Introduction
In order to facilitate a proper understanding of the research project it is essential to clarify the main elements related to the conceptual frame of reference to be used in this research. The purpose of this chapter is to give a clear definition of the three main concepts: service quality, consumer satisfaction and loyalty. A thorough search of the previous literature will be made to examine the main factors or elements that can identify these concepts. Then the links between these concepts will be clarified. Therefore, different issues will be covered in this chapter such as the classifications of quality definitions, a review of quality management and the main dimensions of service quality, a description of the role of employees in service organisations, the main definitions of consumer satisfaction, different schools of thought or approacheso f both the disconfirmation paradigm and gap model, and finally, the concept of passenger loyalty. Both attitudinal and behavioural measureso f loyalty will be reviewed to suggesta battery that can be used to measure consumer loyalty. 2-2 Service Quality The service sector is by nature very heterogeneous and incorporates very different operations (Silvestro et al. 1992). Service quality and services marketing are increasingly important topics for marketers because of the world transition to a service economy, heightened global competition and a growing awareness that services are different. Service quality is also more frequently recognised as a viable marketing strategy for firms to achieve service differentiation and consumer satisfaction (Levitt 1981, Parasuraman et al. 1985). To understand the concept of service quality we must first define a service. Table (2-1) summarises different exampleso f "service" definitions.