The relationship between service quality, customer satisfaction and behavioral intention with moderating effects of switching barriers

Service quality and customer satisfaction are believed to affect customer behavior. On that basis, one of the main research focus in marketing field is to get a better understanding in the dynamic relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction, and their impact on customer behavior. Although this research area has been examined quite extensively, the presence and importance of switching barriers in predicting customer behavior are poorly understood in pay television industry. This thesis aims to explain how the concept of switching barriers moderates the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer’s behavioral intention. In addition to that, this research also aims to determine service quality dimensions for the current research setting. Based on the theory of social exchange and theory of planned behavior, a framework depicting the interrelationships among service quality, customer satisfaction, switching barriers and behavioral intention is proposed. The research framework predicts the main effects of main variables and moderating effects of switching barriers. The data were collected among pay TV customers from the state of Johor in two phases. The first phase involved stratified random sampling method which yielded 32 responses, while the second phase involved convenience sampling which yielded 213 responses. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Seven dimensions of service quality were identified: tangibles, reliability, content quality, customer service, convenience, price and interactivity. The findings supported the direct relationships between service quality, customer satisfaction and behavioral intention. Most importantly, there are two novel and important findings in this study that add to the body of literature: first, two components of switching barriers which is switching costs and attractiveness of alternatives do not moderate the relationships between customer satisfaction and behavioral intention; and second, the newly introduced switching barriers’ component, which is the social ties moderate the relationship between customer satisfaction and repurchase intention, and positive recommendation. An important implication of this study is that social ties act as an important factor that will glue customer to stay with an organization

What Drives M-Shoppers to Continue Using Mobile Devices to Buy?

Producción CientíficaThe aim of this work is to offer a better understanding of consumer continued intentions to use mobile devices to shop. An integrated model is developed to identify the drivers that lead m-shoppers to repurchase. Specifically, navigation, safety and ubiquity are posited as stimuli guiding consumers’ affective (satisfaction) and cognitive (trust and convenience) reactions that will, in turn, increase repurchase intention. Results show the impact of ubiquity on m-convenience and safety m-experience on both affective and cognitive reactions. Finally, repurchase intention is explained directly by m-satisfaction and m-convenience and indirectly by m-trust. This article contributes to the fields of mobile marketing literature and practitioner management.Ministerior de Educación y ciencia (proyecto ECO2017-8217-R)Junta de Castilla y León (proyecto VA001B10-1)Fondo europeo de desarrollo regional (proyecto VA112P17

Repurchase intention model for mobile shopping application users in Malaysia

Mobile shopping applications have become a popular channel to reach the omnipresent consumer of today. However, the market space has become highly competitive and therefore, cultivating repurchase behaviour has become pivotal to retain market share and boost sustainability. While the literature regarding initial purchase via a mobile shopping application is well developed, knowledge on how to foster repurchase behaviour in this context is still scarce. The purpose of this research was to explore the consumers’ continuous behavioural intention towards using mobile shopping apps. More specifically, the study investigated to what extent does consumers’ continuance behavioural intention to purchase using mobile shopping applications is shaped by various factors. This study employed the Stimulus- Organism-Response (S-O-R) model as the theoretical framework as well as Delone and McLean’s Information System success model, Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Expectation-Confirmation Model (ECM), Flow theory, and mobile featured factors to develop a research model based on a comprehensive literature review. Accordingly, factors of system quality, service quality, information quality, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, flow experience, perceived ubiquity, interactivity, perceived enjoyment, visual appeal (as Stimulus factors), satisfaction (as Organism factor), and repurchase intention and WOM intention (as Response factors) were included in the research model. In addition, flow experience was considered as the moderator factor on the relationships towards Response factors. In an attempt to examine the relationships between the dependent and independent variables, this study adopted a quantitative, cross-sectional approach, consistent with the positivist paradigm. A structured survey questionnaire was administered to a total of 240 consumers who had previously shopped via a mobile shopping application, using a non-probability purposive sampling approach. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to test cause-effect relationships in the model. The results indicated that consumers’ satisfaction with mobile app was significantly explained by the factors of system quality, service quality, visual appeal, perceived ubiquity, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and flow experience. Satisfaction significantly explained consumers repurchase intention and word-ofmouth (WOM) intention. Finally, the moderation analysis revealed that flow experience significantly moderated the relationships towards repurchase intention and WOM intention. This research provides a better insight for future researchers and organizations on continuous usage intention of mobile shopping apps

