FERDINAN MARKUS NDRURU

Relationships among service quality features, perceived value and customer satisfaction, The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships among service quality features (responsiveness, assurance, and empathy), perceived value and customer satisfaction in the context of Malaysia. The empirical data are drawn from 102 members of an academic staff of a Malaysian public institution of higher learning using a survey questionnaire. The results indicate three important findings: firstly, the interaction between perceived value and responsiveness was not significantly correlated with customer satisfaction. Secondly, the interaction between perceived value and assurance also did not correlate significantly with customer satisfaction. Thirdly, the interaction between perceived value and empathy correlated significantly with customer satisfaction. Thus the results demonstrate that perceived value had increased the effect of empathy on customer satisfaction, but it had not increased the effect of responsiveness and assurance on customer satisfaction. In sum, this study confirms that perceived value act as a partial moderating variable in the service quality models of the organizational sample. In addition, implications and limitations of this study, as well as directions for future research are discussed.

Service quality and customer satisfaction are inarguably the two core concepts that are at the crux of the marketing theory and practice (Spreng & Mackoy, 1996). In today’s world of intense competition, the key to sustainable competitive advantage lies in delivering high quality services that will in turn result in satisfied customers (Shemwell, Yavas, & Bilgin,1998). Therefore, there is not even an iota of doubt concerning the importance of service quality as the ultimate goal of service providers throughout the world (Sureshchandar, Rejendran, & Anantharaman,2002). In an era of intense global competition; many organizations have now shifted the paradigm of service quality to customer’s perspective (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, & Berry, 1985). Based on this paradigm, a customer will judge the quality of service accorded and determine whether it met his/her expectations (Grönroos, 1984; Parasuraman et al., 1985, 1988). Many scholars think that employee satisfaction with the accompanying service features may increase retention and loyalty (Alexandris, Dimitriadis, & Makata, 2002), thus paving the way to increased organizational competitiveness (Shemwell et al., 1998).

Service quality has been defined as a form of attitude – a long-run overall evaluation (Zeithaml, 1988; Parasuraman et al.,1988) whileperceived service quality as a general, overall appraisal of service. The global value judgement on the superiority of the overall service could occur at multiple levels in a particular organization (Sureshchandar et al.,2002). Many researchers such as Parasuraman et al. (1988), Juwaheer and Ross (2003) and Walker, Johnson and Leonard (2006) highlight that responsiveness, assurance and empathy as among the three most important service quality features.

Responsiveness has often been defined as the willingness of a service provider to provide the needful services accurately and promptly (Juwaheer & Ross, 2003). Assurance refers to credibility, competence and security in delivering those services (Juwaheer & Ross, 2003). Empathy is related to care, attention and understanding of the individual customer needs and interests when dispensing the prescriptive core services (Juwaheer & Ross, 2003).

Extant research in this area shows that the proper implementing and dispensing of the core service quality features may justifiably increase customer satisfaction (Gronroos, 1984; Parasuraman et al., 1988; Walker et al.,2006). In a quality management context, customer satisfaction is defined as a result of comparison between what a customer expects about services provided by a service provider and what the customer receives in actual terms (Caruana, Money, & Berthon, 2000; Parasuraman et al., 1988). If the service provided by an organization does meet a customer’s needs and expectations, then this may subsequently lead to higher customer satisfaction (Foster, 2004; Parasuraman et al., 1988; Walker et al.,2006).

Surprisingly, a thorough investigation of such relationships reveals that the effect of service quality features on customer satisfaction is not consistent if perceived value is present in organizations (Caruanaet al., 2000; Varki & Colgate, 2001). Perceived value is considered as customer recognition and appreciation on the utility of a product that is given by a service provider which may fulfil his/her expectation (Foster, 2004; Heininen, 2004; Walker et al., 2006). In a service management framework, many researchers are in tandem that responsiveness, assurance, empathy, perceived value and customer satisfaction are distinct constructs that are highly interrelated. For example, the ability of an organisation to incorporate the use of responsiveness, assurance and empathy in the delivering services will inadvertently promote an increase in customer perceptions of value; and this in turn will motion a higher level in customer satisfaction (Parasuraman et al., 1988; Sureshchandar, 2000; Sureshchandar et al., 2002).

Even though many studies have been carried out in this area of research, little is known about the moderating effect of perceived value in service quality models. Most studies have found that the mediating role of perceived value has been less emphasized in previous quality system research. This is because of an over emphasis of a segmented approach in analyzing service quality features, the heavy reliance on a direct effect model testing, and negligence pertaining to the role of human needs and expectations in developing previous service quality models (Bitner, 1990; Caruana et al., 2000). Consequently, the findings from such research approaches may not highlight the influence of perceived value as a moderating variable in service quality literature (Eggert & Ulaga, 2002; Sureschchandar et al., 2002).

