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Self-Service Technologies: Understanding Customer Satisfaction with Technology-Based Service Encounters

01 Jul 2000-Journal of Marketing (American Marketing Association)-Vol. 64, Iss: 3, pp 50-64
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the results of a critical incident study based on more than 800 incidents involving self-service technologies solicited from customers through a Web-based survey, and present a discussion of the resulting critical incident categories and their relationship to customer attributions, complaining behavior, word of mouth, and repeat purchase intentions.
Abstract: Self-service technologies (SSTs) are increasingly changing the way customers interact with firms to create service outcomes. Given that the emphasis in the academic literature has focused almost exclusively on the interpersonal dynamics of service encounters, there is much to be learned about customer interactions with technology-based self-service delivery options. In this research, the authors describe the results of a critical incident study based on more than 800 incidents involving SSTs solicited from customers through a Web-based survey. The authors categorize these incidents to discern the sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction with SSTs. The authors present a discussion of the resulting critical incident categories and their relationship to customer attributions, complaining behavior, word of mouth, and repeat purchase intentions, which is followed by implications for managers and researchers.

Summary (4 min read)

INTRODUCTION

  • Concerns over unstable fuel prices, environmental protection, and energy security have prompted a renewed public and private interest in improving fuel economy.
  • From a social and political perspective, the motivation stems from energy dependence and climate change considerations.
  • Dynamic ecodriving involves the use of in-vehicle devices that provide direct feedback to the driver while driving.
  • Public education through social marketing (i.e., marketing directed at promoting a social good through behavioral change) has the potential to change travel behavior to reduce GHG emissions.
  • The paper is organized into four sections.

LITERATURE REVIEW

  • Since ecodriving includes both driving and maintenance practices, there are many combinations of actions that individuals can take to improve driving efficiency.
  • It is likely that most drivers actively engage in some practices without further prompting.
  • Some of the key driving and maintenance practices listed on the EcoDrivingUSA™ website are (2): Avoid rapid starts and stops;.
  • Use the lowest weight motor oil to improve kinematic viscosity; Change air filters, as recommended by the manufacturer; Accelerate smoothly and coast to stops and parking spots;.
  • The authors focus on public education and awareness programs, with less discussion on behind-the-wheel training, feedback technologies, and fleet applications.

Europe

  • Research into the effectiveness of ecodriving education programs has been predominantly based on longitudinal driving trialsEcodriving research into education program effectiveness has been predominantly based on longitudinal driving trials.
  • A similar Belgian study showed that savings from 5 to 25% could be achieved by following Dutch ecodriving guidelines (4).
  • It initiated 41 local transport projects, resulting in 95 kilotonnes (kt) of carbon dioxide (CO2) savings (8).
  • The program owed much of its success to its extensive partnerships with public and private institutions, as well as its advertising campaign, which focused on immediate individual benefits, such as cost savings and comfort rather than the environment.

Asia-Pacific

  • Most public education programs in the Asia-Pacific are in Japan and Australia.
  • One public education website, www.ecodrive.jp, provides ecodriving tips to viewers and serves as a portal to other informational websites (11).
  • In an early effort in Australia, Syme et al. (1987) conducted a study evaluating the effects of a television campaign encouraging viewers to conserve petroleum by implementing ecodriving practices.
  • The researchers evaluated the effect of two different campaigns: one emphasized saving money and the second good citizenship.
  • In 2001, the Victorian Environmental Protection Authority and Sustainable Energy Authority Victoria developed a one-day training program on the environmental and safety implications of driving habits; however, there were no studies of its impacts (13).

North America

  • Begun in 2007, Canada’s nationwide ecodriving initiative is led by the ecoENERGY program.
  • Canada began a nationwide ecodriving initiative in 2007, which is led by the ecoENERGY program.
  • Ecodriving initiatives began more recently in the United States.
  • The Alliance has discontinued its ecodriving campaign efforts, at present, due to budgetary cuts (16).
  • This study found that the sample knew about ecodriving practices on a “moderate” level, but they did not implement their knowledge (19).

METHODOLOGY

  • The authors designed a controlled study in which respondents were divided equally into an experimental and control group.
  • Both groups then participated in a longitudinal study as described below.

Longitudinal Survey

  • The research team conducted recruitment and data collection for the longitudinal study from June to December 2010.
  • Researchers also asked attitudinal questions to capture demographics, existing vehicle ownership, and climate change views.
  • Participants did not know which group they were in nor did they know that there was another group.
  • The experimental group was then asked to visit the EcoDrivingUSA™ website during the upcoming week to introduce and provide more in-depth ecodriving information.
  • Three months later, all participants were administered the “after” survey, which asked 62 questions concerning any changes in vehicle ownership, maintenance, and driving practices.

Study Limitations

  • There were severalSeveral limitations that arose along the study’s duration.
  • The questions were tailored to explore comparative response changes, and the time between surveys was relatively long.
  • Nevertheless, driving behavior could not be verified, as respondent vehicles were not equipped with telematics equipment.
  • This study relies on respondent- stated response.
  • In addition, given some knowledge of the study purpose, self-assessment bias may have occurred in how efficiently respondents actually drive.

LONGITUDINAL SURVEY RESULTS

  • The study results are divided into three sections.
  • The first section presents the sample demographics.
  • The second describes the effectiveness of the ecodriving information through a comparison of the experimental and control group.
  • In the third section, the authors focus on specific responses of the experimental group to the ecodriving information.

