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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 March 2024

Hoang Viet Nguyen, Tuan Duong Vu, Muhammad Saleem and Asif Yaseen

Improving service quality, student satisfaction and student loyalty is important to higher education institutions’ sustainable growth. The objectives of this study are a twofold…

Abstract

Purpose

Improving service quality, student satisfaction and student loyalty is important to higher education institutions’ sustainable growth. The objectives of this study are a twofold: first, the study seeks to determine the dimensions of higher education service quality with a specific focus on Vietnam. Second, it examines how the service quality dimensions impact student satisfaction and student loyalty, with the moderating role of the university image.

Design/methodology/approach

This study followed a rigorous procedure, including interviews, a survey, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and reliability analysis to identify higher education service quality dimensions and their measures. After that, using the data obtained from 1,550 university students in Vietnam, confirmatory factor analysis was used to validate the identified dimensions and structural equation modeling was used to test a proposed model explaining the outcomes of higher education service quality.

Findings

The findings reveal five dimensions of higher education service quality: academic aspect, nonacademic aspect, programming issues, facilities and industry interaction. Most of these factors have a positive influence on student satisfaction. In addition, the university image moderates the positive relationship between student satisfaction and student loyalty.

Practical implications

This study’s findings highlight the complexity of service quality in the higher education context and encourage higher education institutions to improve their service quality in image to enhance student satisfaction and loyalty.

Originality/value

This study suggests a unique measure of higher education service quality dimensions and provides fresh insights into how they impact student satisfaction and loyalty in Vietnam.

Article
Publication date: 3 October 2023

Shrouk Abdelnaeim, Noha El-Bassiouny and Christian Hauser

This study aims at exploring the role of higher education service quality in affecting students' psychological well-being through the lens of the sustainable development goals…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims at exploring the role of higher education service quality in affecting students' psychological well-being through the lens of the sustainable development goals. This purpose is achieved through investigating the effects of functional and technical service quality dimensions on six psychological well-being dimensions, namely, environmental mastery, autonomy, self-acceptance, positive relationships with others, personal growth and purpose in life.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a survey, data were collected from 453 Egyptian students. The hypotheses are tested using structural equation modeling via SmartPLS 4. The study's limitations are the inability to use probability sampling techniques and length of the survey that led to low response rates.

Findings

The results show that functional service quality is positively associated with students' autonomy, positive relationships with others and self-acceptance, while functional service was found insignificant in affecting environmental mastery or self-acceptance. Further, positive results are found in the relationship between technical service quality and students' environmental mastery and self-acceptance. On the other hand, a negative relationship is detected between technical service quality and students' personal growth. Lastly, technical service quality is found to be insignificant in affecting students' autonomy or personal relationships with others.

Originality/value

This study responds to calls for more studies investigating how service quality can shape and affect customer well-being. Furthermore, this is the first study to investigate the different roles played by functional and technical service quality in affecting six psychological well-being dimensions of higher education students. Drawing on a sample of 453 Egyptian students, this study provides a novel contribution about the Egyptian higher education context, which is both understudied in the service literature and the well-being literature.

Details

Management & Sustainability: An Arab Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2752-9819

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 April 2024

Zelalem Zekarias Oliso, Demoze Degefa Alemu and Jonathan David Jansen

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of educational service quality (ESQ) on student academic performance via the mediating role of student satisfaction.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of educational service quality (ESQ) on student academic performance via the mediating role of student satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

To serve the study’s purpose, the study adopted a quantitative research approach. Three public universities representing 30% of the ten public universities located in the Southern part of Ethiopia participated in the study. Questionnaires were the main tools for gathering data. The adapted questionnaire, consisting of 116 items was administered to 400 randomly selected regular undergraduate graduating class students. The quantitative data collected via questionnaire were analyzed using descriptive and advanced inferential statistics.

Findings

The quantitative findings revealed that there is a statistically positive association between overall education service quality and students’ satisfaction (r = 0.712). The findings proved that the facets of education service quality accounted for 71.2% of the variations in students’ satisfaction in the universities. The quantitative findings further showed that the education service quality has a statistically indirect effect on students’ academic performance via the mediating role of students’ satisfaction (test statistic = 31.5311573, std. error = 0.00122536 and p-value = 0). The findings further confirmed that the overall education service quality accounted for 12.7% of the variations in students’ academic performance via student satisfaction in the universities.

