The effect of power distance and individualism on service quality expectations in banking

Abstract

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between Canadian and Indian consumers' national cultural orientations and banking service quality expectations. Using two of Hofstede's five cultural dimensions operationalized at the individual level, and five dimensions of service quality from Parasuraman et al.'s SERVQUAL scale, the aim is to develop and test hypotheses relating national culture values to service quality expectations. Design/methodology/approach -The study is quantitative in nature, using surveys (online and written) from respondents in Canada and India. Data were analyzed using dummy variable regression and structural equation modeling. Findings -The results show that the importance of various SERVQUAL dimensions is related to Hofstede's power distance and individualism cultural dimensions both at the individual and national levels. More specifically, consumers low on power distance expect highly responsive and reliable service. High power distance customers attach higher importance to tangible service attributes. Consumers high on individualism expect lower empathy and assurance from service providers. Furthermore, Indian consumers attach higher importance to tangible attributes, whereas Canadian consumers find service reliability more important. However, differences in overall service quality expectations are not significantly different across the two countries. Practical implications -The results suggest that managers must be aware of the cultural values of the buyer/client in order to fully understand the most effective means of establishing and nurturing the service delivery process and, consequently, establishing service quality expectations. Banks will be more successful when service delivery is in tune with cultural imperatives, particularly sub-group cultural imperatives. Originality/value -The study provides an original insight into the manner in which national culture impacts on service quality expectations. Furthermore, the study identifies individual sub-cultural influences that shape service quality expectations.

Customer Perception of Services Based on the SERVQUAL Dimensions: A Study of Indian Commercial Banks

“…NOTE 1. Dash et al's (2009) observation that Indian consumers would give more importance to tangible cues has not been supported by our results, where reliability (weighted M = 2.14) is the most important dimension. It is followed by assurance (1.74), responsiveness (1.33), tangibility (1.29), and empathy (1.21).…”

“…Therefore, the SERVQUAL dimensions have to be integrated and managed in totality to maintain and increase the positive image of the banks. Though special emphasis can be placed on the tangibility dimension as according to Dash et al (2009), Indian consumers, whom the authors claim have high power distance, would lay more importance on tangible cues. 1 Regarding the brand positioning and brand image, the researchers find that there is a gap between the corporate strategy and the actual differentiating factor.…”

“…In a more recent study, Dash, Bruning, and Acharya (2009) studied the effect of Hofstede's (1980Hofstede's ( , 1991Hofstede's ( , 2001 power distance and individualism dimensions on service quality expectations from commercial banks across two countries, namely, Canada and India. The researchers have studied whether the national cultures affect service quality expectations of their respondents from their respective commercial banks given the implications of Hofstede's individualism versus collectivism and power distance dimensions.…”

Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty: The Moderating Role of Gender / Aptarnavimo Kokybė, Vartotojų Pasitenkinimas Ir Lojalumas Vartotojų Lyties Atžvilgiu

“…Individuals in collectivist cultures, including the retail bank customers in Northern Cyprus, tend to establish and maintain long lasting relationships. Therefore, both male and female customers may tolerate problems associated with service quality and do not leave the service provider (Dash et al 2009;Donthu, Yoo 1998). As a result, the effects of service environment and interaction quality on satisfaction might have been equally important for both male and female bank customers in Northern Cyprus.…”

Convenience and satisfaction: mediation of fairness and quality

“…Data collected were analyzed separately for banking and mobile phone services due to differences in the level of contact between a firm and its customers. On one hand, customers receive banking services through multiple channels both face-to-face (branch banking) and online, thereby indicating moderate to high levels of contact (Dash, Bruning, & Acharya, 2009;Kaura, 2013). On the other hand, customers receive most of the service offerings from mobile phone service providers beyond the presence of its employees thereby indicating low contact levels (Colwell et al, 2008).…”