Demographics

  • The survey demographics demonstrate that the control and experimental groups were broadly distributed across key characteristics.
  • The sample size was 53 for the control group, and 51 for the experimental group.
  • This population was selected so researchers, based at the university, could cost effectively implement multiple recruitment methods (i.e., email, posters, class announcements) within the limited study budget.
  • Both groups exhibited a diverse income distribution, with more than 20% of each sample earning more than $100,000 annually.
  • The race distribution of the samples exhibited a Caucasian share reflective of the state population; however, Asians were over represented, and African-Americans and Hispanics were under represented.

Before-and-After Response: Differences Between the Control and Experimental Group

  • The longitudinal survey probed respondent “self-perceived efficiency,” as well as more specific changes in driving and maintenance behavior.
  • Because the survey data were mostly ordinal in nature, the authors used non-parametric tests to evaluate the statistical significance of reported behavioral changes.
  • In the case of Figure 1, the reported highway speeds shifted downward.
  • The shift in before-and-after survey responses suggest that a subset of the experimental group receiving ecodriving information made a cognizant effort to adjust their driving in ways to improve efficiency in contrast to the control group.
  • In these three cases, the distribution of the control group responses did not change markedly.

Behavioral Changes Within the Experimental Group

  • Overall, the comparative response shift between the experimental and control group strongly suggests that providing ecodriving information through the EcodrivingUSATM website did induce the experimental group to shift behavior more than they would have otherwise.
  • It is important to emphasize that this shift reflects a distribution of effects and is driven by a subset of people who did adopt behavioral changes.
  • To explore this behavioral dynamic further, this section probes the experimental group responses to ascertain key qualities of those that adopted behavioral changes and which specific behaviors were altered.

Self-Assessment of Driving and Maintenance Changes

  • Respondents in the experimental group post-survey were asked directly whether they changed their driving behavior and maintenance practices as a result of reviewing the website.
  • Respondents were first asked whether they had made driving behavior changes.
  • Those that answered “Yes”yes to this second question were asked to identify which practices they adjusted.
  • Only seven attributed vehicle maintenance changes to the website, most of whom changed the oil and checked tire pressure more frequently.
  • Thus, the number of experimental group respondents engaged in meaningful changes in their maintenance practice was far smaller than the majority who altered some driving practices.

Ecodriving Score

  • To evaluate how respondents in the experimental group shifted as individuals, respondents were each given two “ecodriving scores”—one for the “before” survey and one for the “after” survey —based on 12 survey questions that assessed their knowledge and practice of ecodriving principles (e.g., acceleration and braking patterns, frequency of driving behavior adjustment, highway cruising speed, and vehicle aerodynamics).
  • While there is no definitive threshold, the authors defined a score of 60% as descriptive of general ecodriving practice responsiveness.
  • Respondents in Quadrant IV scored above 60% for both the before-and-after surveys.
  • Quadrant II defines those below the 60% threshold for both surveys, and the opposite quadrants show respondents that scored above the threshold in one survey and below it in the other.
  • The areas separated by shaded regions indicate relative improvement.

Demographic, Attitudinal, and Vehicular Characteristics of Improved Drivers

  • In Figure 2, the authors divide the experimental group into “improved” and “non-improved” subsamples.
  • Figure 3 presents key distributional differences between those that improved.
  • Distributions of each group’s demographics and usage of the EcoDrivingUSA™ website reveal several interesting findings.
  • With regards to respondent attitudes, improved drivers tended to have slightly higher fuel cost concerns, as well as stronger beliefs in climate change and the severity of anthropogenic contributions.
  • Interestingly, theThose in the improved subsample had newer autos than their cohorts who did not improve, with mean vehicle ages differing significantly (6.7 years vs. 11.6 years, p = 0.0020).

Website Effectiveness

  • Respondents were asked to visit the EcoDrivingUSA™ website and view key information and features that were deemed interesting, but they were not required to visit the entire website.
  • The first question sought to understand which features of the site they reviewed.
  • Responses for both the improved and not n-improved subsamples suggest that there are a number of facts about car maintenance that were unknown.
  • Other maintenance practices were also considered at levels not observed in practice, which suggests that undertaking proactive maintenance practices are among the more difficult ecodriving tasks.
  • This reinforces the conclusion that most of the improvements resulting from the ecodriving information were in the area of driving behavior versus vehicle maintenance changes.

CONCLUSION

  • This study assessed the effectiveness of education provided by the EcodrivingUSATM website between June to December 2010.
  • The reported shifts are statistically significant and evidence of improvement in some drivers is shown from multiple angles in the data.
  • It is clear, however, that not everyone modifies their behavior as a result of static ecodriving information, and some may only do so in small ways.
  • Respondents more often changed driver behaviors versus maintenance practices as a result of the ecodriving information.
  • This study suggests that static ecodriving interventions could play an important role.