Research limitations/implications

The present study was conducted in public universities located in the Southern part of Ethiopia. The findings and conclusions of the study may not be generalizable to all Ethiopian public universities. Future researchers and scholars should conduct their study in all Ethiopian public universities by taking a representative sample from the Ethiopian public universities.

Practical implications

The present finding suggests that an improvement in ESQ leads to students’ satisfaction and that could contribute to boosting their academic performance. The findings of the present may help the practitioners who measure higher education service quality by providing how the provision of ESQ indirectly influences the student’s academic performance in the universities.

Social implications

The findings of this study confirmed that the facets of ESQ are associated with students’ satisfaction and this, in turn, indirectly influences their academic performance. Student academic performance is one of the key indicators of quality education, and it has its influences on the social, political and economic development of a country. The findings of the present research provide valuable insights to higher education management bodies, higher quality assurance agencies and the Federal Ministry of Education to learn the indirect effect of ESQ on students’ academic performance and take necessary measures to improve the Ethiopian higher education quality.

Originality/value

The contributions of ESQ in the higher education sector are enormous. However, the existing service quality literature in higher education mainly focuses on the interrelation among service quality, student satisfaction, loyalty and behavioral intentions. Little is known about the indirect influence of ESQ on student academic performance (one of the key indicators of quality education), principally in Ethiopian higher education, the place of current research. The present study showed the indirect impact of ESQ on student academic performance in Ethiopian public universities. The study, therefore, suggests that university management bodies should actively monitor the quality of their services and commit themselves to boosting students’ learning outcomes.

Details

Journal of International Education in Business, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-469X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 April 2018

Sumardi Fernandes and Adji Achmad Rinaldo Adji Achmad Rinaldo

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationship between management process alignment, service quality, organizational commitment and high educational performance.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationship between management process alignment, service quality, organizational commitment and high educational performance.

Design/methodology/approach

The population of this study was all higher education institutions which provide undergraduate program and operate in Makassar. This study included a total sample of 312 respondents.

Findings

There is significant effects of mediation variables of service quality (M1) and organizational commitment (M2) on the relationship between management process alignment (X) and high educational performance (Y) in Makassar, Indonesia.

Research limitations/implications

For this study, cross-sectional data are used considering only one point of time due to which it is harder to see developments. There is a diversity of the characteristics of respondents, especially in terms of age, education, and status, so there is a possibility of a different perception of the content of the questionnaire that affected the selected answer.

Originality/value

This study considered the significant effects of mediation variables of service quality (M1) and organizational commitment on the relationship between management process alignment (X) and high educational performance. Previously, no research has been undertaken to examine the relationship between the location of the study and higher education institutions in the context of Makassar, Indonesia.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 31 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 July 2010

Parves Sultan and Ho Yin Wong

The purpose of this paper is to explore the critical research issues in terms of service quality in higher education.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the critical research issues in terms of service quality in higher education.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper critically examines a number of leading studies in satisfaction, service quality, and higher education.

Findings

The paper finds five critical research agenda in the field of service quality in higher education sector.

Research limitations/implications

The paper shows the research gaps of service quality in higher education through a review of literature. Future research should empirically address those gaps.

Practical implications

The growth of service quality literature started with commercial enterprises. Later, it is expanded in the management and marketing of higher education sector. Measuring and modeling service quality in higher education is new. The paper shows the nature and future directions of service quality research in higher education.

Originality/value

The research issues developed for this paper are relevant to antecedents, dimensions and consequences of service quality in the context of higher education.

Details

International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences, vol. 2 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-669X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 March 2011

N. Senthilkumar and A. Arulraj

The purpose of this paper is to develop a new model, namely service quality measurement in higher education in India (SQM‐HEI) for the measurement of service quality in higher

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a new model, namely service quality measurement in higher education in India (SQM‐HEI) for the measurement of service quality in higher educational institutions.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected by means of a structured questionnaire comprising six sections. Section A consists of ten questions pertaining to teaching methodology (TM). Sections B consists of five questions pertaining to environmental change in study factor (ECSF). Section C consists of eight questions relating to disciplinary measures taken by the institutions. Section D consists of five questions related to the placement‐related activities and in part E two questions provide an overall rating of the service quality, satisfaction level. Finally, in part F 13 questions pertaining to student respondent's demographic profile information were given. All the items in Sections A‐E were presented as statements on the questionnaire, with the same rating scale used throughout, and measured on a seven‐point, Likert‐type. In addition to the main scale addressing individual items, respondents were asked in Section E to provide an overall rating of the service quality, satisfaction level. For conducting an empirical study, data were collected from final‐year students of higher educational institutions across Tamil Nadu. The sampling procedure used for the study was stratified random sampling. The stratification has been done based on the region Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirappalli, and nature of institution, government university, government college, aided college, private university and self‐financing college. While selecting the institutions from each category, non‐probabilistic convenience and judgmental sampling technique were used. However, within such institutions, the respondents were selected by stratified random sampling.

