.com.tr
Ibrahim Taylan Dortyol is a Research Assistant of Marketing at Cumhuriyet University.
His research interests include CRM, marketing researches and service quality.
Zuhrem Yaman is a Research Assistant of Health Management at Selcuk University.
His research interest includes marketing strategy and service quality.
Mustafa Gulmez is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Akdeniz University. He received
his PhD in Marketing from Cumhuriyet University. His research interests include marketing
communication and tourism marketing.
The paths to
customer loyalty
255
1. Muahmmad Kashif, Sharifah Suzana Wan Shukran, Mohsin Abdul Rehman, Syamsulang Sarifuddin.
2015. Customer satisfaction and loyalty in Malaysian Islamic banks:a PAKSERV investigation.
International Journal of Bank Marketing 33:1, 23-40. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]