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50 / Journal of Marketing, July 2000
Journal of Marketing
Vol. 64 (July 2000), 50–64
Matthew L. Meuter, Amy L. Ostrom, Robert I. Roundtree, & Mary Jo Bitner
Self-Service Technologies:
Understanding Customer
Satisfaction with Technology-Based
Service Encounters
Self-service technologies (SSTs) are increasingly changing the way customers interact with firms to create service
outcomes. Given that the emphasis in the academic literature has focused almost exclusively on the interpersonal
dynamics of service encounters, there is much to be learned about customer interactions with technology-based
self-service delivery options. In this research, the authors describe the results of a critical incident study based on
more than 800 incidents involving SSTs solicited from customers through a Web-based survey. The authors cate-
gorize these incidents to discern the sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction with SSTs. The authors present a
discussion of the resulting critical incident categories and their relationship to customer attributions, complaining
behavior, word of mouth, and repeat purchase intentions, which is followed by implications for managers and
researchers.
Matthew L. Meuter is Assistant Professor of Marketing, Villanova Univer-
sity. Amy L. Ostrom and Robert I. Roundtree are Assistant Professors of
Marketing, and Mary Jo Bitner is AT&T Professor of Services Marketing
and Management, Arizona State University. Each author contributed
equally to the manuscript. The authors thank the three anonymous JM
reviewers for their insightful comments on previous drafts of the article.
The authors also gratefully acknowledge the Center for Services Market-
ing and Management at Arizona State University for its support, as well as
Greenfield Online, a division of the Greenfield Consulting Group, West-
port, CT, for assistance in data collection.
T
oday’s fast-paced world is becoming increasingly
characterized by technology-facilitated transactions.
Growing numbers of customers interact with technol-
ogy to create service outcomes instead of interacting with a
service firm employee. Self-service technologies (SSTs) are
technological interfaces that enable customers to produce a
service independent of direct service employee involvement.
Examples of SSTs include automated teller machines
(ATMs), automated hotel checkout, banking by telephone,
and services over the Internet, such as Federal Express pack-
age tracking and online brokerage services.
Although extensive academic research has explored the
characteristics and dynamics of interpersonal interactions
between service providers and customers (Bettencourt and
Gwinner 1996; Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990; Clem-
mer and Schneider 1996; Fischer, Gainer, and Bristor 1997;
Goodwin 1996; Goodwin and Gremler 1996; Hartline and
Ferrell 1996; Rafaeli 1993), much less research has investi-
gated customer interactions with technological interfaces
(Bitner, Brown, and Meuter 2000; Dabholkar 1996). The
continuing proliferation of SSTs conveys the need for
research that extends beyond the interpersonal dynamics of
service encounters into this technology-oriented context.
This need is illustrated in many ways: For example, almost
half of all retail banking transactions are now conducted
without the assistance of a bank teller (Lawrence and Karr
1996). In addition, although some SSTs have become com-
monplace (e.g., ATMs, pay-at-the-pump terminals), more
innovative SSTs continue to be introduced. For example, the
Internet enables shoppers to purchase a wide variety of
products without having to visit a retail outlet or converse
with a service employee. In some states, users can file for
divorce or evict a tenant using an automated kiosk rather
than go through the traditional court system. Electronic self-
ordering is currently being developed by fast-food restau-
rants, and self-scanning at retail stores has been tested and is
projected to become widely available in the future (Dab-
holkar 1996; Gibson 1999; Merrill 1999).
It is increasingly evident that these technological inno-
vations and advances will continue to be a critical compo-
nent of customer–firm interactions. These technology-
based interactions are expected to become a key criterion
for long-term business success. Parasuraman (1996) lists
the growing importance of self-service as a fundamental
shift in the nature of services. Although many academic
researchers have acknowledged a need for greater under-
standing in this area (Dabholkar 1994, 1996; Fisk, Brown,
and Bitner 1993; Meuter and Bitner 1998; Schneider and
Bowen 1995), little is known about how interactions with
these technological options affect customer evaluations and
behavior. To further our understanding, we explored service
encounters involving SSTs to identify sources of satisfac-
tion and dissatisfaction. The research questions driving this
study are as follows:
•What are the sources of customer satisfaction and dissatisfac-
tion in encounters involving SSTs?