Findings

The SQM‐HEI‐mediated model argued that the placement is the better interactions of the quality of education in India. The model reveals that the quality of education is based on the best faculty (TM), the excellent physical resources (ECSF), a wide range of disciplines (DA) which paved the diverse student body and to improve the employability of the graduates (placement as mediating factor) coming out of the higher educational institutions in India. The above model proves that the placement is the mediated factor for various dimensions of quality education. SQM‐HEI model would help in identify three service areas to be focused in the higher educational institutions for improving the quality of . These three dimensions of quality correlated between the sub‐dimension variables and it is very necessary for improving the quality of higher education in India. The educationist says that, education is a change of behavior of students. Hence, the higher educational institutions should come forward to adapt the sub‐dimensions of quality variables to enhance the outcome of education.

Originality/value

The model described in this paper will assist academic institutions when mapping the level of service quality and thereby enhance the same.

Details

Journal of Modelling in Management, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5664

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 September 2019

Viraiyan Teeroovengadum, Robin Nunkoo, Christian Gronroos, T.J. Kamalanabhan and Ashley Keshwar Seebaluck

The purpose of this study is to validate the higher education service quality (HESQUAL) scale using a confirmatory approach and test an improved structural model that predicts…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to validate the higher education service quality (HESQUAL) scale using a confirmatory approach and test an improved structural model that predicts student loyalty from image, perceived value, satisfaction and service quality. In addition to validating the HESQUAL scale using a confirmatory approach, two other main limitations in the extant literature are addressed.

Design/methodology/approach

The model is tested using data collected from 501 students enrolled in different higher education institutions in Mauritius. A two-stage approach to structural equation modeling is used whereby the measurement model is first tested using confirmatory factor analysis and followed by the assessment of the structural model.

Findings

Importantly, results indicate that student satisfaction is influenced by technical service quality, image and perceived value, but not by functional service quality. Both dimensions of service quality however are significant predictors of image and perceived value. The study uses a comprehensive measure of service quality and demonstrates that it is worthwhile to consider functional service quality as higher-order model and clearly distinguish between functional and technical quality, as both the technical and functional aspects play an important role in shaping students’ perceptions and behaviors.

Originality/value

First, in the existing literature, service quality has not been considered as a second-order factor model in structural models of student satisfaction and loyalty, thus lacking either precision or parsimony. Second, the transformative quality aspect of higher education has been largely neglected in previous research testing such predictive models. The model delineates service quality into the functional and transformative (technical) aspects and treats functional service quality as a second-order factor comprising nine sub-dimensions.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 27 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 July 2020

María del Carmen Arrieta and Beatrice Avolio

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that impact the quality of the education service in a Peruvian private university, based on the perception of students and…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that impact the quality of the education service in a Peruvian private university, based on the perception of students and graduates.

Design/methodology/approach

The sample consisted of 29 students and 20 graduates from the Administration and Finance Program of a Peruvian private university. The data was collected through focus groups and in-depth interviews based on the students’ and graduates’ perspectives of their experiences. The collected data was subjected to content analysis.

Findings

The study identified ten factors or the underlying dimensions that drive the quality of the education service provided by a Peruvian private university. The factors are professors, lecturers, curriculum, extracurricular activities, position and recognition of the university, infrastructure, library, admission, adequate communication mechanisms with faculty and authorities and services. The main quality indicators of the education service were the professors and curriculum planning. As the students were using the education service, they were more focused on “how” they received the service, rather than “what” services they received, i.e. they evaluated the quality of the process. In contrast, graduates gave more importance to functional service quality. They evaluated the quality of “what they received,” i.e. the result.

Research limitations/implications

The study has several limitations. First, the qualitative approach does not allow generalizing data. The sample size was relatively small and only involved one Peruvian private university. The study was based on the respondent’s perceptions, which were considered accurate.

Practical implications

Based on the study findings, the authors made recommendations to meet the needs of the students and graduates. These findings can help universities to develop strategies that improve educational quality and to allocate resources more effectively. Further research could focus on factors that impact service quality in higher education at different stages of the student lifecycle, namely, applicants (service expectations), students (quality of the process) and graduates (results). The authors suggest validating these results quantitatively.