Determinants of continuance intention and word of mouth for hotel branded mobile app users.

This study examined the cognitive and affective factors that influence users\u27 post-adoption behavioral intention. Specifically, based on the Expectation Confirmation Model (ECM) (Bhattacherjee, 2001b) the impact of cognitive factors (i.e., perceived usefulness, confirmation of expectations, mobility, personalization and responsiveness) and affective factors (i.e., satisfaction, perceived enjoyment) on hotel branded mobile applications (apps) users\u27 continuance intention and WOM were examined. Hospitality firms invest considerable resources on technology solutions that are aimed at improving the consumer experience. However, for investments to be profitable firms must ensure that technology solutions are continuously used and ensure post-adoptive behaviors such as continuance intention and WOM. Data for the study were collected from 550 hotel branded mobile app users. After data were collected and cleaned, Partial Least-Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze the data. The results of the structural model indicated that continuance intention and WOM were directly influenced by satisfaction and perceived enjoyment; with satisfaction exerting the most influence on continuance intention. Conversely, perceived enjoyment was most influential to WOM. All cognitive factors were found to influence satisfaction and enjoyment, except for responsiveness and perceived usefulness. The results show that contextual factors have a more significant impact than previously established constructs. The results of the study allow hoteliers and hospitality technology consultants to identify the influential factors impacting post-adoptive behaviors. The study extends the literature on post-adoptive behavior and the ECM by including context specific factors (i.e. perceived mobility, personalization and responsiveness). This study contributes to the scare literature in the lodging industry literature examining users\u27 evaluations of mobile apps and post-adoptive behaviors in the hospitality industry. The study adds to the post-adoptive behavior literature by adding WOM as a second outcome to continuance intention. The treatment of contextual factors in this study, allowed to show the impact technology characteristics have on technology post-adoption

Sports Television Programming: Content Selection, Strategies and Decision Making. A comparative study of the UK and Greek markets.

This thesis looks at the subject of sports television programming in two European markets, the UK, one of the biggest and most developed in the continent, and the Greek, one of the smallest in Europe. With the help of case studies over a period of eight years and qualitative interviews of television executives and professionals who are involved in sports television rights agreements, it analyses and compares the strategies and decision making of television organisations, the factors that affect their decisions and their success within the chosen markets. A distinction will be made between public service, commercial and pay-TV and the reasons why different sports may suit different channels and at different points in their development. The findings should help to appreciate that there is not one strategy that works universally better than another. Its outcome depends on the value of the content, the particular characteristics of the organisation and the external environment where it operates. Most importantly, the thesis highlights the importance and limitations of the TV sports content, its crucial role in the decision making process and the necessity of more academic research into the area of sports television by people in content-driven disciplines, i.e. journalism and the media

Developing sustainable business models for institutions’ provision of open educational resources: Learning from OpenLearn users’ motivations and experiences

