Instrument development
The survey questionnaire for this study was composed of four parts. The first
three parts contained three constructs related to customer restaurant experience:
interaction orientation, customer satisfaction and behavioral intentions. To measure
the interaction orientation, this work adapted Ramani and Kumar’s (2008) multi-item
scales. In addition, when we asked customers to answer the questionnaire, certain
interaction orientation items needed to be modified to fit the specific setting and customer
perceptions. Interaction orientation was measured with four dimensions (the customer
concept, interaction response capacity, customer empowerment, and customer value
management) using a five-point scale (from 1 – strongly disagree to 5 – strongly agree)
and based on the question “how much do you agree or disagree with the following
statements?” Overall, customer satisfaction with the restaurant experience was
measured by three items based on Oliver (1997) and Namkung and Jang (2009).
Respondent behavioral intentions, such as willingness to return, intention to recommend,
and intention to say positive things, were also measured on the same five-point scale
based on Zeithaml et al. (1996) and Namkung and Jang (2009). The measurement items
used for this study are presented in the Appendix. Part four of the questionnaire gathered
demographic data about the respondents (e.g. age, gender, education, marital status,
employment, and monthly income) and dining-out related behaviors (e.g. the main reason
for dining-out and dining companion(s)).