Self-Service Technologies / 51
•Are the sources of customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction
with SST encounters similar to or different from the sources
of customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction with interpersonal
encounters?
•How are satisfying and dissatisfying encounters with SSTs
related to attributions, complaining, word of mouth, and
repurchase intentions?
To investigate these questions, we combined the critical
incident technique (CIT) originally developed by Flanagan
(1954) with quantitative measures of attributions, complain-
ing behavior, word of mouth, and repurchase intentions. The
critical incident method has been used in a wide variety of
disciplines (e.g., Copas 1984; Lathan and Saari 1984; White
and Locke 1981), including marketing (Bitner, Booms, and
Mohr 1994; Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990; Grove and
Fisk 1997; Iacobucci, Ostrom, and Grayson 1995; Keaveney
1995). In this study, we use CIT to determine the sources of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction with SSTs from the cus-
tomer’s point of view.
Conceptual Foundations
Service Encounters
Historically, virtually all service encounters took place with
an employee and a customer present. Because of this, most
service encounter research has focused on interpersonal
interactions, mainly between customers and firm employees
(Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990; Mohr and Bitner 1995;
Price, Arnould, and Deibler 1995; Solomon et al. 1985; Sur-
prenant and Solomon 1987). For example, Solomon and col-
leagues (1985) explore personalization in the dyadic inter-
action between service providers and customers and the
resulting customer satisfaction with the service. Researchers
have also explored customer–customer interactions in ser-
vice settings (Grove and Fisk 1997; Martin and Pranter
1989). Others have examined interpersonal dynamics in the
context of service recovery encounters and the resulting
impact on satisfaction (Smith and Bolton 1998; Tax and
Brown 1998; Tax, Brown, and Chandrashekaran 1998).
Prior research has used CIT to examine sources of dis/sat-
isfactory evaluations in interpersonal service encounters. Bit-
ner, Booms, and Tetreault (1990) explore customer–employee
interactions in restaurants, hotels, and airlines. They find that
the factors affecting the evaluation of the service encounter
can be classified into three main categories: (1) employee
response to service delivery failure, (2) employee response to
customer needs and requests, and (3) unprompted and unso-
licited actions by employees. Grove and Fisk (1997) also use
CIT to examine factors leading to dis/satisfactory evaluations
of interpersonal service encounters. The focus of Grove and
Fisk’s study is customer–customer interactions in amusement
theme parks. They find that service experiences were affected
by other customers’ adherence to implicit or explicit rules of
conduct and by the perceived sociability of other customers.
Note that in each study, the set of factors that leads to
satisfying encounters also leads to dissatisfying ones. In
other words, the incident categories for satisfactory and dis-
satisfactory encounters were mirror images of each other.
For example, in Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault’s (1990) study,
employee response to customer needs and requests was a
source of both dissatisfaction and satisfaction, depending on
the nature of the employee response.
Whereas these studies explore important determinants of
dis/satisfaction in an interpersonal setting, we investigate
factors that are important when a customer independently
produces a service through a technological interface. This
enables us to assess whether the sources of dis/satisfaction
in interpersonal encounters are also important in technol-
ogy-based encounters. In addition, we can determine if the
same set of factors leads to both satisfactory and dissatisfac-
tory encounters.
Self-Service Technologies
Recently, academic researchers have recognized the critical
importance of technology in the delivery of services (Bitner,
Brown, and Meuter 2000; Dabholkar 1994, 1996; Parasura-
man 1996; Quinn 1996). Some suggest that the traditional
marketplace interaction is being replaced by a marketspace
transaction (Rayport and Sviokla 1994, 1995). The market-
space is defined as “a virtual realm where products and ser-
vices exist as digital information and can be delivered
through information based channels” (Rayport and Sviokla
1995, p. 14). The foundation of customer–company interac-
tions has significantly changed in this new marketspace
environment. Self-service technologies are a classic exam-
ple of marketspace transactions in which no interpersonal
contact is required between buyer and seller.
Several studies have investigated issues involving SSTs,
mainly focusing on the development of user profiles (Bateson
1985; Darian 1987; Eastlick 1996; Greco and Fields 1991;
Langeard et al. 1981; Zeithaml and Gilly 1987). For example,
Langeard and colleagues (1981) attempt to segment markets
on the basis of willingness to participate actively in the deliv-
ery of services. This is one of the most comprehensive early
studies done to identify and describe customers who might be
willing to use a self-service delivery alternative. Langeard and
colleagues (1981) find that participators tend to be younger,
single, and better educated and have a lower income level.
Bateson (1985) explores the choice between a self-service
option and an interpersonal service delivery system. Bateson
examines the attractiveness of self-service options when the
usual monetary or time-saving incentives are controlled and
finds that a significant group of people choose to use a self-
service option even without monetary or time-saving benefits.
One issue to be noted from these early studies is that
both Langeard and colleagues (1981) and Bateson (1985)
make no distinction between technology-based self-service
scenarios and more labor-intensive self-service situations.
Only two of the six self-service scenarios used across the
studies were technology-based (i.e., using ATMs and pur-
chasing traveler’s checks from an automated machine). It is
likely that the technological aspect of many recent self-ser-
vice options has a unique influence on consumer percep-
tions of these self-service encounters. Researchers continue
to be interested in how attitudes toward technology may
influence the extent to which consumers interact with tech-
nology-based products and services (Dabholkar 1996; Para-
suraman 1998; Raub 1981).

52 / Journal of Marketing, July 2000
Dabholkar (1992) explores issues such as how attitudes
toward computerized products and a need for interaction
with service employees affect attitudes. Dabholkar finds that
both factors influence consumer attitudes toward using a
computerized fast-food ordering SST. In a more recent study,
Dabholkar (1996) examines evaluations of SST service qual-
ity by making comparisons between an attribute model based
on what customers expect from the computerized fast-food
ordering SST across various attributes (expected speed of
delivery, ease of use, reliability, enjoyment, and control) and
an overall affect model based on beliefs about the use of
technology and the need for interaction with service employ-
ees. Dabholkar finds the attribute model to be superior in pre-
dicting evaluations, and enjoyment and control are the two
most influential attributes.
Types of SSTs
The existing research on SSTs focuses on either a single
technology in a given study (e.g., Dabholkar 1992, 1996) or,
in the case of the early studies, primarily low-technology
self-service (e.g., hotel vending machines versus room ser-
vice) and primitive forms of ATMs (Bateson 1985; Langeard
et al. 1981). None of the research attempts to examine the
range of SSTs available to consumers today. In the current
study, we explore diverse available SSTs—some are well
established, whereas others are in their infancy, and others
may never be successful on a large scale.
In Figure 1 we present our conceptualization of present-
day SST options, which is based on a review of the academic
literature, trade press, observation, and our work with compa-
nies. The columns of the matrix represent the types of tech-
nologies companies are using to interface with customers in
self-service encounters. The rows of the matrix represent the
purposes of the technologies from the customer perspective—
what the customer can accomplish by using the technology.
The types of technology interfaces (the columns in Fig-
ure 1) include telephone-based technologies and various
interactive voice response systems, direct online connec-
tions and Internet-based interfaces, interactive free-standing
kiosks, and video or compact disc (CD) technologies. Some-
times these technologies are used in combination. For exam-
ple, a company provides a CD that enables a customer to
review products or services and then link directly to a Web
site for more information or ordering. Similarly, a customer
might buy a mail-order item through an automated tele-
phone system but then track the delivery time for the pack-
age through a Web site that provides automated package-
tracking capabilities.
Companies provide SSTs for a variety of purposes broadly
captured by the rows in Figure 1. First, many forms of cus-
tomer service are now provided through technology. Questions
regarding accounts, bill paying, frequently asked questions,
and delivery tracking are just a few examples of customer ser-
vice that are now provided through SSTs. Some examples of
excellence in this arena are FedEx’s Internet-based package
tracking, Cisco System’s online troubleshooting, and Wells
FargoBank’s telephone- and Internet-based banking.
A second extremely rapidly growing arena for SSTs is
direct transactions. The technology enables customers to
order, buy, and exchange resources with companies without
any direct interaction with their employees. Examples of out-
standing SST transactions are Charles Schwab’s online trad-
ing service, Amazon.com, and the SABRE Group’s Trave-
locity, an Internet-based travel ticketing service. Recent
studies cite rapid growth in Internet-based transactions for
both consumer and business-to-business sales (Hof 1999).
The third use of SSTs is the broad category called self-
help, which refers to technologies that enable customers to
learn, receive information, train themselves, and provide
their own services. Examples include health information
Web sites, tax preparation CDs and software, self-help
videos, and telephone-based information lines. In a busi-
ness-to-business context, GE Medical Systems provides
video and satellite-television–based “just-in-time training”
on its equipment for hospital and clinic customers, which
enables customers to train themselves at their convenience.
FIGURE 1
Categories and Examples of SSTs in Use
Online/
Telephone/Interactive
Voice Response
Internet Interactive Kiosks Video/CD*
Interface
Purpose
Customer
Service
Transactions
Self-Help
•Telephone banking
•Flight information
•Order status
•Package tracking
•Account information
•ATMs
•Hotel checkout
•Telephone banking
•Prescription refills
•Retail purchasing
•Financial transactions
•Pay at the pump
•Hotel checkout
•Car rental
•Internet information
search
•Distance learning
•Blood pressure machines
•Tourist information
•Tax preparation
software
•Television/
CD-based training
•Information telephone
lines
* Video/CD is typically linked to other technologies to provide customer service and transactions.

