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Smart city services (SCS) in contrast with other technology-based services, demand significant interaction and collaboration between the users and the service providers. This study examines the SCS delivery-channel characteristics and the users' personal (behavioral and demographic) characteristics that influence their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the services, as well as their intention to adopt (i.e. continue using) the SCS-delivery channels.

A quantitative study using a structured questionnaire was conducted for this paper. The data-collection method was administered by emailing the survey to a list of 2,350 city/urban residents who are members of the two largest universities in the greater Dubai metropolis. A total of 600 completed responses (26 percent) were received back, while 580 useable responses (25 percent) were analyzed for this paper.

Our initial findings suggest that contrary to popular belief, it is not only SCS channel factors that influence user satisfaction and continuance intention. SCS users' personal characteristics (such as their user innovativeness and control-seeking behavior) are also pivotal in determining their satisfaction and intention to continue or not continue using the SCS-delivery channels.

The paper argues that both SCS channel factors and SCS users' personal characteristics jointly influence the users' experience of the services and therefore jointly determine their satisfaction with the service as well as their SCS usage continuance intention. The result of our research gives important insights into users' behaviors toward the emerging SCS channels in general, and it will be of great value to architects and designers of Smart City technologies around the world.

The paper argues that both SCS channel factors and SCS users' personal (behavioral and demographic) characteristics jointly influence the users' trials of the services, and therefore jointly determine their satisfaction with the service as well as their SCS usage continuance intention. The result of our research gives important insights into users' behavioral intentions toward the emerging SCS channels in general; and it will be of great value to architects and designers of Smart City technologies around the world.

This paper is one of the first few studies focused on investigating the antecedents of SCS usage behaviors in the Middle Eastern region.

Despite evidence largely confirming gender-based differences in service quality perceptions in healthcare, little research has considered patients’ expectations. This study aims to examine the gender-based differences in both the affective and cognitive components of customers’ service quality expectations.

Data were collected through random sampling from three outpatient hospitals in the UAE. Hypothesized relationships between the cognitive and affective components (moderated by gender) were tested by means of CFA and ANOVA.

The results indicate that the differences between male and female expectations of overall service quality as a singular construct were not statistically significant, except for the empathy dimension. However, when measured as affective and cognitive, the results confirm that significant differences do exist between male and female patients.

The research was limited to the UAE. However, identifying gender differences in patients’ expectations would enable healthcare providers to engage and manage patients’ expectations.

This paper provides theoretical and practical implications on how the male and female are different in the cognitive and affective components of service quality expectations.

The purpose of this paper is to study the role of slack (both moderating and mediating) to stimulate the relationship between total quality management (TQM) factors and innovation outcomes relative to gaining competitive industry advantages.

The research methodology includes a multi-item scale questionnaire completed in three waves between 2016 and 2017, and later analysed in 2018. A final response rate of 29.5 per cent was obtained, representing 190 organisations from both manufacturing and service industries in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used to test the multi-collinearity, moderation and mediation analysis.

Analysis confirmed that factors such as continuous improvement (CI), human resource management (HRM) and information measurement (IM) were positively linked to innovation. However, when slack was introduced as a moderator, innovation outcomes were stimulated through HRM and IM. The results indicate that slack acts as a full mediator for management leadership but only partially mediates supplier quality, IM, CI, HRM and process management.

In terms of geographical coverage, research was limited to the UAE. Organisations striving for excellence through innovation may benefit from the outcomes, as they help in understanding the relationship between TQM and innovation moderated and/or mediated by slack. This could also lead businesses to develop new strategies that harmonise TQM policies with “rationale” slack policies, thus, promoting innovation.

This study is the first to examine the use of slack to stimulate the relationship between TQM factors and innovation outcomes. Using slack as a mediator can help in understanding when TQM might influence innovation, while slack as a moderator could invert the relationship between the two.