The customer's role in the service encounter: The effects of control and fairness

Abstract

Two key elements of service satisfaction for customers are the perception that they have at least some control or choice and that the service provider is being fair. That notion was tested in a video-based experiment in which 50 subjects watched either a restaurant-based or hotel-based scenario that depicted an employee's response to the subject's request for a change in the original order or reservation. In half the scenarios the guest's wish was granted and in half; it was not. Whether the request was granted or not, in half the scenarios the employee behaved in a fair fashion (by being considerate, knowledgeable, impartial, and consistent) and in half the employee did not behave fairly. Respondents in the hotel scenarios confirmed the experimental hypothesis by indicating that they would be more satisfied in the scenarios where they had control (that is, ability to make a choice) and even if they did not have a choice, when the employee was fair. In the restaurant scenarios, having some control led to satisfaction, but employee fairness did not counteract a lack of control.Service providers should allow customers to retain some sense of control over the service encounter. Failing that, employees should act in ways that guests will perceive as fair.

Hospitality and tourism marketing: recent developments in research and future directions

“…Based on satisfaction research with client hotels, Schall (2003) discusses best methodological practices for measuring guest satisfaction; the discussed issues include proper sequence and face validity of question items, choice of measurement scales, and appropriate sample sizes for drawing reliable conclusions. Namasivayam and Hinkin (2003) experimented with the degrees of control and fairness perceived by the hotel and restaurant customers in a transaction process and found that the two boundary conditions had both main and interaction effects on customer satisfaction. Barsky and Nash (2003) and Zins (2002) emphasize emotional dominance in satisfaction in an attempt to tie experience-based satisfaction feelings with attitudinal loyalty.…”

Outcomes of service encounter quality in a business-to-business context

“…Within the service quality domain, the importance of customers" perceptions of service encounters is increasingly recognized (Mill 1986;Namasivayam & Hinkin 2003). In the words of Bitner et al (1994, p. 95), "from the customer"s point of view, the most immediate evidence of service quality occurs in the service encounter or the "moment of truth" when the customer interacts with the firm.…”

How do Service Encounters Impact on Relationship Benefits

“…Customer satisfaction with TBSE, by visiting its website, navigating through it, searching for product and service information, is therefore a combination of the customer's satisfaction with the service outcome and with the process of service delivery (Namasivayam and Hinkin, 2003). More specifically, technology developments enable providers to create new services more easily and customers to experience service processes more clearly .…”