Skip to main content

Website Service Quality in Ireland: An Empirical Study

  • Conference paper
Web Information Systems and Technologies (WEBIST 2008)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing ((LNBIP,volume 18))

Included in the following conference series:

Abstract

Despite the fact that service quality is a critical determinant of website success, studies show that consumers frequently view the service quality delivered through websites as unsatisfactory. This paper outlines a study that investigated the dimensions of website service excellence valued by Irish customers of a small-to-medium enterprise specialising in gifts. The E-S-QUAL measurement instrument was applied to the customers who purchase products online from this retailer, in order to determine their purchasing patterns and the dimensions of e-service quality that they value. The results of this study indicate the effectiveness of the instrument in determining gaps in e-service quality. The findings will be of benefit both to practitioners and researchers seeking to improve their understanding of the factors that contribute towards the creation and maintenance of consumer satisfaction in Irish online transactions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  1. Ahmad, S.: Service Failures and Customer Defection: A Closer Look at On-line Shopping Experiences. Managing Service Quality 12(1), 19–29 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Amarach Consulting TrendWatch Technology Report, Quarter 2 (2002), http://www.amarach.com/news/press.htm

  3. Asubonteng, P., McCleary, K.J., Swan, J.: Servqual revisited: a critical review of service quality. Journal of Services Marketing 10(6), 62–81 (1996)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Babakus, E., Boller, G.W.: An empirical assessment of the SERVQUAL scale. Journal of Business Research 24(3), 253–268 (1992)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Babakus, E., Mangold, G.W.: Adapting the SERVQUAL scale to hospital services: an empirical investigation. Hospital Services Research 26(6), 767–786 (1989)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Barnes, S.J., Vidgen, R.T.: An Integrative Approach to the Assessment of E-Commerce Quality. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research 3(3), 114–127 (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  7. Bebko, C.P., Garg, R.K.: Perceptions of responsiveness in service delivery. Journal of Hospital Marketing 9(2), 35–45 (1995)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Bitner, M.J.: Evaluating service encounters: the effects of physical surroundings and employee responses. Journal of Marketing 54(2), 69–82 (1990)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Bowers, M.R., Swan, J.E., Koehler, W.F.: What attributes determine quality and satisfaction with health care delivery? Health Care Management Review 19(4), 49–55 (1994)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Cai, S., Jun, M.: Internet Users Perceptions of On-line Service Quality: A Comparison of On-line Buyers and Information Searchers. Managing Service Quality 13(6), 504–519 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Carman, J.M.: Consumer perceptions of service quality: an assessment of the SERVQUAL dimensions. Journal of Retailing 66(1), 33–55 (1990)

    Google Scholar 

  12. Cox, J., Dale, B.G.: Service Quality and e-Commerce: An Exploratory Analysis. Managing Service Quality 1(2), 121–131 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Cronin, J.J., Taylor, S.A.: SERVPERF versus SERVQUAL: reconciling performance-based and perception-minus-expectations measurement of service quality. Journal of Marketing 58(1), 125–131 (1994)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Cronin, J., Taylor, S.A.: Measuring service quality: a reexamination and extension. Journal of Marketing 56, 55–68 (1992)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Doney, P.M., Cannon, J.P., Mullen, M.R.: Understanding the Influence of National Culture on the Development of Trust. Academy of Management Review 23(3), 601–620 (1998)

    Google Scholar 

  16. Finn, D., Lamb, C.: An evaluation of the SERVQUAL scale in a retailing setting. Advances in Consumer Research 18, 483–490 (1991)

    Google Scholar 

  17. Fukuyama, F.: Trust: The Social Virtues and the Creation of Prosperity. Free Press, New York (1995)

    Google Scholar 

  18. Gaudin, S.: Companies Failing at On-line Customer Service (retrieved, 2003), http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/erp/article.php/1588171

  19. Gefen, D., Heart, T.: On the Need to Include National Culture as a Central Issue in E-Commerce Trust. Journal of Global Information Management 14(4), 1–30 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Grönroos, C.: Strategic Management and Marketing in the Service Sector. Marketing Science Institute, Cambridge (1983)