Universities across the globe have, for some time, been exploring the possibilities for achieving public benefit and generating business and visibility through releasing and sharing open educational resources (OER). Many have written about the need to develop sustainable and profitable business models around the production and release of OER. Downes (2006), for example, has questioned the financial sustainability of OER production at scale. Many of the proposed business models focus on OER’s value in generating revenue and detractors of OER have questioned whether they are in competition with formal education. This paper reports on a study intended to broaden the conversation about OER business models to consider the motivations and experiences of OER users as the basis for making a better informed decision about whether OER and formal learning are competitive or complementary with each other. The study focused on OpenLearn - the Open University’s (OU) web-based platform for OER, which hosts hundreds of online courses and videos and is accessed by over 3,000,000 users a year. A large scale survey and follow-up interviews with OpenLearn users worldwide revealed that university provided OER can offer learners a bridge to formal education, allowing them to try out a subject before registering on a formal course and to build confidence in their abilities as learners. In addition, it was found that using OER during formal paid-for study can improve learners’ performance and self-reliance, leading to increased retention and satisfaction with the learning experience

Open educational resources for all? Comparing user motivations and characteristics across The Open University’s iTunes U channel and OpenLearn platform.

With the rise in access to mobile multimedia devices, educational institutions have exploited the iTunes U platform as an additional channel to provide free educational resources with the aim of profile-raising and breaking down barriers to education. For those prepared to invest in content preparation, it is possible to produce interactive, portable material that can be made available globally. Commentators have questioned both the financial implications for platform-specific content production, and the availability of devices for learners to access it (Osborne, 2012). The Open University (OU) makes its free educational resources available on iTunes U and via its web-based open educational resources (OER) platform, OpenLearn. The OU’s OER on iTunes U reached the 60 million download mark in 2013; its OpenLearn platform boasts 27 million unique visitors since 2006. This paper reports the results of a large-scale study of users of the OU’s iTunes U channel and OpenLearn platform. A survey of several thousand users revealed key differences in demographics between those accessing OER via the web and via iTunes U. In addition, the data allowed comparison between three groups: formal learners, informal learners and educators. The study raises questions about whether university-provided OER meet the needs of users and makes recommendations for how content can be modified to suit their needs. As the publishing of OER becomes core to business, we reflect on reasons why understanding users’ motivations and demographics is vital, allowing for needs-led resource provision and content that is adapted to best achieve learner satisfaction, and to deliver institutions’ social mission

European Perspectives on the Information Society: Annual Monitoring Synthesis and Emerging Trend Updates

This report is one of the outcomes of the EPIS06 Project ¿ European Perspectives on the Information Society ¿ carried out by the ETEPS (European Techno-Economic Policy Support) network in cooperation with the Joint Research Centre Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (JRC IPTS) with the aim of providing strategic intelligence to policy makers by taking a prospective view on the evolution of ICT. This report combines the Annual Monitoring Synthesis (AMS) Report and five Emerging Trend Updates (ETU). It forms one of the main building blocks of the project, establishing an observatory of trends in technology and business evolutions of ICT. More particularly, the Annual Monitoring Synthesis Report (AMS Report) aims to identify new ICT-related developments likely to have a significant impact on the future of the Information Society, both in terms of growth and jobs for Europe and R&D policy prioritisation. By scanning and monitoring recent major foresight exercises and industrial technology roadmaps, as well as other future-oriented analysis and policy papers, the AMS attempts to detect early signals and possible disruptive forces so as to enable timely policy responses and anticipate potential challenges for policy makers. The AMS is structured along six main themes which emerged as a result of the analysis: - Convergence of infrastructures, - Human-computer convergence ¿ technologies for direct human computer interaction, - Pervasive or ubiquitous computing and ambient intelligence, - The future of the Internet, - Citizens¿ concerns, - Working life. A structured overview with a summary of each of the foresights, roadmaps and other sources studied is presented in the AMS report annex. In addition, five Emerging Trends Updates (ETU) present the results of focused briefs on emerging themes of interest for policy making, covering the following topics: - ETU1 on the state-of-the-art of the creative content sector, - ETU2 on ICT and the offshoring of services, - ETU3 on ICT and the role of ICTs as enablers for energy efficiency, - ETU4 on ICT tools and services in intelligent domestic and personal environments, - ETU5 on ICT and privacy in the Knowledge Society ¿ the case of search engines.JRC.J.4-Information Societ