Effect of demographic characteristics on service quality perception: Evidence from occupiers of shopping complex in Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract

Purpose

Although a substantial amount of research on the effect of demographics on service quality perception can be found in the extant literature, practitioners and researchers in the built environment, especially property managers, know little or nothing about the influence of demographic characteristics on service quality in Nigeria. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of demographic variables of the occupiers of shopping complexes on the perception of service quality of property managers.

Design/methodology/approach

Primary data were used for the study through questionnaire administration. Ibadan was stratified into five axes using existing major roads where shopping complexes were highly concentrated. Based on the Oyo State Ministry of Land, Housing and Survey (2017) database, there were 33, 65, 48, 64 and 66 shopping complexes on each identified major road. A systematic sampling technique was adopted to select 57 (20 per cent) out of 276 shopping complexes and 192 (10 per cent) out of 1,919 occupiers of the shopping complexes in the study area. In total, 157 occupiers responded to the questionnaire, and data were analysed using mean, independent t-test, and one-way ANOVA.

Findings

The study found that the gender and education of the occupiers significantly influenced service quality perception, whereas the age of the respondents was insignificant. Specifically, female occupiers rated the service quality of property managers better than their male counterparts. Through η², the effect size of gender on service quality perception was small (17 per cent) and effect size on the level education of the occupiers was also small (13 per cent). The age of occupiers did not significantly influence service quality perception. It is expected that the findings of this study will help property managers to understand the effect of various demographic variables on service quality perception for enhanced property management practice.

Practical implications

The findings suggested that the property managers of shopping complex should structure their services to best accommodate occupiers’ demographics. Moreover, property managers can use the findings to guide demographic-driven marketing strategy to target and attract more tenants efficiently.

Originality/value

The study is one of the few studies that examined the effect of the demographic characteristics of occupiers on service quality perception that could enhance given individualised attention to occupiers.

Citation

Ojekalu, S.O., Ojo, O., Oladokun, T.T. and Olabisi, S.A. (2019), "Effect of demographic characteristics on service quality perception: Evidence from occupiers of shopping complex in Ibadan, Nigeria", Property Management, Vol. 37 No. 3, pp. 418-431. https://doi.org/10.1108/PM-07-2018-0040