Considered Service-specific journals were Journal of Service Research, Journal of Service Management, Journal of Services Marketing, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, Service Industries Journal, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, and Service Science.
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Gong, T. and C.-Y. Wang (2023): Unpacking the relationship between customer citizenship behavior and dysfunctional customer behavior: the role of customer moral credits and entitlement, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 33(3218), pp.110-137
Purpose While the positive effects of customer citizenship behavior are well established, research on its potential negative consequences is scarce. This study aims to examine the indirect relationship between customer citizenship and dysfunctional customers via customer moral credits and entitlement, as well as the moderating influence of customer citizenship fatigue. Design/methodology/approach Study 1 employed a cross-sectional design with a self-administered survey. The data were collected from 314 customers using an online research panel. In Study 2, the authors manipulated customer citizenship behavior using 203 participants to establish causality and rule out alternative explanations of the findings of Study 1. In Study 3, the authors replicated Study 2 and enhanced internal validity by using a more controlled experimental design using 128 participants. Findings This study shows that when customer citizenship fatigue is high, customer citizenship behavior elicits customer moral credit, which leads to customer entitlement and, in turn, promotes dysfunctional customer behavior. Conversely, when customer citizenship fatigue is low, customer citizenship behavior does not generate moral credit or entitlement, preventing dysfunctional customer behavior. Practical implications The study shows that promoting customer citizenship behavior does not always lead to positive outcomes. Therefore, when promoting customer citizenship behavior, managers should consider the psychological licensing process and ways to mitigate the influence of moral credits. Originality/value This study challenges common wisdom and investigates the dark side of customer citizenship behavior. Specifically, it demonstrates that customer citizenship behavior could backfire (e.g. dysfunctional customer behavior). It also shows that only customers who experience a high level of fatigue from their citizenship behaviors are psychologically licensed to gain moral credit, leading to dysfunctional customer behavior.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-12-2021-0256 [Google]
Kim, M. and J. Jang (2023): I know you, you know me: the effects of customer empathy and employee self-disclosure on customer citizenship behavior, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 33(3219), pp.23-45
Purpose Drawing on social penetration theory (SPT) and social exchange theory, this study examines whether and why customer empathy for frontline employees (FLEs) and employee self-disclosure influence customer citizenship behavior (CCB). Design/methodology/approach This study’s hypotheses were tested using two studies (study 1 had an experimental design, and study 2 had a survey design) with restaurant customers. Findings The results indicate that when customers have a higher level of customer empathy for FLE, the likelihood that customers will exhibit CCB increases. Employee self-disclosure provides a greater advantage in fostering CCB. A mediating effect of rapport in the relationship between customer empathy for FLE, employee self-disclosure and CCB is also found, while no interaction effect of customer empathy for FLE and employee self-disclosure on CCB is supported. Originality/value Maintaining a focus on the interpersonal nature of interactions between customers and employees in co-creating values, this research advances the CCB literature by newly identifying customer empathy for FLEs and employee self-disclosure as predictors of CCB that have not yet been tapped. The underlying mechanism via rapport is also explained using the value co-creation perspective.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-01-2022-0018 [Google]
Li, Y., C. Wang and B. Song (2023): Customer acceptance of service robots under different service settings, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 33(3220), pp.46-71
Purpose This paper investigates the reasons for the differences in customers’ acceptance of service robots (CASR) in actual experience and credence service settings for the following two aspects: (1) different antecedents affecting CASR and (2) different customer perceptions of their own characteristics (role clarity and ability) and service robot characteristics (anthropomorphism and ability). Design/methodology/approach The data were collected using online surveys in an experience service setting (Hotel, N = 426) and a credence service setting (Hospital, N = 406). Differences in experience and credence service settings were examined using two statistical methods, namely, PLS-SEM to test the differences in antecedents affecting CASR and independent-samples t-tests to test the differences in customer perceptions of their own characteristics and service robot characteristics. Findings The results indicate that customers in an experience (vs credence) service setting have stronger positive attitudes toward and a greater intention to use service robots. Further, this paper finds there are two key reasons for the differences in CASR. The first is different antecedents. Perceived usefulness is positively influenced by the anthropomorphism of a service robot and customer ability in the experience service setting, but is influenced not in the credence service setting. Conversely, service robot autonomy positively relates to perceived ease of use in the credence service setting, but does not in the experience service setting. The second reason for CASR differences is different customer perceptions. Customers’ ability and perceived ease of use are higher, while their perception of anthropomorphism of the service robot is lower in the experience (vs credence) service setting. Originality/value This study helps explain why there are differences in the CASR in different settings and presents two perspectives: (1) antecedents’ affecting CASR and (2) customer perceptions of their own as well as service robot characteristics.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-06-2022-0127 [Google]
Park, S., H.-W. Lee and C. Nite (2023): When does highlighting effort or talent in fitness service providers’ performance lead to customer compliance? The role of customers’ implicit mindset, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 33(3221), pp.89-109
Purpose Fitness service organizations often promote the personal training service by attributing competent features, qualifications, or/and service provision of fitness service providers to efforts or talents. This study aims to investigate whether and when the promotional attribution of fitness service providers’ competent features, qualifications, or/and service provision contributes to customers’ compliance with service instructions. Design/methodology/approach The authors developed the experimental stimuli of performance attribution promotion (i.e. effort attribution and talent attribution) and validated them via a pretest (N = 400). Utilizing the validated stimuli, the authors conducted an experiment (N = 400) employing a single-factor (performance attribution promotion: effort vs talent) between-subject design. The authors performed partial least squares structural modeling (PLS-SEM) to test our hypotheses. Findings The results revealed the interaction effect of performance attribution promotion and customers’ implicit mindset on customer participation expectation. Specifically, when customers were high in implicit mindset (i.e. incremental-minded), attributing competent features, qualifications, or/and service provision of fitness service providers to effort (vs talent) increased customer participation expectation. Yet, when customers were low in implicit mindset (i.e. entity-minded), such an effect did not occur. Further, the authors identified customers’ intention to comply with service instructions as a downstream consequence of the aforementioned interaction effect. Originality/value The contribution of this paper is twofold. It enriches the performance attribution literature by finding its new consequences and boundary condition. Moreover, the findings aid fitness service practitioners in developing strategies for eliciting customers’ compliance with service instruction through performance attribution promotion.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-03-2022-0075 [Google]
Qin, F., W. Le, M. Zhang and Y. Deng (2023): How perceived attributes of livestreaming commerce influence customer engagement: a social support perspective, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 33(3222), pp.1-22
Purpose The boom in livestreaming commerce (LSC) has brought significant changes to social interaction methods. Understanding customer engagement in LSC is critical for online sellers who try to enhance the social influence and improve marketing effectiveness of LSC. Based on the stimulus–organism–response (S–O–R) paradigm, this study aims to develop a model to investigate the effects of perceived attributes of LSC (real-time interaction, perceived proximity and perceived authenticity) on social support (informational and emotional support) and subsequent engagement. Design/methodology/approach An online survey is conducted to collect data from LSC customers, and data are analyzed using SPSS and SmartPLS. Findings The results indicate that informational and emotional support are positively affected by real-time interaction, perceived proximity and perceived authenticity. In turn, informational and emotional support enable and mediate the prediction of customer engagement intention in LSC. Originality/value Prior LSC studies tend to focus on the motivation influencing LSC engagement from the perspective of perceived value. This study confirms the importance of perceived attributes of LSC in driving customer engagement from the perspective of social support.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-01-2022-0022 [Google]