Self-Service Technologies / 53
1
For a review of CIT, see Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault (1990),
Grove and Fisk (1997), and Keaveney (1995).
Figure 1 provides examples of SSTs across the purposes
and types of technology interfaces just described. Although
the present-day excitement over Internet applications means
that many companies are channeling their resources into that
column of the matrix, it is apparent that a wide range of SST
possibilities exists. In the research reported here, we explore
all types of SSTs without attempting to compare and con-
trast specific cells within the matrix.
Customer Responses to SST Encounters
Given the proliferation of SSTs and the wide variety of types
and purposes of these SSTs, it is critical to understand how
customers feel about them, how they use them, and if they
will use them in the future. This research represents a first
step in this direction by exploring customer experiences
across a broad range of SSTs available in the marketplace.
The primary focus of this study is the sources of dis/satisfac-
tion underlying SST experiences. It is well established that
customer satisfaction can affect customer retention and prof-
itability (Anderson and Fornell 1994; Mano and Oliver 1993;
Oliver 1993, 1997; Price, Arnould, and Tierney 1995; Reich-
held and Sasser 1990). Thus, understanding the underlying
factors that trigger dis/satisfaction in SSTs has important
managerial implications for customer–firm relationships.
We also explore customer attributions with respect to
SST outcomes. Research has shown that customer evalua-
tions are influenced by attributions for success and failure in
interpersonal service situations (Bitner 1990; Folkes, Kolet-
sky, and Graham 1987). With SSTs, customers create the
service for themselves, so it is possible that they will accept
more of the responsibility for the outcome (Mills, Chase, and
Margulies 1983; Zeithaml 1981). If customers accept partial
responsibility in dissatisfying situations, they may be more
likely to use the SST in the future. Again, this could have
important managerial implications as companies develop
new SSTs and struggle with service encounter failures.
We examine important postencounter behaviors, such as
complaining, word of mouth, and future intended behaviors.
When a customer complains, the firm has the opportunity to
rectify the situation and potentially create a more satisfied cus-
tomer (Tax, Brown, and Chandrashekaran 1998). Complaints
also provide information that can be used to fix service failure
points.Yet how can customers complain effectively in SST sit-
uations? We also study the relationship between SST dis/sat-
isfaction and future intentions such as repeat purchasing and
word of mouth. How do these experiences affect future behav-
iors? Do customers plan to use the specific company or the
SST again? Because so little has been published on SSTs, we
explore these questions to further the understanding of the
complexities surrounding customer interactions with SSTs.
Method and Procedure
Critical Incident Technique
We used CIT to investigate the sources of dis/satisfactory
evaluations of SST interactions.
1
This technique is a form of
content analysis that involves the classification of stories or
critical incidents with the intent of uncovering emergent pat-
terns or themes (Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990). With
CIT, respondents are asked not to identify the cause of their
satisfaction or dissatisfaction but rather to describe a spe-
cific incident in as much detail as possible. Prior research
indicates that people are adept at describing these types of
stories (Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990; Keaveney 1995).
For this study, we focus on eliciting descriptions of memo-
rable incidents about a recent SST interaction.
As a qualitative methodology, CIT is meant not to be
generalizable but rather to provide insight into the nature of
the phenomenon under investigation. Given this, most stud-
ies using CIT focus exclusively on the categories that emerge
and the characteristics of those categories. Although CIT cat-
egories are rarely linked to any additional quantitative mea-
sures (for an exception, see Hoffman, Kelley, and Rotalsky
1995), in this research we incorporated a series of quantita-
tive questions to gain a greater understanding of perceptions
of the incident as well as subsequent behavior. These quanti-
tative measures enable us to explore further the nature of the
results and the perceptions and behavior of the respondents.
Data Collection Procedure
Because usage and experience with a wide range of SSTs is
not yet a common phenomenon, a simple random sample of
the population would likely result in a sample with limited
SST experiences. The study described here requires suffi-
cient experience with SSTs so respondents can draw on at
least one memorable encounter and describe it in detail. In
addition, we wanted a nationwide sample of respondents to
avoid any geographic bias or differences in regional avail-
ability of SST options. Because of this, a specific nation-
wide audience that was expected to use a wide range of
SSTs was targeted for data collection. The population con-
sisted of a database of respondents from a marketing
research firm that specialized in consumer surveys over the
Internet. We presumed that this population would have sub-
stantially more experience with various SSTs than the gen-
eral population. Although the sample may not be represen-
tative of the general U.S. population, it addresses the needs
of this study. In addition, this sampling approach enabled us
to collect critical incident stories from a nationwide sample
of consumers in a timely and cost-effective manner.
The database comprises more than one million people
who signed up and agreed to complete online surveys in
exchange for cash prizes or other incentives. The survey
instrument (to be described subsequently) was placed on a
Web site, and e-mail messages were sent to members of the
database notifying them of a new survey and requesting
their participation. The survey notice was also placed in the
firm’s “open response” area, where any current member
could complete the survey. A random drawing for ten $50.00
cash prizes was held as an incentive to complete the survey.
In less than two weeks, 1000 responses were collected elec-
tronically. The survey was then removed from the Web site,
and the data were transferred to us for analysis.
Two concerns when an Internet-based survey is used
include respondents filling out a survey multiple times and
“random walk-ins” (i.e., people who are not part of the pop-
ulation of interest) finding the Web site and completing the