The current study has three major relationships research questions: first, which features of service quality may affect customer satisfaction? Second, which features of service quality may affect perceived value? Finally, does perceived value affect the relationship between service quality features and customer satisfaction? Hence, this study is conducted to measure three main objectives: first, the relationship between the service quality features and customer satisfaction. Second, the relationship between the service quality features and perceived value. Lastly, the moderating effect of perceived value in the relationship between service quality features and customer satisfaction that occurs in one selected Malaysian public university in East Malaysia. For confidential reasons, the name of the institution is kept anonymous.

The remaining discussions of this paper relationships are structured as follows: first, to elaborate the related literature review and research hypotheses. Second, to describe the methodology and procedure involved in conducting the study; and finally to discuss the results of hypothesis testing and conclusion.

Progress in airline distribution systems: The threat of new entrants to incumbent players, For decades, distribution has been a key ICT (Information and Communication Technology) area for airlines and this sector has been dominated by four (now three) Global Distribution Systems (GDSs) whose primacy has been threatened over the last four years by a set of new players, the so called GDS New Entrants (GNEs). GNEs emerged with the advent of the Internet and open source technology as ‘disintermediation’ facilitators and generated vast interest from airlines because they promised to reduce the cost of distribution. This paper explores the impact of ICTs on airlines with a focus on GDSs. It provides an overview of the changing market dynamics, analyses the environment that led to the appearance of GNEs and pinpoints the issues behind their until now failure to provide a true alternative to the GDSs. This analysis complements existing academic research in that it clarifies critical issues in the air travel distribution field and provides an overview of current industry developments..

Internet technology and web based commerce have dramatically transformed the airline industry in the last ten years (Werthner and Klein, 2005). Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have always played a predominant role in the airline sector (Poon, 1993; Inkpen, 1994; O’Connor, 1999; Werthner and Klein, 1999) but with the advent of the Internet and open source technology their impact is becoming increasingly more crucial and evident (Buhalis, 2004; Jacobsen et al., 2008). As travellers embraced the Internet, this enabled airlines to bypass the traditional distribution pattern through travel agencies and sell direct to end consumers (European Commission, 2006). Web distribution combined with cheaper and more flexible technologies allowed new players on the market, low cost airlines (LCCs), to implement effective low-cost direct distribution strategies and intensify competition in the sector (Dennis 2007; Buhalis & Law, 2008). Traditional airlines could not afford to rely on outdated distribution strategies and had to invest heavily in new technology to support their online Web sites, as post-September 11 harsh economic conditions and low-fare carriers transformed the marketplace and the needs and preferences of passengers changed (Franke, 2004; Binggeli & Pompeo, 2005; Dobruszke, 2006)

Distribution has been a key ICT area for airlines for decades and this sector is now dominated by three Global Distribution Systems (GDSs) whose primacy has been threatened over the last three years by a set of new players, the so called GDS New Entrants (GNEs).

This paper explores the interaction between technology and airline dstribution with a focus on GDSs. It provides a comprehensive review of the changing market dynamics, analyses the environment that led to the appearance of the GNEs, and assesses the issues behind their until now failure to provide a true alternative to GDSs. Finally, the paper draws conclusions from extensive research in industry data sources as well as from academic literature and interviews with industry experts. The extraordinarily dynamic nature of airline distribution makes any conjectures about future developments in the sector sound like crystal-ball predictions but experts seem to agree on a number of trends that are here to stay.

An application for differential for Analysis of gender differences in the perception of properties, This paper presents the application of differential semantics to identify the semantic space (structure) used by men and women to describe their perception of properties on sale. 112 men and 43 women evaluated 112 images of flats on sale at the time of the study in the city of Valencia (Spain) using 60 adjectives. The set of attributes or variables which capture the user’s perception of a property in his own words (semantic axes) was identified using factor analysis of principal components. The semantic space of a property was described by 15 independent axes which explained 64% of the variability for males and 17 axes which explained 72.3% of the variance for females. The connection between the subject’s emotional response, expressed through the set of axes (15 for males and 17 for females) and the global evaluation in terms of the purchase decision was established. The results demonstrated significant differences in the variables used by both genders to express their perception of a property on sale and the weight of these variables on the purchase decision.

There are many studies which attempt to demonstrate how aesthetic evaluations of buildings are formulated or can be predicted. These predictions are of great interest to architects as they can be used to establish relations between users’ perceptions and each design element introduced.

Some of these studies have shown that certain sociodemographic or personality variables can affect these aesthetic evaluations. Thus for example, the studies of Wethman (1968), Royse (1969) and Michelson (1976) confirm that people of different education, income and social class view certain aspects of housing differently. Nasar (1989), also observed sociodemographic differences in the preferences of 6 styles of houses based on education, occupation, age or gender. In building interiors Gifford (1980) observed significant differences in response depending on age, gender, educational level and mood.

