Measuring transaction‐specific satisfaction in services

TLDR

The paper contributes to cross‑cultural research by addressing challenges in measuring consumer satisfaction across diverse contexts. The study investigates whether a customer satisfaction survey can be equivalently applied in four culturally divergent contexts and calls for further research to confirm its suitability. The authors analyzed 6,776 fast‑food customer responses from Greece, Jamaica, the UK, and the USA. Results indicate that satisfaction measurement is more similar than different across the four cultures, showing that simple cross‑cultural instruments can reliably compare consumer satisfaction and aid multinational firms.

Abstract

Purpose This study examines the equivalence of the use of a customer satisfaction survey in four culturally divergent contexts. Design/methodology/approach It is based on 6,776 responses collected from fast food customers in Greece, Jamaica, the UK and the USA. Findings The results reveal that the similarities in the measurement of satisfaction in these contexts are more than the differences, and suggest that the development of measures to examine and compare consumer satisfaction across cultures and languages is, indeed, feasible. Research limitations/implications The data reveal considerable promise that rather simple, cross‐cultural measures can be identified and used to gain valuable insight about the viability of business products and services. This implies that researchers might be able to use the same instruments for measurement in different contexts. However, additional research is necessary to firmly support the suitability of the consumer‐related measures across cultures that were the focus of this study. Practical implications The findings of this study are particularly useful for multinational companies, which might want to measure and compare the level of their consumers' satisfaction in various countries. Originality/value This paper adds to the literature assessing the challenges of cross‐cultural research.