Originality/value

The study proposes a framework of the higher education service quality based on the experiences of students and graduates that can be used by higher education institutions to continue improving educational quality. The originality of the study lies in the perspective on service quality according to the experiences of students and graduates. Also, this study provides empirical evidence on service quality research in Latin American higher education institutions.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 28 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 May 2016

Subrahmanyam Annamdevula and Raja Shekhar Bellamkonda

This paper attempts to develop and validate a service quality instrument called HiEduQual to measure the perceived service quality of students in higher education institutions…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper attempts to develop and validate a service quality instrument called HiEduQual to measure the perceived service quality of students in higher education institutions. This paper aims to propose a structural model by examining the theoretical and empirical evidences on the relationships between students’ perceived service quality (SPSQ), students’ satisfaction (SSt), students’ loyalty (SL) and students’ motivation (SM).

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses survey research design to gather data regarding attitudes of students about quality of service, satisfaction, motivation and loyalty from seven public universities in India and tests the relationships between these variables using structural equation modeling.

Findings

The paper identifies a model with six-structured dimensions containing 23 items for HiEduQual. It proved the direct positive effect of the perceived service quality of students on satisfaction, loyalty and motivation. The paper also supports the partial and complete mediation role of students’ satisfaction between perceived service quality of students, their loyalty and motivation toward services being provided by the universities. The competing Model 1 (M1) with partial mediation role of students’ satisfaction between students’ perceived service quality, loyalty and motivation was proved as the best among the alternative models.

Research limitations/implications

The paper developed and tested a new measurement instrument that covers all the service aspects experienced by the student as primary customer in higher education. Further studies can also measure service quality of the universities in the perspective of other key stakeholders. The authors would recommend studying other possible antecedents which would have influence on satisfaction motivation and loyalty.

Practical implications

The findings suggested that it would be worthwhile for university leaders to make proper allocation of resources, to provide better educational services including support services and facilities. It is believed that this paper has a significant competence for engendering more precise applications related to quality of services, especially concerning students’ satisfaction, loyalty and motivation.

Social implications

The changing nature and need of higher education services and increase in competitive intensity necessitates higher performance levels in the Indian higher education (universities). These can only be achieved through a better understanding of the expectations of students and the importance placed by them on aspects such as teaching, administrative services, academic facilities, campus infrastructure, support services and internationalization. The paper identified that student perceived service quality is a key antecedent to student satisfaction, motivation and loyalty, which conveys that service quality is an important construct.

Originality/value

Previous studies have primarily focused on the relationship between service quality, satisfaction and loyalty. Along with the above, this paper includes students’ motivation and assesses the effect of service quality and satisfaction on motivation which was not previously used in services marketing research, especially in higher education sector. Higher education service holds some unique features like customers’ (student) cognitive participation in the service process, requirements of the students to be fulfilled by different parties and long-term continuous services. All these features require student participation. The results indicate that quality of academic and non-academic services play a vital role in motivating students to perform better in their academics.

Details

Journal of Modelling in Management, vol. 11 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5664

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 November 2021

Vangelis Tsiligiris, Anita Kéri and Jeremy Eng-Tuck Cheah

This study aims to explore the influence of the individual student profile of Hofstede’s Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Collectiveness and Long-Term Orientation on student…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore the influence of the individual student profile of Hofstede’s Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Collectiveness and Long-Term Orientation on student service quality expectations in higher education.

Design/methodology/approach

Data is collected via a survey consisting of items from a standard Hofstede and a higher education adapted SERVQUAL questionnaire. The survey sample includes 128 students who represent the entire population of a taught postgraduate course in Finance at a UK Higher Education Institution (HEI). Descriptive statistics and bivariate correlation analysis are used to describe and identify the relationship between student individual cultural values and student service quality expectations. Multiple regression analysis is applied to estimate the relationship between SERVQUAL constructs and items with respect to Hofstede’s cultural determinants.

Findings

The findings of this study suggest that individual culture can influence student service quality expectations in higher education.

Practical implications

In a context of a prospective quality management approach, there is value for HEIs to explore the individual cultural profile of their students as a way of understanding and actively managing student service quality expectations.

Originality/value

To the authors’ best knowledge, no previous study combines the SERVQUAL and Hofstede models in exploring the impact of cultural values on student service quality expectations in higher education.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 30 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

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