From among this set of variables, training in architecture has been the most analysed. In general, studies demonstrate that architects and non-architects perceive buildings differently. Differences have thus been found in the categories both groups use to interpret buildings (Groat, 1982); in the way they conceptualise them (Devlin, 1990); in the emotional responses both groups assign to a building’s design elements (Gifford et al., 2000) and even differences in their preferred architectural styles (Devlin & Nasar, 1989; Gans, 1978; Nasar, 1989).

Personality factors, such as someone’s sensation-seeking level, can also affect environmental preferences. For architecture, high sensation seekers would prefer higher levels of stimulus variation (for example, “high” style houses) while others would prefer more typical designs (for example, “popular” style houses) (Berlyne, 1971; Stamps & Nasar, 1997). Zuckerman (1994) summarizes over 400 experiments on this personality factor.

Another variable which could affect the process of environmental perception is everyday experience (Purcell & Nasar, 1992). Our experience of the environment consists of repeated encounters of different examples. Through these repeated encounters the individual experiences a process of unconscious learning (Lewicki et al., 1988) which is used to build a mental representation of preferred standards. Some research has found that observer preferences for buildings depend on the level of discrepancy between the type of building to be evaluated and the observer’s knowledge structure (Purcell, 1986, 1987; Purcell & Nasar, 1992). This approach could explain the differences in perception found between observers from different geographical areas. Consequently, groups living in a given geographical area are exposed to the same types of examples and therefore share similar patterns or standards of preference.

Furthermore, there are other demographic factors which can influence the process such as gender, age or political affiliation. Thus for example, Stamps (1991a,b) found that political affiliation (liberal, moderate, conservative) was related to preferences for high rise buildings and for houses. Differences have also been observed between men and women’s environmental cognition (Evans, 1980; Moore, 1979), although no in-depth analysis of the evaluation structure for both genders has been found in the literature. Thus, with regard to the perception of architectural styles, Nasar (1989) found that females in the city of Columbus judged a “farm” style to be more desirable than males did, and that females in the cities of Columbus and Los Angeles judged “farm” style as friendlier than males did. Stamps and Nasar (1997) obtained a 0.94 correlation between both groups when evaluating “high” and “popular” styles. Imamoglu (2000) studied the role of complexity in preference with 16 house facade drawings. The study reports that females perceived the houses as more complex than males. In a more recent study, Akalin et al. (2009) analysed the perception of 100 undergraduate students in Architecture and Engineering Departments. The individuals had to assess 15 photographs of house facades considering the roles of complexity, preference and impressiveness. The results showed significant differences in perceptions between gender groups. Other gender differences have been studied, such as, distance perception and the effects of the hidden buildings (Nasar et al., 1985).

Although the gender variable has generally been taken into account when segmenting the study population, no study has been found in the literature which deeply analyses the structure of preferences in both collectives.

Our question then is how are preferences formulated? The theory proposed by Brunswik in 1956 suggested that the relational process between the stimulus and the opinion or judgment emitted by the subject was an indirect one. Applied to the sphere of building design, this approach assumes that subjects respond to the particular characteristics of the building, integrate these reactions into emotional impressions and transfer those emotional impressions to an aesthetic evaluation of the building as a whole.

Competitive universities need to internationalize learning : Perspectives from three European universities, The process of restructuring European universities in order to harmonize their educational systems is rapidly approaching a key milestone as 2010 looms large on the horizon. This paper describes an approach to the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) based on a real case study of students that belong to five European Universities (University of Burgos, Technical University of Valencia, University of Valladolid, University of Basque Country and University of Applied Sciences Cologne). The objective of this paper is two-fold: on the one hand, to analyze from the student’s point of view how they value the restructuring of teaching as a result of the Bologna process and what are the implications for students with regards to both their academic qualifications and their future incorporation into the labour market; and, on the other hand, to deduce from the results obtained recommendations which may help to guide teachers towards successful internationalization and collaboration between interuniversity networks, as well as achieving greater standards of quality within university teaching. Only this would permit an environment in which students are capable of developing the necessary competences, and put into practice learning outcomes.

The results show that students value communication, innovative proposals and cooperation between universities; the internationalization of knowledge between universities has been positively accepted and this has motivated research to place a stronger focus on this aspect; it impacts strongly on scientific productivity, improves the quality of education offered by the teaching staff, and leads to greater student mobility. This strategy is intrinsically linked to learning from local experiences shared by members of the same university as well as from more global experiences made available through inter-university networks. It implies being willing to listen, to communicate, to engage in dialogue and means that we must seek to understand the potential contributions from teachers, staff and students that make up each university

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