Shi, Y., R. Zhang, C. Ma and L. Wang (2023): Robot service failure: the double-edged sword effect of emotional labor in service recovery, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 33(3223), pp.72-88
Purpose This paper aims to discuss the effect of frontline employees’ emotional labor (surface acting vs. deep acting) on customer satisfaction and the moderating role of responsibility attributions in the situation of robot service failure. Design/methodology/approach The scenario-based experimental method was designed to perform hypothesis testing and SPSS was used to analyze the data from the 363 questionnaires collected. Findings The results indicate that (1) employees’ emotional labor recovery has a double-edged sword effect. Deep acting improves customer satisfaction, while surface acting undermines the effectiveness of service recovery and leaves customer satisfaction below previous levels. (2) Customers’ responsibility attributions for service failure moderate the effect of service recovery. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to focus on the role of frontline employees’ emotional labor in robot service failure contexts, which not only enriches and expands the relevant literature in this domain, but also deepens the understanding of how emotional labor and responsibility attribution effect the customer satisfaction.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-03-2022-0048 [Google]
Chung, K., K. W. Oh and M. Kim (2022): Cross-Channel Integration and Customer Experience in Omnichannel Retail Services, Service Science, 14(3224), pp.307-317
Despite the increasing attention being given to cross-channel integration services, an understanding of the impact of cross-channel integration on customer experience is still lacking. This study fills this gap. With a focus on retail brand experience, this study demonstrates that cross-channel integration impacts customer experience and further results in changes in perception and behavioral intention. A conceptual model that illustrates the customers? psychological mechanism responding to cross-channel integration was developed. To test the model, a scenario-based online experiment was conducted. The results show that perceived channel integration impacts retail brand experience, which in turn impacts perceived service convenience, satisfaction, and patronage intention. Creating a better experience is a key challenge for retailers to ensure customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. Our results show that cross-channel integration services can play a pivotal role in the shaping of retail brand experience in today?s competitive retail environment that continuously evolves, owing to digital technology. The findings of this study add valuable new knowledge to the growing omnichannel retailing literature and provide practical insights to develop omnichannel retail services.Funding: This work was supported by the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2017S1A5A8022718).
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/serv.2022.0308 [Google]
Delshad, S. and A. Khademi (2022): Adaptive Design of Personalized Dose-Finding Clinical Trials, Service Science, 14(3225), pp.273-291
A key and challenging step toward personalized/precision medicine is the ability to redesign dose-finding clinical trials. This work studies a problem of fully response-adaptive Bayesian design of phase II dose-finding clinical trials with patient information, where the decision maker seeks to identify the right dose for each patient type (often defined as an effective target dose for each group of patients) by minimizing the expected (over patient types) variance of the right dose. We formulate this problem by a stochastic dynamic program and exploit a few properties of this class of learning problems. Because the optimal solution is intractable, we propose an approximate policy by an adaptation of a one-step look-ahead framework. We show the optimality of the proposed policy for a setting with homogeneous patients and two doses and find its asymptotic rate of sampling. We adapt a number of commonly applied allocation policies in dose-finding clinical trials, such as posterior adaptive sampling, and test their performance against our proposed policy via extensive simulations with synthetic and real data. Our numerical analyses provide insights regarding the connection between the structure of the dose-response curve for each patient type and the performance of allocation policies. This paper provides a practical framework for the Food and Drug Administration and pharmaceutical companies to transition from the current phase II procedures to the era of personalized dose-finding clinical trials.Funding: This research is supported by the National Science Foundation [Grant 1651912].Supplemental Material: The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/serv.2022.0306.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/serv.2022.0306 [Google]
Gao, P., X. Fu, H. Liu and Y.-J. Chen (2022): Free Add-Ons in Services, Service Science, 14(3226), pp.292-306
The paper examines a seller?s offering of free add-ons in services. We build a stylized model where the seller decides the level of add-on provision to enhance its core service, and consumers make discrete choices between the seller and an outside option. When the seller supplies its service through a single channel, we show that the optimal add-on provision is unimodal in the difference between the seller?s service quality and the outside option, comparable with the existing literature. When the service is supplied through multiple channels, we show that the seller may make nonidentical add-on provisions among channels. If the cost of add-on provision is low, the seller should adopt a differentiation strategy. If the cost is high, the seller should adopt a homogenization strategy. Various extensions are considered to establish the robustness of our results.Funding: P. Gao received financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant 72192805] and the Shenzhen Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics for Society [Grant AC01202101102]. Y-J Chen received financial support fromthe Hong Kong Research Grants Council [Grant 16212821].
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/serv.2022.0307 [Google]
Paulus, M., S. Jordanow and J. A. Millemann (2022): Adoption Factors of Digital Services—A Systematic Literature Review, Service Science, 14(3227), pp.318-350
In recent years, the diffusion of digital technologies in the service sector offers great potential for growth and success. Today, many companies are trying to launch new digital services on the market to realize this potential. Prior research concludes that the success of such services depends crucially on whether a consumer adopts or rejects them. Hence, by using the methodology of a systematic literature review, this paper identifies key factors that drive a consumer to adopt digital services. As a result of a subsequent classification, the present work distinguishes among three main categories. First are consumer-specific factors relating to individual predispositions, demographics, and awareness factors that can be attributed to the consumer. Second are situation-specific factors, representing the smallest category found, concerning the service environment, the context of service delivery, and situations in which consumers may find themselves before or during the use of digital services. Third are service-specific factors that are mainly determined by individual characteristics and features of these services, such as ease of use, usability, compatibility, and enjoyment. Hence, this study provides a comprehensive overview of determinants affecting consumer?s adoption behavior and suggests several opportunities for future research. Whereas the rich set of identified factors serves as a foundation, it further proposes to what responsible service executives should pay particular attention in order to succeed with digital services.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/serv.2022.0305 [Google]
Kim, M. and M. A. Baker (2022): From surviving to co-creating: the effects of the reshaped physical and social servicescape on customer citizenship behavior, Service Industries Journal, (3228), pp.1-26
The pandemic has reshaped customer perceptions of the new normal with both the physical and social service environments. Surprisingly, however, how reshaped servicescape design affects customers, especially their value co-creation behaviors, has not been studied. Drawing on value co-creation and signaling theory, this research aims to examine the comprehensive effects of the physical servicescape (signages, partitions, and spatial density) and the social servicescape (other customer misbehavior) on customer citizenship behavior and revisit intention via the mediating roles of perceived competence, perceived ethicality, and other customer trust. This study conducts two between-subjects experimental design studies with both written and pictorial manipulations in restaurant and retail store contexts to increase generalizability for services marketing. Signages and other customer misbehavior promote customer citizenship behavior through perceived competence and ethicality while partition shows the mixed results on customer perceptions. This paper contributes to servicescape and customer citizenship literature by identifying how the servicescape affects customer citizenship behavior via customers’ perception. The findings of this current study also offer practical guidance as to how firms can be more strategic in design choices. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2147513 [Google]
Martínez-Tur, V., Y. Estreder, I. Tomás, J. Ramos and O. Luque (2023): Interaction between functional and relational service quality: hierarchy vs. compensation, Service Industries Journal, 43(3229), pp.85-103