54 / Journal of Marketing, July 2000
survey. The participating marketing research firm avoids
these problems by assigning each database member a unique
password that is needed to complete a survey. Password pro-
tection prevents users from completing the survey multiple
times and eliminates random walk-ins.
Questionnaire Content
The questionnaire began by asking respondents to indicate
their current level of use for a wide range of SSTs available in
the marketplace. The SSTs included in the survey were auto-
mated airline ticketing machines, automated hotel checkout,
automated car rental machines, package tracking, tax prepa-
ration software, automated investment transactions, ATMs,
automated telephone banking, other automated telephone ser-
vices (e.g., for flight information), Internet shopping, general
Internet information searches, automated gambling
machines, electric blood pressure machines, and pay-at-the-
pump terminals. These SSTs were presented to familiarize
respondents with the term “self-service technology” and pro-
vide several examples. The list was developed to reflect a
cross-section of SSTs available in various industries with dif-
ferent technology-based delivery methods (e.g., telephone-
based, computer-based). Respondents were then asked, on the
basis of their experience with these or any other SST options
they may have used, to “Think of a time when, as a customer,
you had what stands out in your mind as either a particularly
satisfying or dissatisfying experience with a self-service tech-
nology. To allow for a detailed incident description, respon-
dents were free to select the SST and were not restricted to the
examples provided. In addition, participants were able to
choose whether they wanted to describe a satisfactory or dis-
satisfactory experience. The following questions were then
asked to elicit a detailed description of the incident:
•Which self-service technology are you focusing on?
•Was this a satisfying or a dissatisfying experience?
•Please describe the circumstances leading up to this incident.
•Describe what happened during the incident. What specific
details do you recall that made this experience memorable
for you?
•What was the outcome of the incident?
•How could this experience have been improved (if at all)?
•Did you complain to the firm about this incident? If yes, how
did you complain? If no, why not?
We asked additional questions to get a more complete
understanding of the specific SST experience. We assessed
customer attributions using a single-item measure adapted
from Hubbert (1995). Whereas most attribution measures
categorize the cause as either internal or external, this sin-
gle-item measure allows for assessments of joint attribu-
tions. Respondents indicated whether they believed the out-
come of the SST experience was due to the service firm or
the technology, to their own actions, equally to both, or to
neither. We also probed behavioral intentions pertaining to
the SST. Measures of the likelihood of participating in
word-of-mouth behavior and repeat purchase intentions
were assessed through single-item measures for the type of
SST in general, the specific company’s SST, and the specific
company. We assessed these measures with seven-point Lik-
ert scales.
Data Analysis
Characteristics of the Sample
A total of 1000 respondents completed the online question-
naire. We eliminated 177 responses because they either were
vague and lacked descriptive detail or did not address an expe-
rience with a specific SST. This resulted in a final sample of
823 incidents—459 (56%) describing satisfactory encounters
and 364 (44%) describing dissatisfactory encounters.
The sample of respondents was composed of slightly
more women (53%) than men (47%). The largest group of
respondents was between the ages of 25 and 34 years (32%);
however, those in the sample range from less than 18 to
more than 64 years of age. In terms of education, 43% of the
sample had an associate’s degree or a more advanced col-
lege degree. The income distribution ranged from an annual
income of less than $15,000 (13%) to $75,000 or more
(15%). The most common income bracket represented was
between $35,000 and $50,000 (22%). Overall, the sample
was slightly younger and had higher education and income
levels than the general population. Note that though our
sample may not be representative, the target population of
online survey participants was purposely selected to meet
the needs of this study discussed previously.
Category Development and Reliability
Three judges familiar with the topic of SSTs sorted the criti-
cal incident responses into categories and subcategories that
reflected the sources of dis/satisfaction. Judges A and B
developed a classification scheme that consisted of 13 mutu-
ally exclusive and exhaustive categories for the 823 incidents.
Judges A and B then independently classified each of the crit-
ical incidents into the categories believed to derive customer
dis/satisfaction with SSTs. All disagreements were resolved
through discussions. Judge C then sorted the 823 responses
on the basis of the categories developed by Judges A and B.
The interjudge reliability between Judge C and Judges A
and B (a two-way comparison) was calculated using the per-
centage agreement statistic. Interjudge reliability was 83%
for the satisfying incidents and 85% for the dissatisfying
incidents. These figures are respectably high, given that the
resulting classification system in the study contains 13 cate-
gories. The percentage agreement statistic has been shown
to underestimate interjudge reliability when there is a large
number of categories (Perreault and Leigh 1989). Therefore,
an alternate index of reliability, I
r
,was calculated. In con-
trast to the percent agreement statistic, I
r
is based on a model
of the level of agreement that might be found given a true
(population) level of reliability (Perreault and Leigh 1989).
Another benefit of this index is that it focuses on the relia-
bility of the whole coding process, not only on the agree-
ment between judges. Between Judge C and Judges A and
B, I
r
was .90 for both the satisfying and dissatisfying inci-
dents.
Results
The most commonly described types of SSTs were ATMs,
various Internet shopping services, pay-at-the-pump termi-
nals, and various automated telephone services. Additional

