Purpose -The purpose of the research is to conceptualize a model of tourist satisfaction at the destination level which can serve as a background for designing a universal, parsimonious, short and easily applicable measurement instrument.Design/methodology/approach -The conceptual model was developed on the basis of existing theoretical and empirical research in the fields of marketing and tourism.Findings -The model includes eight latent constructs, with tourist satisfaction being the central one. The analysis of the antecedents (quality, image, value, and costs and risks) of customer satisfaction provides insights into the processes underlying the creation of satisfaction, while the outcome constructs (complaint behavior and loyalty) indicate the consequences of (dis)satisfaction.Research limitations/implications -Designing a parsimonious and easily applicable measurement instrument imposes some limitations with respect to the number of constructs and measured variables included. The inclusion of additional constructs/variables should provide a more comprehensive insight into customer satisfaction and a more solid basis for strategic decision-making but at the same time it is likely to reduce the model's transparency and universality.Practical implications -The results of a continuous customer satisfaction monitoring should serve as an input for a trend analysis and strategic discussions regarding the development of a tourist destination. The ultimate goals of monitoring satisfaction include identifying strategic objectives at the destination level, preparing tactical and operational plans and ultimately increasing the competitiveness of a given destination.Originality/value -Achieving customer satisfaction should be one of the most important goals of every DMO and, to our knowledge, a few universal cause-and-effect measurement instruments/models have been developed to support this goal. The proposed model provides a basis for the continuous monitoring and improvement of the competitiveness of a given destination.

Summary In this paper, we propose to re‐examine the role of qualitative thinking in the early stages of learning statistics and, where relevant, integrate selected elements of qualitative research methods into statistics curricula. We believe that this can help to improve statistics education, deepen desired student understanding of the role of statistics in providing answers to real‐world problems and address recurring concerns about student motivation. The paper clarifies the logic underlying our proposal, examines existing connections between qualitative and quantitative research during instruction that often go unacknowledged and can be built upon, explores practical implementation issues and discusses advantages as well as limitations of the proposed approach.

This paper seeks to add to a scholarly dialogue regarding the role and value of qualitative techniques in research on learning and using statistics. The paper briefly outlines some of the core assumptions of qualitative research methods, and presents four examples to illustrate selected qualitative methods that are used by educational researchers and service organizations. The discussion emphasizes the need to integrate quantitative and qualitative approaches in research on learners and users of statistics, and suggests that such integration may be needed to study emerging web-based communities of learners and users of statistics. Copyright (c) 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation (c) 2010 International Statistical Institute.

Service quality is difficult to quantify as it is a function of differing customer perceptions over time, the ever changing market conditions, the measurement process and the interpretation of the data that have been gathered. The SERVQUAL questionnaire and gap analysis have been used to analyse service quality within diverse organisations over the last 30 years. The measurement instrument has been analysed, changed and criticized by numerous authors. However, as a stand-alone tool, it has remained much the same. With organisational emphasis on change in systems as well as new and innovative ways of using computer technology, SERVQUAL is more likely to become obsolete as a stand-alone tool as new ways of collecting and disseminating data become available. However, it might survive if integrated into an ever changing IT framework within a generic company structure such as e.g. the Six Sigma framework. In our paper we strive (1) to find out to what extent is SERVQUAL helpful in process improvement; and (2) to determine characteristics of methodology that would call for application of SERVQUAL for process improvement purposes.

This article aims to challenge official statistics providers and statistics educators to ponder on how to help non-specialist adult users of statistics develop those aspects of statistical literacy that pertain to official statistics. We first document the gap in the literature in terms of the conceptual basis and educational materials needed for such an undertaking. We then review skills and competencies that may help adults to make sense of statistical information in areas of importance to society. Based on this review, we identify six elements related to official statistics about which non-specialist adult users should possess knowledge in order to be considered literate in official statistics: (1) the system of official statistics and its work principles; (2) the nature of statistics about society; (3) indicators; (4) statistical techniques and big ideas; (5) research methods and data sources; and (6) awareness and skills for citizens' access to statistical reports. Based on this ad hoc typology, we discuss directions that official statistics providers, in cooperation with statistics educators, could take in order to (1) advance the conceptualization of skills needed to understand official statistics, and (2) expand educational activities and services, specifically by developing a collaborative digital textbook and a modular online course, to improve public capacity for understanding of official statistics.