The main goal of this research study is to examine the form of interaction between functional and relational service quality in their links to customer satisfaction. Two competing hypotheses were tested: hierarchy and compensation-seeking. According to the hierarchy hypothesis, emotional-relational facets (relational service quality) only become important when core aspects are provided in an efficient manner (functional service quality). By contrast, the compensation-seeking hypothesis proposes that relational service quality helps to compensate for a sub-optimal level of functional service quality. To examine the generalizability of results to different types of service contexts, customers from three independent service settings participated in the research study. Our results confirmed the compensation-seeking hypothesis in the three samples. Accordingly, relational service quality was able to attenuate the reduction in customer satisfaction when functional service quality was sub-optimal. The manuscript concludes with a discussion of findings and ideas for research and practice. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2018.1492562 [Google]
Park, Y.-n. and T. Gong (2023): Curvilinear relationship between customer engagement and responses to service failures, Service Industries Journal, (3230), pp.1-27
Drawing on the activation theory and the Exit-Voice-Loyalty-Neglect model, this study examines how the level of customer engagement affects the four different types of customer responses to a service failure in the mobile application context. In addition, we investigate the moderating role of relationship quality in those relationships. This study used data from a self-administrated online survey of 345 South Korean customers who had experienced a mobile application service failure. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was applied to our conceptual model. The results revealed a U-shape relationship between customer engagement and destructive responses (i.e. exit and neglect), as well as an inverted U-shape relationship between customer engagement and constructive responses (i.e. loyalty and voice). Furthermore, a greater relationship quality reinforces the relationship between customer engagement and responses to service failures, except for loyalty. This study addresses the inconsistent research findings of customer engagement by suggesting the curvilinear relationship between customer engagement and response to service failure. Additionally, it provides new insights for marketers or managers to develop marketing strategies to operate mobile applications efficiently. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2164273 [Google]
Aw, E. C.-X., T. Zha and S. H.-W. Chuah (2023): My new financial companion! non-linear understanding of Robo-advisory service acceptance, Service Industries Journal, (3231), pp.1-28
Robo-advisory services are gaining traction and could usher in the next cycle of disruptive change in the financial services industry. Yet, many are reticent to embrace this service innovation for their wealth management. This study probes this phenomenon by examining the interplay among technology characteristics (i.e. performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and perceived security), human-like characteristics (i.e. perceived autonomy, perceived intelligence, and perceived anthropomorphism), and consumer characteristics (i.e. financial literacy and affinity for technology interaction) to explain the acceptance of robo-advisory services. For this purpose, a fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis and an artificial neural network analysis were performed to uncover the interdependency and complexity of the proposed variables, based on 375 responses collected through a large consumer panel survey in China. The findings revealed the presence of six configurations conducive for high acceptance of robo-advisory services, with perceived anthropomorphism and a combination of perceived effort expectancy and perceived security identified as core conditions. Moreover, according to the artificial neural network analysis, perceived intelligence is the most important determinant of robo-advisory service acceptance. This study challenges the conventional linear and symmetric perspective adopted in prior research. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2161528 [Google]
Hu, J. (2023): Dispositional awe, meaning in life, and socially responsible consumption, Service Industries Journal, (3232), pp.1-27
The antecedents of socially responsible consumption have been increasingly discussed in the field of consumer ethics theory. However, the potential emotional factors influencing socially responsible consumers are less researched. To fill this gap, our study introduces a specific emotional disposition – dispositional awe – to the research literature on socially responsible consumption and further proposes that a fundamental psychological need – meaning in life – could explain the enhancing effect of dispositional awe on socially responsible consumption. Through a series of analysis, including confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), structural equation modeling (SEM), and moderated mediation analysis, we confirm that dispositional awe could enhance personal meaning in life, which in turn affects the socially responsible consumption of consumers. Materialism plays a moderating role in these causal links. Our study contributes to enhance knowledge about socially responsible consumption and provides a new direction to guide consumer behavior in marketing context. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2154757 [Google]
Do, D. K. X. and J. L.-H. Bowden (2023): Negative customer engagement behaviour in a service context, Service Industries Journal, (3233), pp.1-24
Negative customer engagement (NCE) has negative consequences on firms; however, research on NCE is limited. This study empirically investigates the impact of different intensities of NCE on subsequent outcomes such as the intention to switch and engage in negative word-of-mouth recommendations. Critical incident technique and a survey method were employed with 404 respondents to understand the negative valences of customer engagement behaviour in response to unfavourable service experiences within an emerging market context. A typology of NCE behaviours was subsequently developed. Neglect was conceptualised as disengaged behaviour while complaining that seeks redress from the service provider, aggression, online complaining, third-party complaining, switching to another service provider and negative word-of-mouth were conceptualised as negatively engaged behaviour. These behaviours were not found to occur in isolation, but rather occurred within a broader developmental process of NCE. Understanding how the process of NCE occurs enables management to develop proactive management strategies to counter it. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2159945 [Google]
Qin, J., F. Xu and R. Wang (2023): Pre-service recovery: impact on customer satisfaction and acceptable waiting time, Service Industries Journal, 43(3234), pp.64-84
Defined as compensation a service provider offers during the customer’s waiting period before a service is delivered, pre-service recovery is becoming popular in the service industry. This paper examines two important issues: (1) how pre-service recovery affects customers’ pre-service waiting satisfaction and acceptable waiting time and (2) which type of pre-service recovery has the greatest impact. A scenario-based survey was administered to measure the impacts of different types of pre-service recovery on customers’ perceptions of justice, satisfaction with the wait for a service, and acceptable waiting time. The results show that pre-service recovery can significantly improve customers’ perceived justice and pre-service waiting satisfaction. Compared to low-level tangible compensation and psychological recovery, high-level tangible compensation results in higher pre-service waiting satisfaction. Interactional justice has the greatest impact on pre-service waiting satisfaction. Moreover, pre-service waiting satisfaction positively affects customers’ acceptable waiting time, implying that pre-service recovery can increase their willingness to wait. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2019.1667979 [Google]
Karatepe, O. M., K. Dahleez, T. Jaffal and M. Aboramadan (2023): Test of a sequential mediation model of green management innovation, Service Industries Journal, (3235), pp.1-24
Drawing from servant leadership, organizational support, and conservation of resources theories, our paper tests a sequential model of green management innovation (GMI). Specifically, our paper assesses: (a) the effect of green servant leadership (GSL) on GMI; (b) perceived organizational support for the environment (OSE) as a mediator between GSL and GMI; (c) green knowledge sharing as a mediator of the link between GSL and GMI; and (d) perceived OSE and green knowledge sharing as the sequential mediators linking GSL to GMI. Data were collected in different service settings. The results from structural equation modeling reveal that perceived OSE and green knowledge sharing serially and completely mediate the effect of GSL on GMI. In an environment where there are GSL practices, employees have favorable perceptions of OSE and display green knowledge sharing behaviors to boost GMI. The authors discuss the aforesaid findings and offer implications for managers and future research. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2164274 [Google]
Rao Hill, S. and B. Qesja (2022): Social media influencer popularity and authenticity perception in the travel industry, Service Industries Journal, (3236), pp.1-23