    Google Scholar 

  21. Hofstede, G.H.: Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values. Sage Publications, Beverly Hills (1984)

    Google Scholar 

  22. Lehtinen, J.R., Lehtinen, U.: Service quality: a study of quality dimensions, Unpublished working paper, Service Management Institute, Helsinki (1982)

    Google Scholar 

  23. Loiacono, E., Watson, R.T., Goodhue, D.: WebQual: A Web Site Quality Instrument, Working paper, Worcester Polytechnic Institute (2000)

    Google Scholar 

  24. Long, M., McMellon, C.: Exploring the determinants of retail service quality on the Internet. Journal of Services Marketing 18(1), 78–90 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V.A., Malhotra, A.: E-S-Qual: A Multiple Item Scale for Measuring Electronic Service Quality. Journal of Service Research 7(3), 213–233 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V.A., Berry, L.L.: SERVQUAL: a multiple item scale for measuring customer perceptions of service quality. Journal of Retailing 64(1), 12–40 (1988)

    Google Scholar 

  27. Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V.A., Berry, L.: A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future research. Journal of Marketing 49, 41–50 (Fall 1985)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Paulin, M., Perrien, J.: Measurement of Service Quality: The Effect of Contextuality. In: Kunst, Lemminck (eds.) Managing Service Quality, London. Chapman, Boca Raton (1996)

    Google Scholar 

  29. Santos, J.: E-service quality: a model of virtual service quality dimensions. Managing Service Quality 13(3), 233–246 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Shaffer, T.R., O’Hara, B.S.: The Effects of Country of Origin on Trust and Ethical Perceptions. The Service Industries Journal 15, 162–179 (1995)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Swartz, T.A., Brown, S.W.: Consumer and provider expectations and experience in evaluating professional service quality. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 17, 189–195 (1989)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Szymanski, D.M., Hise, R.: T. e-Satisfaction: An Initial Examination. Journal of Retailing 76(3), 309–322 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Teas, K.R.: Consumer Expectations and the Measurement of Perceived Service quality. Journal of Professional Services Marketing 8(2), 33–53 (1993)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Trabold, L.M., Heim, G., Field, J.: Comparing e-service performance across industry sectors: Drivers of overall satisfaction in online retailing. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management 34(4/5), 240–257 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Van Iwaarden, J., Van der Wiele, T., Ball, L., Millen, R.: Perceptions about the Quality of Websites: A survey amongst students and Northeastern University and Erasmus University. Information and Management 41(8), 947–959 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Van Riel, A., Liljander, V., Jurriëns, P.: Exploring Consumer Evaluations of E-Services: A Portal Site. International Journal of Service Industry Management 12(4), 359–377 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Wolfinbarger, M., Gilly, M.C.: eTailQ: Dimensionalizing, Measuring, and Predicting etail Quality. Journal of Retailing 79(3), 183–198 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Woodside, A.G., Frey, L.L., Daly, R.T.: Linking service quality, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intention. Journal of Health Care Marketing 9(4), 5–17 (1989)

    Google Scholar 

  39. Yoo, B., Donthu, N.: Developing a Scale to Measure the Perceived Quality of an Internet Shopping Site (Sitequal). Quarterly Journal of Electronic Commerce 2(1), 31–46 (2001)

    Google Scholar 

  40. Zeithaml, V.: Service quality in e-channels. Managing Service Quality 12(3), 135–138 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Zucker, L.G.: Production of Trust: Institutional Sources of Economic Structure, 1840 – 1920. In: Staw, B.M., Cummings, L.L. (eds.) Research in Organizational Behavior, vol. 8, pp. 53–111. JAI Press, Greenwich (1986)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2009 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this paper

Cite this paper

Connolly, R. (2009). Website Service Quality in Ireland: An Empirical Study. In: Cordeiro, J., Hammoudi, S., Filipe, J. (eds) Web Information Systems and Technologies. WEBIST 2008. Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, vol 18. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-01344-7_24

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-01344-7_24

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-01343-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-01344-7

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics