Atanu Kumar Nath, Parmita Saha and Xiang Ying Mei
Though many conceptual and empirical studies have been conducted on the servicescape, limited research has focused on how the COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped factors influencing…
Abstract
Purpose
Though many conceptual and empirical studies have been conducted on the servicescape, limited research has focused on how the COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped factors influencing the servicescape. This paper aims to propose an extension of Bitner’s original conceptualization, including pandemic-induced physical and social constraints on servicescape in the form of crowding, consumer risk perception during the crisis and their impact on consumers' and employees’ behavioral changes in retail and hospitality sectors.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper critically reviewed the past and emerging servicescape and risk literature. It then examines and delineates the concepts of crowding, density and associated risk perceptions to offer an extended servicescape framework. Alongside, scales were proposed to measure the constructs and guidelines given to conduct future empirical studies.
Findings
This paper discussed the major impact on servicescape during a pandemic situation, to what extent risk is perceived during consumption and the impact of crowding and store density on employee and customer behavioral responses.
Research limitations/implications
This paper principally contributes by explicitly including specific risk dimensions and crowding and proposes the scales to measure consumers’ understanding of pandemic-induced perceptions of risk, crowding and density within servicescapes for further empirical testing. Alongside this, the identification and concretization of different types of perceived risks under COVID-19 provide critical and useful marketing implications.
Originality/value
This study identifies relevant risk dimensions, proposes crowding as an independent construct apart from servicescape physicality and proposes relevant measures for empirical verification.
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Atanu Nath, Parmita Saha and Esmail Salehi-Sangari
The purpose of this paper is to call for a scrutiny of the dualist approach to business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customer (B2C) marketing in industries driven by…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to call for a scrutiny of the dualist approach to business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customer (B2C) marketing in industries driven by consumer-generated content. It posits that individual consumer-centric factors are influential for B2B marketing as well in sectors such as the travel industry and investigates the determinants of tourists’ intention to use social media websites for travel planning.
Design/methodology/approach
Integrating constructs from IS and marketing literature, the paper proposes information quality and perceived enjoyment as antecedents of perceived usefulness, attitude and intention to use. The research model is tested using data from social media users with experience in travel planning.
Findings
Results show that perceived usefulness and information quality are stronger predictors of attitude and behavioral intention than perceived enjoyment. Enjoyment was not found to be strongly influential. Relevancy and reliability of information and its usefulness concerning travel-planning needs were found more influential.
Research limitations/implications
Data were collected from social media users, raising possible issues of representativeness.
Practical implications
The paper offers clarity regarding antecedents of downstream user behavior which can be of significant value. Demarcations in B2B and B2C perspectives blur in the context of social media, enabling more effective integration.
Originality/value
The paper brings in and validates the roles of information quality and enjoyment as influencers of behavior. Identifying the travel industry as a sector having greater likelihood of B2BC convergence, the paper extends IS adoption research to user-interactive sites in the travel-planning context, which can benefit the consumer as well as the supply side.
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Parmita Saha, Atanu Nath and Kokho (Jason) Sit
The purpose of this study is to reexamine the dimensionality and role of experience quality (EQ) to explain other related factors, namely, perceived value, satisfaction and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to reexamine the dimensionality and role of experience quality (EQ) to explain other related factors, namely, perceived value, satisfaction and behavioral intention. Using dual methodological approaches of fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) and structural equations modeling (SEM), it seeks to establish the EQ’s construct and predictive validity.
Design/methodology/approach
Grounded in cross-sectional and online research design, the present study surveyed 881 attendees of an annual music festival (Malakoff) held in Norway and subjected the quantitative data to SEM and fsQCA.
Findings
Both SEM and fsQCA confirmed the socializing and enjoyment dimensions of EQ, with good validity and reliability, as well as the functional and emotional value dimensions explaining visitors’ perceived value of attending a festival. Both statistical analyses also showed that perceived value-derived satisfaction leads to behavioral intention regarding festival visits.
Practical implications
This study provides numerous valuable consequences for festival organizers, or marketers that can aid in developing effective strategies to measure visitors’ perceived quality of experience and numerous practical implications for festival organizers or marketers can help in developing effective strategies to measure visitors’ perceived quality of experience and then increase value perceptions, satisfaction and behavioral intentions toward attending festivals.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is among the first to adopt a dual-dimensional framework to measure EQ in festivals and establish its utility with two statistical approaches (SEM and fsQCA). It also shows the utility of perceived value, initially developed for adventure tourists, to study visitors’ experience with festivals.
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Parmita Saha, Atanu K. Nath and Esmail Salehi‐Sangari
Despite the growth in adoption of technology by governments, the assessment of quality in electronically delivered public services has been relatively lacking. Past researches on…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite the growth in adoption of technology by governments, the assessment of quality in electronically delivered public services has been relatively lacking. Past researches on information systems have identified information and service quality, system use, playfulness, and system design quality as critical factors of successful service delivery in e‐commerce. The purpose of this paper is to empirically test the applicability of system and information quality criteria in evaluating government e‐services websites. The main research problem identified in this study was “what are the system and information quality characteristics of government service delivery websites?”
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a survey of 97 Municipalities from all the 21 regions of Sweden, the authors examine the presence of system quality features, specifically functionality, navigation, and accessibility; and measures of information quality in government websites. A systematic random sampling was chosen as the suitable approach; 290 municipalities are organized in 21 counties and we have chosen every 3rd number of municipalities from the list. An online survey was conducted, with 408 valid responses taken. A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted for system and information quality.
Findings
Results indicate that accessibility and the navigation facility are important in determining a citizen's perceived system quality. Information preciseness, timeliness, and sufficiency were found to be key measures of information quality in government e‐services. Furthermore, an important finding from this research is that theories from information systems (IS), e‐commerce, and marketing were found to be applicable in assessing government e‐tax services within the broader area of government‐to‐citizen (G2C) service delivery systems. In addition, a quantitative study was conducted among citizens to determine system and information quality characteristics.
Originality/value
The results presented in this paper can help the authorities to identify key quality criteria for e‐tax services that are valued by citizens and consequently improve service levels. Taking the context into consideration, additional variables are incorporated from literature that spans several disciplines (IS, e‐commerce, and marketing), and some re‐specifications are made to identify system and information quality criteria in the context of an e‐tax filing service, which was the main theoretical contribution of this study.