Influencer marketing on social media plays an increasingly vital role in the overall marketing strategies for travel products. Previous research suggests that while traditional celebrities create value through exclusiveness, Social Media Influencers (SMIs) establish their value through authenticity and connectedness. However, exactly how they convey their authenticity is not well researched. Drawing on signalling theory, this study investigates the effect of SMI popularity (using the size of the following as a proxy) on consumers’ purchase intention as an outcome of authenticity perception, considering the moderating role of SMI’s perceived motive. A between-subjects design was employed, with participants (n_=_236) randomly assigned to one of the two experimental conditions. Data were analysed using ANOVA and PROCESS Macro. Findings from our study suggest that consumers see micro SMI endorsers as more truthful, genuine, and authentic, which leads to greater intention to purchase the travel product. The effect of SMI popularity on authenticity perception is stronger for those who believe that SMIs are generally self-serving when they endorse products. This research has important ramifications for managers in the selection of SMI endorsers of their travel products. It also has implications for influencers who endorse products on social media. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2149740 [Google]
Anasori, E., G. De Vita and K. Gürkan Küçükergin (2023): Workplace bullying, psychological distress, job performance and employee creativity: the moderating effect of psychological resilience, Service Industries Journal, (3237), pp.1-22
This study tests a model exploring the direct effect of workplace bullying on employee creativity and performance using psychological distress as the mediator and psychological resilience as the moderator based on the JD-R theory. PLS-SEM was applied to analyze data collected from both employees and supervisors of 4 – and 5-star hotels. The main findings reveal that workplace bullying affects employee creativity negatively, and psychological distress positively. While psychological distress has a negative effect on employee creativity, the latter exerts a significantly positive effect on job performance. Resilience moderates the relationships between workplace bullying and employee creativity, and psychological distress and employee creativity. This study makes a significant, original contribution to the hospitality literature as it is the first to investigate the moderator role of psychological resilience on employee creativity and performance in reaction to bullying behavior. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2147514 [Google]
Ahmed, S. and D. H. Ting (2023): Anticipated emotion in planned versus unplanned purchase: scale development and validation, Service Industries Journal, 43(3238), pp.104-123
This study aims to conceptualize and validate an anticipated emotion in the planned versus unplanned purchase (AEPUP) scale. We develop and validate the AEPUP scale using the original construct (as a basis). The procedures of scale development begin with construct definitions and are followed by a three-phase operation: (1) qualitative exploration of relevant dimensions and items, (2) scale development procedure, and (3) establishment of confirmatory factor analysis and nomological validity. The empirical findings show that the new scale (refined from the anticipated emotion concept) has sound psychometric properties and is distinctive. This research contributes to the understanding of anticipated emotion concepts, as well as refines and improves the construct of AEPUP. Customer relationship management can be significantly improved by applying the scale in the formulation and implementation of market segmentation, targeting, and positioning strategy. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2020.1779224 [Google]
Bani-Melhem, S., R. M. Abukhait and F. Mohd Shamsudin (2023): This doesn’t make sense! Does illegitimate tasks affect innovative behaviour?, Service Industries Journal, (3239), pp.1-27
Illegitimate tasks in the workplace are known to associate with several attitudinal and behavioural outcomes for employees, including their well-being, motivation, and turnover intention. However, why and when these adverse impacts influence employees’ innovative behaviours have not yet been examined. The current study thus empirically investigates the impact of illegitimate tasks on the innovative behaviours of employees. It also examines the mediating role of work meaninglessness and the moderating impact of passive leadership in these relationships. The research analyses a sample of 145 employee-supervisor dyads in several public sector organisations in Dubai. The results demonstrate that illegitimate tasks indirectly (via work meaninglessness) and negatively influence innovative behaviours. This influence is strengthened when the supervisor/leader is passive. Our results provide more insight into the potential negative influence of illegitimate tasks on innovative behaviours through perceived work meaninglessness and the exacerbating impact of passive leadership on these relationships. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2163994 [Google]
Ahmad, R. and M. I. Ishaq (2023): Envy: definitions, approaches and implications, Service Industries Journal, (3240), pp.1-37
While envy is a complex emotion to date, voluminous work has been done on the subject; however, no study has been conducted to resolve the debate on key envy-related concepts such as its definition, approaches and dimensions. Having its roots back in 1712, the explorations about envy have radically increased, especially in the twenty-first century, resulting in myriad theoretical and empirical developments. This paper takes this initiative by reviewing 76 systematically selected articles published in the services context in 41 journals to summarize the evolution of envy while addressing key research questions (what is envy, its nature, antecedents, and outcomes). Based on the review, this study tries to resolve the debate regarding two key elements of envy: its definition and approaches, i.e. unitary and dual. Following the unitary approach, we reported the most practical definition of envy and found that the view of self generates positive outcomes, and the view of others generates negative outcomes of envy. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2023.2169278 [Google]
Ali, F., G. Turktarhan, X. Chen and M. Ali (2022): Antecedents of destination advocacy using symmetrical and asymmetrical modeling techniques, Service Industries Journal, (3241), pp.1-22
This study uses a multi-method approach to examine antecedents of destination advocacy. Data were collected from 549 respondents via Amazon MTurk. A symmetrical analysis based on partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and asymmetrical analysis based on fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis explore how combinations of various antecedents, including hospitality, perceived authenticity, destination experience quality, and destination love lead to high and low levels of destination advocacy. Findings indicate that hospitality and authenticity significantly impact destination experience quality. Moreover, destination experience quality and destination love have a significant impact on destination advocacy. Finally, fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) results reveal that a high level of hospitality and destination quality leads to destination advocacy. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2146098 [Google]
Alexander, N. and A. M. Doherty (2023): Theorising brand aura, Journal of Service Management, 34(3242), pp.126-146
Purpose: Building on Walter Benjamin’s philosophical reflections on aura and authenticity, this article aims to conceptualise and theorise brand aura. Design/methodology/approach: This article extends understanding of brand aura within the management, marketing and tourism literature with reference to Benjamin’s framing of aura and authenticity in time and space. Findings: Within a Benjaminian framework this article theorises brand aura and offers a conceptualisation of the antecedents of brand aura. It explores the duality of what is termed here as artefactual authenticity and existential authenticity. It illustrates the central role of consumers’ mémoire involontaire in the realisation of brand aura. Within this Benjaminian framework, the article explores how artefactual authenticity is preceded by brand essence, while existential authenticity precedes brand essence. Implications for the management of the service encounter are discussed with reference to territorial legitimacy and historical testimony in the context of the firm’s role in supporting consumer experiential engagement. Originality/value: This article advances theoretical understanding of how consumers engage experientially with brand aura and how firms curate brand aura.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-12-2021-0468 [Google]
Batat, W. and W. Hammedi (2023): The extended reality technology (ERT) framework for designing customer and service experiences in phygital settings: a service research agenda, Journal of Service Management, 34(3243), pp.10-33
Purpose: Because new-age technologies are gaining a broader interest among service scholars and practitioners, it is critical to identify these technologies and examine the roles they play. The examination needs to be conducted to design engaging customer and service experiences in new phygital settings that connect physical and digital environments. This review article aims to provide researchers with a new comprehensive and integrative extended reality technology (ERT) framework. The framework serves as the basis for an all-inclusive view of ERT types in order to explore the different types of technology used to design phygital customer and service experiences. Design/methodology/approach: This article reviews prior works on the role technology plays in terms of customer experiences across various fields of research, including consumer, marketing and service literature. Adopting an experiential and phygital perspective as well as considering a consumer standpoint, this article defines the scope of the ERT framework by identifying categories of new-age technologies and their effects related to the design of phygital customer and service experiences. Findings: The ERT framework proposed in this article offers directions for future research by adopting an experiential approach to technologies in order to categorize additional technological devices, platforms and tools that can be considered in the design of phygital experiences following several extension processes. These processes can enhance the cognitive, social, sensory and contextual dimensions of the phygital experience and thus create a continuum in terms of customer value from physical to digital settings and vice versa. Research limitations/implications: Companies and service providers may benefit from a new, comprehensive, focused framework that assembles different types of technology. The technologies can be utilized to design engaging customer and service experiences that deliver customer value from physical to digital spaces and inversely. Originality/value: No prior works have proposed a comprehensive ERT framework for service research following an experiential perspective and a consumer view of the experience occurring in a new setting: phygital. By embracing the ERT framework provided in this article, future service scholars can examine the dynamics and types of technologies that can positively or negatively affect the design of consumption and service experiences in phygital settings.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-08-2022-0289 [Google]
