Chinese cruise customers loyalty: the impact of customer participation and service personal values

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to further explore the effects of customer participation (CP) and service personal values (SPVs) on cruise customer satisfaction (CS) and customer loyalty (CL) by applying the empirical research approach. Design/methodology/approach A self-administered questionnaire was prepared and used to collect data. Exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling analysis was used to test the proposed model and hypotheses. Findings The empirical results indicate that CP positively influences SPVs, CS and CL. SPVs have a significant and positive impact on CS as well. Moreover, the study also finds that collectivism has a strong positive effect on CP. Price sensitivity negatively moderates the relationship among CP, CPV, CS and CL. Research limitations/implications The generalizability of the current study findings should be considered or scrutinized in light of the fact that limited samples and cross-sectional data were used. This limitation positions the findings as a continuation of the developing path toward a better understanding of customer behavior rather than a definitive conclusion. Practical implications The study results show that CP has a positive direct effect on SPVs, CS and CL. Even though many researchers have verified the importance and function of CP, there is a lack of literature, which assesses the influence of CP in a cruise industry context. By focusing on this gap, this research makes it feasible to empirically analyze the different effects of CP in relation to SPVs, CS and CL in Chinese cruise preferences. Social implications The study results suggest that CP is a new predictor of CS and CL in the cruise industry. Thus, creating a positive experience through participation is crucial. As customers are co-producers, it is beneficial for the cruise companies to raise labor productivity and reduce cost by guiding and stimulating them to take part in the service-producing process. Originality/value Based on the perspective of service-dominant logic, the purpose of this study is to shed light on the formation process of loyalty behavior of Chinese cruise tourists. The empirical results indicate that CP positively influences SPVs, CS and CL. SPVs have a significant and positive impact on CS as well. Moreover, the study also finds that collectivism has a strong positive effect on CP. Price sensitivity negatively moderates the relationship among CP, CPV, CS and CL.

Customer participation, value co-creation and customer loyalty: evidence from Umrah travel agencies in Indonesia

“…Furthermore, this study revisits Umrah travelers' participation and Umrah travelers' loyalty because previous scholars' findings concerning the relationship between customer participation and customer loyalty have shown various results (Chan et al, 2010;Yim et al, 2012). Some scholars have reported that customer participation does affect customer loyalty (Wu et al, 2020), however, customer participation only impacts attitudinal loyalty, but not in the case of behavioral loyalty (Auh, et al, 2007;Cossío-Silva et al, 2016). Likewise, while customer participation includes member interaction and activity involvement, one study showed that member interaction does not significantly impact brand loyalty, while member interaction does (Hwang et al, 2018).…”

“…It also builds a better quality of relationship in service innovation (Sarmah and Rahman, 2018). Furthermore, customer participation positively influences the service personal value, satisfaction and loyalty of cruise customers (Wu et al, 2020). Although many scholars have explored the role of customer participation in creating customer loyalty, they have not investigated in the area of religious tourism.…”

Study on Tourism Flow Network Patterns on May Day Holiday

“…The hotel industry under the change of institutional logic is also affected [7], directly affecting the quality of the tourism. There has been some research into tourists' emotional experiences, including how tourists may be attracted through appeal to emotions and the services provided at destinations [8][9][10][11], place attachment, and residents' attitudes and intentions toward tourism behavior [12]. How to effectively regulate holiday tourism to promote sustainable development and prevent significant negative impacts is a crucial issue that warrants the attention of national and local governments.…”

Cruise vacation experiences for Chinese families with young children

“…In recent years, tourism researchers have increasingly focused on Chinese customers, due to the vital role of the Chinese market and the rapid development of the cruise industry in China. The research topics investigated include customer motivations (Hsu and Li, 2017), servicescapes (Lyu et al , 2017), overall experience (Hung, 2018; Hung et al , 2020a), customer participation, personal values regarding service (Wu et al , 2019a) and onshore experience (Sun et al , 2019). Clearly, the cruise experience is an important topic that has gained increasing attention in recent years.…”