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The purpose of this paper is to present an evaluation of a programme of training and support provided to staff, which aimed to encourage supported communication environments for people with learning disabilities.

Training, monitoring and support for communication, specifically augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) strategies, was provided by speech and language therapy staff to two residential services over 46 weeks. Staff and service user communications were observed pre- and post-intervention.

In one provision there was an increase in service user initiations and the use of some AAC strategies by support staff. In the other provision there was no change in service user initiations and a decrease in the range of AAC strategies used. It appears that some forms for AAC remain challenging for staff to implement.

This evaluation explores ways of using specialist support services to improve communication environments for people with learning difficulties. Possible reasons for differences in the outcome of the intervention are discussed. Future research into the types of communication interactions experienced by people with learning disabilities across the range of communication styles may be useful so that support staff can be better helped to provide sustained and enriched communication environments.

The authors explore neuro-enhanced reality (NeR) as a novel approach for enhancing service communication between customers, frontline employees, and service organizations that extends beyond current state-of-the-art approaches based on augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies.

The authors first take stock of research on reality-enhanced service communication with AR and VR, then complement these insights with emerging neuroscientific research to conceptualize how NeR enables innovative forms of service communication. On this basis, the authors develop a research agenda to guide the future study and managerial exploitation of NeR.

AR and VR already offer unique affordances for digital-to-physical communication, but these can be extended with NeR. Specifically, NeR supports neuro-to-digital and digital-to-neuro communication based on neuroimaging (e.g. controlling digital content through thought) and neurostimulation (e.g. eliciting brain responses based on digital content). This provides a basis for outlining possible applications of NeR across service settings.

The authors advance knowledge on reality-enhanced service communication with AR and VR, whilst also demonstrating how neuroscientific research can be extended from understanding brain activity to generating novel service interactions.

Word‐of‐mouth communication (WOM) is a dominant force in the marketplace for services. However, the current body of research provides little insight into the nature of WOM in the service marketplace. Reports the results of a content‐analytic study that provides insight into WOM’s content and the catalysts by which it is stimulated. The goal was to capture a series of “grounded events” from which broader patterns could be discerned. These grounded events were actual incidents of WOM as described by the recipients of a communication. Three content categories and ten catalyst categories are identified. Implications for managers are addressed.

The purpose of this paper is to describe specific features of a Victorian (Australia) state-wide hub and spoke model of speech pathology provision established for adults with complex communication needs (CCN). Two case studies highlighting successful examples of services developed to enhance community inclusion will be described and the challenges discussed.

The route to community inclusion is described through a case study illustration of one communication accessible community site and one disability service study. The disability service research involved focus groups, survey and interview data and demonstrated the efficacy and sustainability of a support worker training model.

Sustainable change in the community and in disability services can occur through partnerships, training, and long-term commitment. Support workers who can facilitate interactions for people who have cognitive and communicative disabilities are an essential component of building the capacity of communities to include people with CCN. Collaboration between community members, specialised supports and people with disabilities enhances active community participation.

This innovative, state-wide model has the capacity to be replicated elsewhere. On-going speech pathology services are integral to support adults with CCN providing both short-term individualised services, sustainable staff training and community engagement.

This article reports the outcomes of a study on communication support, commissioned to develop a borough‐wide strategy in 2003 by the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.The research stems from a recognition of communication as a key to successful delivery of public services and enhancement of a multicultural community.The focus is on ‘communication’ (rather than ‘language’), since it captures issues beyond the exchange of information through words: interpersonal interactions and relationships, techniques and modes of organising information exchange. Language is a key component within the broad ambit of communication mechanism and skills. Hence interpretation and translation are perceived as models of communications support alongside advocacy, integrated team, multilingual professional team, family/friends and minors, supported language, symbols and signs, and Plain English.While engaging in the debate and highlighting some of the broader issues concerning communication support services, the focus is on the following main issues:• policy frameworks and guiding principles in communication support• methods and techniques for needs assessment, monitoring and evaluation of communication support• communication support provision in Tower Hamlets including quantifying need, actual state of provision and users' perceptions.Probably among the first of its kind, the strategy draws on existing knowledge and good practice to develop a common framework for public services in Tower Hamlets. It is believed that it will serve a pioneering role in co‐ordinated existing and developing coherent approaches to communication support.

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the motivation for the 1999 paper “The impact of communication effectiveness and service quality on relationship commitment in consumer, professional services”. In doing so, it is argued that today, the importance and relevance of effective interpersonal communications to managing client relationship have never been greater. Further, this paper updates developments in this area, and importantly, offers directions for future research.

This paper reflects on the motivation and rationale of the original paper and brings to bear relevant developments in the services marketing literature in the past 15-20 years.

As the professional services sector continues to grow in all economies, the credence properties and asymmetrical nature of information flow between provider and client means that the pivotal role of effective interpersonal communications in developing and nurturing client relations continues to grow in importance. Subsequent research has examined communications style; the impact of communications in a business-to-business professional services context and linked it to client psychological comfort, co-production and value co-creation, client engagement, client experience management and empowerment.