Bowen, D. E. (2023): A tribute to Dr Pierre Eiglier: a service field founder with timeless service wisdom, Journal of Service Management, 34(3244), pp.1-9
Purpose: This tribute to Dr Pierre Eiglier, who passed in February 2020, was prepared for the “17th International Research Conference in Service Management 2022” in La Londe les Maures, France. Tribute is defined as, “an act, statement, or gift intended to show gratitude, respect, or admiration”. Design/methodology/approach: Sampled Pierre’s publications; consulted the 1993 Journal of Retailing “Special Services Issue” on the evolution of the field; collected reflections from another founder and two of Pierre’s former doctoral students who have helped co-chair the La Londe conference and drew from my own interactions with Pierre over the years at La Londe. Findings: In the mid-1970s, Pierre was one of the first to specify the unique characteristics of services vs products, and the implications and introduced, with Eric Langeard, the “servuction” (service production) model, highlighting customer participation in the servuction process and determinants of the service experience. Pierre continually applied a synthesis of systems thinking, researcher–practitioner interaction, and interdisciplinary/cross-functional perspectives. Practical implications: Pierre’s contributions came at a time when marketing practice was geared largely toward products/goods, yet the service sector was growing. Pierre’s pioneering framing, along with other founders, of service attributes, service models, and the service experience had much-needed implications for services marketing practice. Originality/value: This detailed tribute to a service field founder is, regrettably, quite original; too rare. There is value in revisiting these founding contributions which often were broader and more interdisciplinary in perspective than now.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-04-2022-0137 [Google]
El-Shamandi Ahmed, K., A. Ambika and R. Belk (2023): Augmented reality magic mirror in the service sector: experiential consumption and the self, Journal of Service Management, 34(3245), pp.56-77
Purpose: This paper examines what the use of an augmented reality (AR) makeup mirror means to consumers, focusing on experiential consumption and the extended self. Design/methodology/approach: The authors employed a multimethod approach involving netnography and semi-structured interviews with participants in India and the UK (n = 30). Findings: Two main themes emerged from the data: (1) the importance of imagination and fantasy and (2) the (in)authenticity of the self and the surrounding “reality.” Research limitations/implications: This research focuses on AR magic makeup mirror. The authors call for further research on different AR contexts. Practical implications: The authors provide service managers with insights on addressing gaps between the perceived service (i.e. AR contexts and the makeup consumption journey) and the conceived service (i.e. fantasies and the extended self). Originality/value: The authors examine the lived fantasy experiences of AR experiential consumption. In addition, the authors reveal a novel understanding of the extended self as temporarily re-envisioned through the AR mirror.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-12-2021-0484 [Google]
He, Z., H. Huang, H. Choi and A. Bilgihan (2023): Building organizational resilience with digital transformation, Journal of Service Management, 34(3246), pp.147-171
Purpose: Uncertain times [e.g. coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)] require service businesses to respond in creative, flexible and resilient ways. This paper aims to develop and test the theoretical relationship between digital transformation and organizational resilience (OR), and the consequences of OR on organizations and employees during turbulent times. Design/methodology/approach: A scale development was first conducted with an expert panel. Later, 474 participants who work as employees in small and medium-sized service enterprises were recruited for structural equation modeling (SEM). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and path analysis were conducted to test the relationship between dimensions of digital maturity, dimensions of OR and two consequential variables: organizational performance and employees’ state optimism. Findings: Strategic technology investment helps organizations to develop systematic control sustain operations in crises but may not directly contribute to employees’ capabilities of accurately understanding external turmoil, actively seeking available resources and rapidly developing adaptive solutions. Transformation management intensity equips an organization with transformative vision, governance and culture, and such transformative built-in leadership enables the organization to embrace employees with talents and innovativeness and help employees grow their capabilities when facing crises. The dimensions of OR have different influences on the organization and employees. Originality/value: This research develops and tests the dimensions and measurement items of OR for the services domain and empirically tested how the dimensions of digital maturity influence the dimensions of OR, and how OR influences the organization’s performance and employees’ state optimism.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-06-2021-0216 [Google]
Kozinets, R. V. (2023): Immersive netnography: a novel method for service experience research in virtual reality, augmented reality and metaverse contexts, Journal of Service Management, 34(3247), pp.100-125
Purpose: As immersive technologies gain wider adoption, contemporary service researchers are tasked with studying their service experiences in ways that preserve and attend to their holistic and human characteristics. The purpose of this paper is to provide service researchers with a new qualitative approach to studying immersive technologies. Design/methodology/approach: Using logic and following established methodological rules, this article develops the scope, definition and set of procedures for a novel form of netnography specifically adapted for the study of immersive technologies: immersive netnography. The research question is “How might netnography be adapted to research service experiences in virtual and augmented environments, which include and overlap with the notion of a Metaverse?” Findings: Immersive netnography should be at the vanguard of phenomenological service experience studies of augmented reality, virtual reality and the Metaverse. A set of data collection, analysis, ethical and representational research practices, immersive netnography is adapted to digital media phenomena (customer and employee) that include immersive technology experiences. Developed through logical argumentation after analyzing key differences between social media and immersive technology, immersive netnography is procedurally customized for experience research in immersive technology environments. Research limitations/implications: Three of the most significant practical limitations to producing high-quality netnography are rapidly changing contexts, scarce time resources and narrow researcher skillsets. Practical implications: Industries and organizations may benefit from a new, holistically focused, ethically robust and culturally attuned market research method for understanding service experience in immersive technology contexts. Originality/value: There have been no prior studies that develop netnography for the service research opportunities presented by immersive technologies. By applying the rigorous methodological guidance provided in this paper, future service researchers may find value in using specifically adapted qualitative research methods to study immersive technology experiences.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-12-2021-0481 [Google]
Vaidyanathan, N. and S. Henningsson (2023): Designing augmented reality services for enhanced customer experiences in retail, Journal of Service Management, 34(3248), pp.78-99
