Investigating the relationship between service providers’ personality and customers’ perceptions of service quality across gender

Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between the personality of the service providers and the service quality performance they provide. The Five-Factor model of personality and the SERVQUAL model of service quality were used to substantiate the hypothesized relationship. Empirical data from 143 pairs of employees and customers indicate that employees with different personality traits perform differently on customers' perception of service quality. The results indicated that openness correlated with assurance, conscientiousness was a valid predictor of reliability, extraversion was positively related to responsiveness, and agreeableness significantly correlated with both empathy and assurance. Moreover, the relationship between personality and service quality was moderated by customers' gender. Overall, the outcome of this study can be applied to personnel allocation in accordance with the service quality strategy of a company.