For professional service practitioners, the findings serve as a reminder that clients, especially first-time clients, have difficulty in evaluating the outcome quality and value-for-fee paid even after purchase and consumption of the service. Hence, it serves as a reminder that interpersonal communication has a pivotal role to play in influencing client perceptions of both outcome (“what” was produced) and process quality (“how” it was produced), that is their total experience.

The original paper was cited numerous times and generated broader thinking on the role of effective interpersonal communications in a number of areas of services marketing.

Based on stimulus-organism-response theory, this study aims to explore how digital service communication strategies affected customers’ e-service agent use intentions through perceived warmth and competence.

A 2 × 2 scenario-based experiment was conducted to test the proposed relationships.

Findings indicated when a high-authority conversation party was engaged in digital service communications, customers showed higher e-service agent use intentions through perceived warmth and competence in an emoji-presence conversation style.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to explore the effects of digital service communication strategies on customers’ internal and behavioral responses.

基于刺激-有机体-反应理论, 本研究探讨了数字服务沟通策略如何通过感知亲切和感知能力的方式影响了顾客对电子服务代理的使用意愿。

本研究进行了一项基于2x2情境的实验, 以测试所提出的关系。

研究结果表明, 当高权威的对话方参与数字服务沟通时, 顾客在表情存在的对话风格中通过亲切和能力的认知表现出更高的电子服务代理使用意愿。

本研究调查了对话方和对话方式作为数字服务沟通策略在顾客-数字服务互动中的影响。

本研究是第一个探讨数字服务沟通策略对顾客内部和行为反应影响的研究。

This study aims to distinguish between service arguments and communication arguments within a home-sharing review and to investigate their roles in consumer purchase decision-making.

Based on the setting of Airbnb, a 3 (service argument valence: positive, neutral, and negative) × 3 (communication argument valence: positive, neutral, and negative) online experiment was conducted. Data collected from 379 participants were used to test the hypotheses.

The three main determinants of purchase intention: perceived host service quality, perceived facility service quality, and perceived social value, are affected by both service arguments and communication arguments. Service arguments positively influence perceived host service quality and perceived facility service quality, while communication arguments contribute significantly to perceived host service quality and perceived social value. However, perceived facility service quality is affected by the combination of service arguments and communication arguments rather than by the service arguments only, because service argument trustworthiness, a factor influencing the effect of service arguments, varies across the combination of two types of arguments.

This research helps home-sharing platform managers to understand how to facilitate transaction success through displaying different review arguments needed by consumers. Additionally, the dual role of communication arguments emphasizes a necessity for hosts to encourage positive communication arguments and provide additional cues on the facility service quality.

The service arguments and communication arguments in home-sharing reviews are distinguished, and their distinct roles in consumers' purchase intention have been uncovered.

Transformative value is a central tenet of transformative service research (TSR) because it affects individual and community well-being, quality of life and sustainability. Although transformative value plays a significant role in well-being, the literature suffers from a lack of sound interdisciplinary conceptual frameworks that delineate how transformative value is created in services throughout the service consumption process. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the nature and role of service communications during the various stages of the service consumption process to enable the creation of transformative value for people and the environment.

To achieve the above goal, the authors integrate agenda-setting theory (media theory) combined with framing and relational dialectics (communication theories) as well as TSR.

In line with the objectives of the study, the authors propose an integrative framework named Transformative Value Creation via Service Communications (TVCSC) that explains how firms set their transformative corporate agendas through their dialectics with consumers, society and media. This transformative agenda is reflected in the marketing mix of their services (7Ps) as communicated with various means, physically and digitally (sales/frontline personnel, advertising, CSR, social media and website). Recommendations for a transformative marketing mix are provided. Furthermore, TVCSC illustrates how value is co-created in all customer–firm interactions via relationship dialectics throughout the service consumption process to result in transformative value outcomes.

The proposed framework identifies several research gaps and provides useful future research directions.

This is the first comprehensive framework that explains how transformative value is created through the various communications in services and is the outcome of value co-creation interactions of the service consumption process.

This paper aims to examine communication channels for in‐home service provision. In particular, it aims to focus on the joint effect of two converging trends: the increase of in‐home services involving high degrees of customer participation;and the extension of the number of channels that service firms use to communicate with customers. It seeks to assess which benefits customers desire of communication channels across in‐home service production formats and how these benefit desires determine their communication channel consideration for in‐home services.

Based on a literature review a conceptual framework was constructed. Using the association pattern technique (APT), a survey of 383 customers of a Dutch energy company was carried out. The APT enabled the authors to quantify the relationship between participative in‐home service provision situations, desired communication channel benefits, and communication channel consideration.

Results show that customers focus more strongly on functionally‐ and economically‐oriented communication channel benefits in high customer participation service formats. In contrast, socially‐oriented communication channel benefits seem more appropriate when low customer participation in the provision of in‐home services is involved. The match between benefits desired by the customer and benefits provided by a communication channel is identified as a central mechanism behind communication channel consideration for in‐home services. Furthermore, evidence is found for customer heterogeneity in desired communication channel benefits and channel consideration, based on age, education, and past channel usage.

This paper contributes to the multichannel knowledge base by hypothesizing and demonstrating how specific benefit desires arise from allowing/requiring customers to participate in in‐home service provision. The study also provides valuable insight into the mechanism behind communication channel consideration by customers during in‐home service provision.