Developing a multidimensional and hierarchical service quality model for the travel agency industry

This paper develops a comprehensive model measuring service quality in the travel industry based on an extensive literature review and qualitative and empirical research. Following Brady and Cronin's [2001. Some new thoughts on conceptualizing perceived service quality: A hierarchial approach. Journal of Marketing 65(July), 34-49] conceptualization, we propose a multidimensional and hierarchical model of service quality. In this model, service quality is a third-order construct which is composed of several dimensions and subdimensions. Our findings show that customers' perceptions of service quality of travel agencies consist of three primary dimensions: personal interaction, physical environment and outcome, which are defined by seven subdimensions: conduct, expertise, problem solving, equipment, ambient conditions, waiting time and valence. Our model has important implications for the measurement of service quality in this specific industry as well as for the development of valid measures of quality performance in the context of services. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.