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References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI

8,493 citations

Book
26 Sep 1996
TL;DR: Satisfaction: Satisfaction is defined as "the object of desire" as mentioned in this paper, and it is defined by attributes, features, and dimensions of a person's attributes and dimensions.
Abstract: List of Tables List of Figures Preface 1 Introduction: What Is Satisfaction? PART 1 BASIC SATISFACTION MECHANISMS 2 The Performance of Attributes, Features, and Dimensions 3 Expectations and Related Comparative Standards 4 The Expectancy Disconfirmation Model of Satisfaction PART 2 ALTERNATIVE AND SUPPLEMENTARY COMPARATIVE OPERATORS 6 Quality: The Object of Desire 7 The Many Varieties of Value in the Consumption Experience 8 Equity: How Consumers Interpret Fairness 9 Regret: What Might Have Been, and Hindsight (What I Knew Would Be) PART 3 SATISFACTION PROCESSES AND MECHANISMS 10 Cognitive Dissonance: Fears of What the Future Will Bring (and a Few Hopes) 11 Why Did It Happen? Attribution in the Satisfaction Response 12 Emotional Expression in the Satisfaction Response 13 The Processing of Consumption PART 4 SATISFACTION'S CONSEQUENCES: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? 14 After Satisfaction: The Short Run Consequences 15 Loyalty and Financial Impact: Long-term Effects on Satisfaction Name Index Subject Index About the Author

6,613 citations


"Self-Service Technologies: Understa..." refers background in this paper

  • ...It is well established that customer satisfaction can affect customer retention and profitability (Anderson and Fornell 1994; Mano and Oliver 1993; Oliver 1993, 1997; Price, Arnould, and Tierney 1995; Reichheld and Sasser 1990)....

    [...]

  • ...Given the considerable interest in studying complaining behavior (Oliver 1997; Tax, Brown, and Chandrashekaran 1998), it is important to understand the extent and nature of complaining that occurs in the SST context....

    [...]

Journal Article
TL;DR: Defection rates are not just a measure of service quality; they are also a guide for achieving it; by listening to the reasons why customers defect, managers learn exactly where the company is falling short and where to direct their resources.
Abstract: Companies that want to improve their service quality should take a cue from manufacturing and focus on their own kind of scrap heap: customers who won't come back. Because that scrap heap can be every bit as costly as broken parts and misfit components, service company managers should strive to reduce it. They should aim for "zero defections"--keeping every customer they can profitably serve. As companies reduce customer defection rates, amazing things happen to their financials. Although the magnitude of the change varies by company and industry, the pattern holds: profits rise sharply. Reducing the defection rate just 5% generates 85% more profits in one bank's branch system, 50% more in an insurance brokerage, and 30% more in an auto-service chain. And when MBNA America, a Delaware-based credit card company, cut its 10% defection rate in half, profits rose a whopping 125%. But defection rates are not just a measure of service quality; they are also a guide for achieving it. By listening to the reasons why customers defect, managers learn exactly where the company is falling short and where to direct their resources. Staples, the stationery supplies retailer, uses feedback from customers to pinpoint products that are priced too high. That way, the company avoids expensive broad-brush promotions that pitch everything to everyone. Like any important change, managing for zero defections requires training and reinforcement. Great-West Life Assurance Company pays a 50% premium to group health-insurance brokers that hit customer-retention targets, and MBNA America gives bonuses to departments that hit theirs.

5,915 citations


"Self-Service Technologies: Understa..." refers background in this paper

  • ...It is well established that customer satisfaction can affect customer retention and profitability (Anderson and Fornell 1994; Mano and Oliver 1993; Oliver 1993, 1997; Price, Arnould, and Tierney 1995; Reichheld and Sasser 1990)....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: For consumers, evaluation of a service firm often depends on evaluation of the "service encounter" or the period of time when the customer interacts directly with the firm as mentioned in this paper. But this evaluation may not be accurate.
Abstract: For consumers, evaluation of a service firm often depends on evaluation of the “service encounter” or the period of time when the customer interacts directly with the firm. Knowledge of the factors...