Purpose: To deliver superior customer experiences, retailers are increasingly turning to augmented reality (AR) technologies for new digital services that can enhance their customer interactions. The potential of AR has been validated in lab experiments, but when implemented in real-world contexts, its commercial impact has been limited. Therefore, this paper investigates how to design AR-based services (AR services) that enhance customer experiences in retail. Design/methodology/approach: The paper uses a conceptual research approach to integrate research on AR in the context of retail, combining customer, retailer, and technical perspectives with the design thinking method to demonstrate how the challenge of AR service design can be addressed through design thinking. Findings: The paper develops propositions that explain how a design thinking method is useful in the design of effective AR services. The paper also articulates principles for how to implement the design thinking method in the specific context of AR for enhanced customer experiences. Practical implications: The study documents critical practices for retailers seeking to be competitive with superior customer experiences under the increasing digitalization of retailer-customer interactions. Originality/value: The study contributes to the service design literature by answering the call to develop moderately abstracted explanations of how different digital technologies can be used to provision new services in different application domains, with the focus here being the design of AR services in the context of retail.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-01-2022-0004 [Google]
Zarantonello, L. and B. H. Schmitt (2023): Experiential AR/VR: a consumer and service framework and research agenda, Journal of Service Management, 34(3249), pp.34-55
Purpose: The paper focuses on extended reality technologies and their potential contribution to the improvement of services. First, it identifies extended reality technologies (AR/VR) as the most promising interfaces to enable an experiential consumption of the services. It then summarises their properties and discusses similarities and differences. Last, it maps these technologies onto a consumer psychology framework of experience to derive possible areas of future research. Design/methodology/approach: The authors conduct a literature review and present a conceptual framework of AR/VR contributions on experience. Findings: The study provides an up-to-date literature review including AR and VR applications for consumer and service experience, as well as recommendations for possible research directions. Originality/value: Whereas previous contributions adopted the same, experiential approach but focused on different technology (e.g. AI) or considered multiple interfaces and their impact on the consumer journey (mostly transactions), this paper aims at digging deeper into AR/VR, while retaining an experiential view on consumption that best serves the contextualisation of AR/VR.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-12-2021-0479 [Google]
Bapat, D. and R. Khandelwal (2023): Antecedents and consequences of consumer hope for digital payment apps services, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3250), pp.110-127
Purpose: This study aims to examine the impact of customer brand value dimensions on relationship marketing dimensions through consumer hope in the context of digital payment applications (apps) services. The study considers the role of consumer engagement using a moderated mediation, and applies customer perceived value, affect theory of social exchange and relationship marketing theories. Design/methodology/approach: The study is based on data collected from 301 digital payment app users. Structural equation modeling results were analyzed using Smart PLS. The authors performed moderated mediation, with different levels of customer engagement as a moderating variable, using Model 8 of PROCESS. The authors considered customer perceived value dimensions, digital quality value, perceived value, hedonic value and social value as antecedents to consumer hope and explored the role of trust, commitment and continued usage as a consequence of consumer hope. Findings: Three levels of perceived consumer value, digital quality, price value and social value, positively influenced consumer hope, which has positively influenced trust, commitment and continuance usage. Using moderated mediation analysis, consumer hope influenced continuance usage through trust at different levels of engagement, but consumer hope did not influence continuance usage through commitment at different levels of engagement. Originality/value: The study highlights the role of consumer hope in linking customer value dimensions with relationship marketing dimensions. The study can guide managers to ensure continued usage of digital payment apps, which is a strategic objective. The results are relevant for the digital setting.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-12-2021-0456 [Google]
Bargoni, A., C. Giachino, E. Battisti and L. Iaia (2023): The effects of influencer endorsement services on crowdfunding campaigns, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3251), pp.40-52
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate how influencer endorsement services stimulate funding intention in the context of crowdfunding (donation- and reward-based) and the moderating role played by platform trufvst and funder expertise. Design/methodology/approach: To explore the effects of influencer endorsement services (i.e. perceived congruence, social influence and motivation) on funding intention in different crowdfunding campaigns, the authors developed a conceptual model tested using structural equation modelling. The authors also investigated two potential moderators underlying this relationship: platform trust and funder expertise. Findings: The results of the study indicate that there was a positive effect of influencer endorsement services through the dimension congruence and the funding intention, both for reward- and donation-based crowdfunding. Moreover, they suggest that while perceived congruence has a positive effect on funding intention, when the two contexts are compared, only the moderating roles of platform trust over motivation and the funder expertise over motivation are significant and relevant. Practical implications: The study has implications for both funders and those who seek to raise money for crowdfunding campaigns. The results offer new insights for developing effective crowdfunding campaigns, e.g. leveraging communication strategies based on the context of the crowdfunding (reward- vs donation-based) and the use of influencers as endorsers. Originality/value: The present study is, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the first to examine the impact of influencer endorsement services on crowdfunding campaigns, shedding new light on the interdisciplinary connections between service marketing and entrepreneurial finance in terms of fundraising activities. The study opens new and previously under-investigated interdisciplinary research streams. It deepens our understanding of a particular issue relating to the marketing and crowdfunding domain by measuring the impact of the influencer’s endorsement on people’s intention to participate in two different campaigns.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-12-2021-0444 [Google]
Camilleri, M. A. and M. Kozak (2023): Utilitarian motivations to engage with travel websites: an interactive technology adoption model, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3252), pp.96-109
Purpose: This study aims to investigate perceptions about interactive travel websites. The researchers hypothesize that engaging content, the quality of information and source credibility have a significant effect on the consumers’ utilitarian motivations to continue using them in the future. Design/methodology/approach: A structured survey questionnaire was used to gather data from 1,287 online users, who were members of two popular social media groups. The methodology relied on a partial least squares approach to analyze the causal relationships within an extended information adoption model (IAM). Findings: The findings reveal that the research participants perceive the utility of interactive travel websites and are willing to continue using them, particularly the responsive ones. The research participants suggest that these sites are easy to use, capture their attention and offer them useful information on various tourism services. The results also indicate that they appreciate their source credibility (in terms of their trustworthiness and expertise of their curators) as well as their quality content. Research limitations/implications: This study integrates key measures from the IAM with a perceived interactivity construct, to better understand the individuals’ acceptance and use of interactive websites. Practical implications: This research implies that service businesses ought to have engaging websites that respond to consumer queries in a timely manner. Hence, they should offer a seamless experience to their visitors to encourage loyal behaviors and revisit intentions to their online domains. Originality/value: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there are no other studies that incorporated an interactive engagement construct with key constructs from IAM and from the technology acceptance model (TAM). This contribution underlines the importance of measuring the individuals’ perceptions about the engagement capabilities of interactive media when investigating information and/or technology adoption.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-12-2021-0477 [Google]
Christofi, M., O. Kvasova and E. Hadjielias (2023): Editorial: Interdisciplinary research in services marketing, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3253), pp.1-11
Purpose: This paper aims to highlight the importance of interdisciplinary services marketing research and identify basic prerequisites for inter-disciplinary work in the field of services marketing, and to offer directions to services marketing scholars regarding future interdisciplinary research work. Design/methodology/approach: Building on the available literature, the authors argue for the importance of interdisciplinary research in services marketing. The authors also develop a framework featuring “the key challenges impeding interdisciplinarity”, which need to be addressed to shift the services marketing field towards more sensible interdisciplinarity. Further, based on literature synthesis from different disciplines, they provide a framework with “four future research avenues for interdisciplinary research in services marketing”. Findings: The authors identify five challenges that can likely impede services marketing research from progressing into true interdisciplinary work: limited cross-pollination, limited paradoxical thinking, limited conceptual development, limited cross-disciplinary collaboration and “inside–out” focus. The authors also propose four future research avenues to drive interdisciplinary research in the services marketing field: integration of services marketing and information management; linguistic perspectives in services marketing research; the interface between services marketing and medicine; and consumer personality and values in services marketing. Originality/value: The authors propose two novel frameworks. The first concerns the key challenges of interdisciplinarity in services marketing research and the second provides avenues to drive future interdisciplinary services marketing research.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-12-2022-0380 [Google]
