he major objective of this dissertation is to explore the relationship between employee behavior/non-behavior and customer satisfaction in quick service restaurants. Four behavioral components (employee reliability, employee responsiveness, employee assurance, and employee empathy) and one non-behavioral component ( the physical environment) are identified. Additionally, the role attribution plays as a mediating variable between service quality and customer satisfaction is examined.
he survey questionnaire included the modified SERVQUAL instrument (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1991) in addition to questions about attribution and satisfaction . A convenience sample of one hundred and twenty five participants was used to collect data by frequenting selected quick service restaurants. The results identified significant positive correlations between three of the five predictor variables (employee responsiveness, employee assurance, and the physical environment) with at least three of the four identified dimensions of customer satisfaction ( satisfaction with the food, satisfaction with the task/ service , satisfaction with the price, and overall satisfaction ).
Results were inconclusive in defining causal attribution as a mediator between service quality and customer satisfaction in cases of negative disconfirmation. Participants who were dissatisfied with the overall service quality did not demonstrate a higher level of satisfaction by assigning blame for the service failure.
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