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Additional excerpts

  • ...Roundtree are Assistant Professors of Marketing, and Mary Jo Bitner is AT&T Professor of Services Marketing and Management, Ari2ona State University. Each author contributed equally to the manuscript. The authors thank the three anonymous JM reviewers for their insightful comments on previous drafts of the article. The authors also gratefully acknowledge the Center for Services Marketing and Management at Arizona State University for its support, as well as Greenfield Online, a division of the Greenfield Consulting Group, Westport, CT, for assistance in data collection. service encounters into this technology-oriented context. This need is illustrated in many ways: For example, almt)st half of all retail banking transactions are now eonducted without the assistance of a bank teller (Lawrence and Karr 1996). In additit)n, although some SSTs have hccome commonplace {e.g., ATMs, pay-at-the-pump terminals), more innovative SSTs continue to be introdueed. For example, the Internet enables shoppers to purchase a wide variety of products without having to visit a retail outlet or converse with a serviee employee. In some states, u.sers can file for divorce or evict a tenant using an automated kiosk rather than go through the traditional court system. Electronic selfordering is currently heing developed by fast-food restaurants, and self-scanning at retail stores has been tested and is projected to become widely available in the future (Dabholkar 1996; Gibson 1999; Merrill 1999). It is increasingly evident that these technological innovations and advances will continue to be a critical component of customer-firm interactions. These technologybased interactions are expected to become a key criterion for long-term business success. Parasuraman (1996) lists the growing impt)rtance of self-service as a fundamental shift in the nature of services....

    [...]

  • ...Amy L. Ostrom and Robert I. Roundtree are Assistant Professors of Marketing, and Mary Jo Bitner is AT&T Professor of Services Marketing and Management, Arizona State University....

    [...]

  • ...50 / Journal of Marketing, July 2000 Journal of Marketing Vol. 64 (July 2000), 50–64 Matthew L. Meuter, Amy L. Ostrom, Robert I. Roundtree, & Mary Jo Bitner Self-Service Technologies: Understanding Customer Satisfaction with Technology-Based Service Encounters Self-service technologies (SSTs) are increasingly changing the way customers interact with firms to create service outcomes....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors collected 700 incidents from customers of airlines, hotels, and restaurants and used the critical incident method to identify the most frequent service encounter from the customer's point of view.
Abstract: The service encounter frequently is the service from the customer's point of view. Using the critical incident method, the authors collected 700 incidents from customers of airlines, hotels, and re...

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"Self-Service Technologies: Understa..." refers background or methods in this paper

  • ...The three main sources of dis/satisfaction with interpersonal service encounters mentioned previously are (1) response to service delivery failure, (2) response to customer needs, and (3) unprompted or unsolicited actions (Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990)....

    [...]

  • ...Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault (1990) explore customer–employee interactions in restaurants, hotels, and airlines....

    [...]

  • ...The critical incident method has been used in a wide variety of disciplines (e.g., Copas 1984; Lathan and Saari 1984; White and Locke 1981), including marketing (Bitner, Booms, and Mohr 1994; Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990; Grove and Fisk 1997; Iacobucci, Ostrom, and Grayson 1995; Keaveney 1995)....

    [...]

  • ...Because of this, most service encounter research has focused on interpersonal interactions, mainly between customers and firm employees (Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990; Mohr and Bitner 1995; Price, Arnould, and Deibler 1995; Solomon et al. 1985; Surprenant and Solomon 1987)....

    [...]

  • ...…used CIT to investigate the sources of dis/satisfactory evaluations of SST interactions.1 This technique is a form of content analysis that involves the classification of stories or critical incidents with the intent of uncovering emergent patterns or themes (Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990)....

    [...]

Frequently Asked Questions (11)
Q1. What are the contributions in "Self-service technologies: understanding customer satisfaction with technology-based service encounters" ?

In this research, the authors describe the results of a critical incident study based on more than 800 incidents involving SSTs solicited from customers through a Web-based survey. The authors categorize these incidents to discern the sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction with SSTs. The authors present a discussion of the resulting critical incident categories and their relationship to customer attributions, complaining behavior, word of mouth, and repeat purchase intentions, which is followed by implications for managers and researchers. 

Although the Web-based sample was appropriate for this study and provides substantial benefits, the sample presents limitations that should be addressed in further research. There are several important avenues for further research in this area. This is another avenue for further research. Whereas their study was designed to examine the range of SSTs to assess underlying similarities, further research could be designed specifically to allow comparison of the cells within the matrix. 

Just as continual training and investment in frontline employees helps improve service delivery, SSTs must receive ongoing maintenance to ensure continued effectiveness. 

Continually acquiring customer feedback and providing extensive SST training are two ways to limit the impact of customer-driven failures. 

Questions regarding accounts, bill paying, frequently asked questions, and delivery tracking are just a few examples of customer service that are now provided through SSTs. 

They find that the factors affecting the evaluation of the service encounter can be classified into three main categories: (1) employee response to service delivery failure, (2) employee response to customer needs and requests, and (3) unprompted and unsolicited actions by employees. 

Only 30% of the respondents describing technology design incidents complained, whereas 25% of the respondents describing customer-driven failures complained. 

The three main sources of dis/satisfaction with interpersonal service encounters mentioned previously are (1) response to service delivery failure, (2) response to customer needs, and (3) unprompted or unsolicited actions (Bitner, Booms, and Tetreault 1990). 

This may lead to more competition among firms with similar SSTs and provide a greater incentive for firms to improve technology interfaces and SST capabilities and expand SST service offerings for customers. 

Many consumers are still fascinated with the capability of various SSTs and seem pleasantly surprised when the SSTs perform successfully, because many SSTs are still in their infancy. 

Although in this research the focus was end62 / Journal of Marketing, July 2000users of SSTs, the fastest growing segment of technologically related transactions is in the business-to-business realm (Hof 1999).