Chwialkowska, A., W. A. Bhatti, A. Arslan and M. Glowik (2023): Co-creating value and well-being experiences in physiotherapy services, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3254), pp.12-24
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to study the US-based (American) physiotherapy customers’ goals to engage in value cocreation activities during their well-being experience. Design/methodology/approach: The authors perform Smart PLS-SEM analysis of the primary data of physiotherapy service customers in the USA. Findings: The findings show that the US well-being customer engages in physiotherapy for individualizing, empowering, development, concerted and ethical motives but not for relating motives. These findings are contrasted with previous research to show that the service-dominant logic is not sufficient to account for the contextual complexity of the well-being experience and to explain the identified differences across culturally different customer segments. Research limitations/implications: By integrating insights from health-care and cross-cultural literature, the authors highlight the importance of relationship dynamics, culture and institutional context in well-being sector and develop a more comprehensive understanding of the cocreation behaviors in this industry. This helps advance the value cocreation research in well-being sector and promote the well-being experiences such as physiotherapy. Originality/value: The authors draw from a variety of disciplinary perspectives and challenge the service-dominant (S-D) logic as insufficient in explaining the value cocreation between the customer and expert in the well-being sector. The authors adapt physician–patient relationship model from health-care literature and cultural values of power distance from cross-cultural literature to complement the S-D logic to account for the complexity and nuanced context of the well-being cocreation experience.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-11-2021-0423 [Google]
Dehling, S., B. Edvardsson and B. Tronvoll (2022): How do actors coordinate for value creation? A signaling and screening perspective on resource integration, Journal of Services Marketing, 36(3255), pp.18-26
Purpose: Although service research typically asserts that institutions coordinate actors’ value creation processes, institutions and resources are not necessarily transparent, aligned, or pre-existing. This paper aims to develop a more granular perspective on how actors coordinate for value. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on the established concepts of signaling and screening theory, this paper adopts a service marketing perspective to explore how independent heterogeneous actors coordinate for value creation at the individual level. Illustrative cases of corporate startup collaborations are presented in support of the proposed conceptual framework. Findings: Actors share and acquire information through signaling and screening activities in a coordinative dialogue with other actors. These resource integration activities (for resource creation and matching) affect actors’ valuations and future actions. Originality/value: The one-sided explanations of coordination in the existing literature reflect the dominance of the institutional theory. By contrast, the proposed agency-oriented perspective based on the integration of signaling and screening functions offers a more granular conceptualization of the resource integration process. As well as capturing how actors use coordinating dialogue to match resources and institutions, this account also shows that matching is a core element of resource integration rather than an antecedent. The findings indicate paths for future research that focus on the actor.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-02-2020-0068 [Google]
Kim, J. M. and S. Park (2023): Does language shape the mind? Linguistic fluency and perception of service quality, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3256), pp.53-64
Purpose: As services are inherently inseparable from service providers, linguistic effects are likely to occur during service encounters between service marketers and consumers. However, this study’s current understanding is still limited regarding how or why a language shapes consumers’ perceptions of service quality. To fill this gap, this paper aims to provide foundational evidence by examining how linguistic fluency affects consumers’ perceptions of service quality. Design/methodology/approach: This paper presents two multimethod studies. Study 1 compared online review ratings from 61,194 consumers living in native and nonnative English-speaking countries. Study 2 further clarified the mediating role of negative emotions between linguistic disfluency and perceptions of service quality by analyzing questionnaires from 399 nonnative English speakers. Findings: The results of the two multimethod studies show that linguistic processing can misrepresent the true quality of services due to linguistic disfluency by nonnative English speakers. This paper’s findings integrate the literature on linguistic fluency, emotional psychology and service marketing to yield insights that might be challenging to gain by relying on only one of those disciplines independently. Originality/value: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper provides the first empirical evidence on systematic differences between native and nonnative English speakers’ decision-making styles related to their perceptions of quality. Also, methodologically, this study provides corroborating empirical evidence from two multimethod studies. Moreover, this paper expands our current knowledge through an integrated examination of relevant literature in the fields of linguistic fluency, emotional psychology and service marketing to provide more comprehensive insights.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-11-2021-0431 [Google]
Lipkin, M. and K. Heinonen (2022): Customer ecosystems: exploring how ecosystem actors shape customer experience, Journal of Services Marketing, 36(3257), pp.1-17
Purpose: This study aims to characterize how ecosystem actors shape customer experience (CX). The study also proposes implications for managers and research regarding the customer ecosystem, its actors and actor constellations in the context of CXs. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative study is conducted among activity tracker users to identify how actors within their ecosystems shape CXs. Data include 28 in-depth interviews and ten self-reported diaries. Findings: This study delineates six actor categories in the customer ecosystem shaping CX within and beyond the service. The number of actors and their importance to the focal customer in various actor constellations form individual-, brand- and socially driven ecosystems. These customer ecosystem types show how actors combine to drive CXs. Research limitations/implications: Researchers should shift their attention to experiences emerging in the customer’s lifeworld. A customer ecosystem highlights the customer-centered actor configuration emergent within the customer’s lifeworld. It is self-constructed based on the customer’s reference point. Practical implications: Managers should aim to locate, monitor and join the customer’s lifeworld to gain more insight into how CXs emerge in the customer ecosystem based on customer logic. Social implications: Customers are not isolated actors simply experiencing service; rather, they construct idiosyncratic actor constellations that include various providers, social groups and peers. Originality/value: This paper extends the theory on CXs by illustrating how the various actors and actor constellations forming the customer ecosystem shape CXs.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-03-2021-0080 [Google]
Malodia, S., A. Ferraris, M. Sakashita, A. Dhir and B. Gavurova (2023): Can Alexa serve customers better? AI-driven voice assistant service interactions, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3258), pp.25-39
Purpose: This study aims to examine customers’ willingness to engage in service interactions enabled by artificial intelligence (AI) controlled voice assistants (VA). Drawing on the tenets of dual-factor theory, this study measures the impact of both enablers and inhibitors – mediated by trust in Alexa – on customers’ intentions to transact through VAs. Design/methodology/approach: Data from a survey of 290 users of VAs from Japan was collected through “Macromill”. The authors used a covariance-based path analysis technique for data analysis after establishing the validity and reliability of the measures. Findings: The results of this study demonstrate that convenience and status-seeking act as enablers and positively influence trust in VAs, whereas risk barrier acts as an inhibitor and negatively influence trust in VAs. In turn, trust in VAs positively influences the intention to use VAs for transactional service interactions. This association is positively moderated by technology comfort. Originality/value: This study applies dual-factor theory to the context of VAs – a context that scholars have, to date, examined solely from a technology adoption perspective. For the first time, the authors adopt a dual-factor approach to identify a new set of antecedents for customers’ intentions to use VAs for transactional service interactions.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-12-2021-0488 [Google]
Mickelsson, J., U. Särkikangas, T. Strandvik and K. Heinonen (2022): User-defined ecosystems in health and social care, Journal of Services Marketing, 36(3259), pp.41-56
Purpose: People with complex health conditions must often navigate landscapes of uncoordinated public, private and voluntary health-care providers to obtain the care they need. Complex health conditions frequently transcend the scope of typical health-care service systems. The purpose of this paper is to explore and characterize such unique assemblages of actors and services as “user-defined ecosystems”. Design/methodology/approach: Building on literature on customer ecosystems, this paper introduces the concept of the user-defined ecosystem (UDE). Using an abductive approach, the authors apply the concept in an interpretive, qualitative study of ten families with special needs children. Findings: This study uncovers complex UDEs, where families actively combine a broad range of services. These ecosystems are unique for each family and extend beyond the scope of designed service ecosystems. Thus, the families are forced to assume an active, coordinating role. Research limitations/implications: This paper shows how to identify ecosystems from the user’s point of view, based on the selected user unit (such as a family) and the focal value-creating function of the ecosystem for the user. Social implications: This paper highlights how service providers can support and adapt to UDEs and, thus, contribute to user value and well-being. This can be used to understand users’ perspectives on service and systems in health and social care. Originality/value: This study develops the concept of the UDE, which represents a customer-focused perspective on actor ecosystems and contrasts it with a provider-focused and a distributed perspective on ecosystems. This study demonstrates the practical usefulness of the conceptualization and provides a foundation for further research on the user’s perspective on ecosystems.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-03-2021-0090 [Google]
Qi, J. M., Y. Peng, G. H. Lowman and X. He (2023): The impact of service climate on gratitude in driving customer outcomes, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3260), pp.78-95
Purpose: Employee gratitude is often associated with positive customer-related benefits. However, our understanding of employee gratitude is notably underdeveloped within the service literature. To address this issue, this study aims to position employee gratitude within the service profit chain (SPC) framework as a complementary mediator. Further, the authors empirically examine service climate as a central antecedent to employee gratitude and employee customer-oriented behavior as an outcome that triggers an internal and external reciprocal social exchange. Design/methodology/approach: The examination of the research questions was done across two studies, using employee self-reported data (Study 1) and employee–customer dyadic data (Study 2). In Study 1, the authors investigate how employee gratitude mediates the relationship between service climate and customer-oriented behavior, with employee interpersonal influence functioning as a moderator. In Study 2, the authors examine how customer-oriented behavior, an outcome of Study 1, influences customer satisfaction and customer avoidance, with customer gratitude functioning as a mediator. Findings: Results from both Study 1 and Study 2 support the proposed relationships. These studies contribute to the service literature by evaluating how and why employee gratitude functions as a significant factor in determining employee and customer behavior within the service context. Originality/value: This work enriches the gratitude literature by empirically testing a novel theoretical perspective on employee and customer gratitude in service encounters. In doing so, the authors provide a more nuanced understanding of how internal and external processes are connected and potentially reinforced in SPC.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-12-2021-0458 [Google]
Rosenbaum, M. S., R. Russell-Bennett and G. Contreras-Ramírez (2022): Editorial: Research priorities in the new service marketplace, Journal of Services Marketing, 36(3261), pp.1009-1014
Purpose: This editorial aims to identify new research priorities in the service marketplace that are emerging because of consumer and organizational trends in the shadow of the global pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: A conceptual approach is used that draws on observations from practitioners to synthesize changes in consumer values, motivations and behaviors as they pertain to service consumption, design and delivery. This editorial draws on current trends and recent service research to discuss the current state of the marketplace and to uncover areas in which research voids exist. Findings: This editorial offers ten research priorities for service researchers. These research priorities are supply chain and staffing shortages; sustainable services, older consumers embrace digital technologies; digital financial services; consumer pursuit of personal and spiritual awareness; participating in virtual communities, networks and worlds; affinity for peer-to-peer commerce; transformative places; seeking self-love services, and social distance concerns. Research limitations/implications: Academicians are provided with a series of research priorities that are interesting, timely and relevant for the new service marketplace. Practical implications: Service academicians are encouraged to pursue empirical and descriptive investigations in-line with the priorities developed in this editorial. These research priorities are relevant, timely and interesting. Originality/value: This work presents scholars with a historical overview of trends in service research. The challenges posed by the pandemic represent the beginning of a new era in service research thought and practice as many previously held theories and understandings of consumers’ marketplace behaviors have permanently changed due to behavioral changes that transpired during governmental mandated lockdowns.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-06-2022-0190 [Google]
Roten, Y. S. and R. Vanheems (2023): To share or not to share screens with customers? Lessons from learning theories, Journal of Services Marketing, 37(3262), pp.65-77
Purpose: Even as retailers add digital features to their physical stores and equip their service teams with digital devices, no research has addressed the implications of frontline employees (FLEs) sharing a screen side-by-side with customers as a contemporary service practice. This paper aims to identify the potential customer benefits of this service practice. Design/methodology/approach: Noting the lack of theoretical considerations of screen-sharing in marketing, this paper adopts an interdisciplinary approach and combines learning theories with computer-supported collaborative learning topics to explore how screen-sharing service practices can lead to benefits or drawbacks. Findings: The findings specify three main domains of perceived benefits and drawbacks (instrumental, social link, individual control) associated with using a screen-sharing service. These three dimensions in turn are associated with perceptions of accepted or unaccepted expertise status and relative competence. Research limitations/implications: The interdisciplinary perspective applied to a complex new service interaction pattern produces a comprehensive framework that can be applied by services marketing literature. Practical implications: This paper details tactics for developing appropriate training programmes for FLEs and sales teams. In omnichannel service environments, identifying and leveraging the key perceived benefits of screen-sharing can establish enviable competitive advantages for service teams. Originality/value: By integrating findings of a qualitative research study with knowledge stemming from education sciences, this paper identifies some novel service postures (e.g. teacher, peer, facilitator) that can help maximise customer benefits.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-11-2021-0436 [Google]
Samuelsson, P. and L. Witell (2022): Social entrepreneurs in service: motivations and types, Journal of Services Marketing, 36(3263), pp.27-40
Purpose: This study aims to describe social entrepreneurs’ motivation during the social entrepreneurship process and identify different social entrepreneurs in terms of their social characteristics. Design/methodology/approach: The descriptive research design uses a directed qualitative interpretative approach based on 17 cases of social entrepreneurs active in healthcare innovation hubs. Findings: The study describes the social entrepreneurs in a service context. Based on their key motivational characteristics, the study identifies three types of social entrepreneur: discoverers, seekers, and rangers. The study finds that not all of the three types regulate high levels of motivation during the social entrepreneurship process. Research limitations/implications: Depending on the type of social entrepreneur, the social entrepreneurship process requires different forms of support. In practice, the traditional R&D process deployed by innovation hubs is suitable for rangers; discoverers and seekers commonly regulate low levels of motivation when developing and introducing their social innovations to the market. Originality/value: Most service research on social entrepreneurship focuses on the outcome; in contrast, this empirical study focuses on the individual entrepreneurs, their motivation and process. While previous research has treated motivation as an antecedent for engagement in the social mission of entrepreneurship, the present study investigates social entrepreneurs’ motivation in relation to the social entrepreneurship process, providing insights in the behavior of social entrepreneurs.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JSM-08-2017-0274 [Google]
