Service Quality at the Lebanese University: Faculty of Public Health
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37886/Keywords:
Service Quality, Higher Education, SERVQUAL, Gap Analysis, Importance-Performance Analysis, Lebanese University Faculty of Public Health Branch IVAbstract
Research Question (RQ): With the tremendous changes in the flow of global knowledge, higher education institutions are facing the questioning of its quality from the perspective of its primary customers, the students. The research question asks whether there are differences in service quality regarding expectations and perception and which dimensions need improvement. Service quality is one of the main perspectives that need to be integrated into the total quality strategies in higher education institutions for evidence of excellence and accreditation purposes.
Purpose: This research aims to evaluate service quality at the faculty level, to keep up with the changing needs of students and integrate the needs and expectations into the quality improvement strategies at the higher education level. This study will attempt to set the path and identify factors for improvements and their prioritization.
Method: SERVQUAL instrument was used for the GAPS model assessment of quality services and Improvement-Performance Analysis for prioritizing attributes as strategic goals for improvement. The data were collected at the Lebanese University (LU) at the Faculty of Public Health branch IV.
Results: Quality service dimensions that have the most need for improvement are the dimensions of Empathy and Tangibles. Whereas, the specific attributes that indicated the need of improved Performance and high Importance were: hearing and understanding students’ specific needs, providing suitable timing of services, using up-to-date equipment and technology, showing honest interest in solving a student’s problem, and providing services as promised.
Organization: Lebanese University will have the improvement strategies that are needed in its improvement plan for accreditation. At the faculty level, it can set a standard of operation based upon the results and reassess the evaluation for evidence of effective changes when completed.
Society: Quality service from the perspective of students will sustain the competency and assurance of the public higher education institutions in comparison to private ones. Public university’s well being is the supportive pillar for the education of all students from different social status.
Originality: This study will be the first to assess service quality at LU. It is hoped to be the trigger for further similar and continuous series of assessments for all faculties that can gather a precise view of the needed improvements and set them as strategies in LU strategic plans.
Limitations / further research: Service quality is dynamic. It changes with changing generations and with differing backgrounds. Continuous measurement and use of the scale will provide a better, more accurate view of the situation.
References
Abdullah, F. (2006). Measuring service quality in higher education: HEdPERF versus SERVPERF. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 24(1), 31–47. doi:10.1108/0263450061
AlHarbi, A., Heavin, C., & Carton, F. (2016). Improving customer oriented decision making through the customer interaction approach. Journal of Decision Systems, 25(sup1), 50–63.
Berry, L. L., Zeithaml, V. A., & Parasuraman, A. (1990). Five imperatives for improving service quality. MIT Sloan Management Review, 31(4), 29–38.
Brochado, A. (2009). Comparing alternative instruments to measure service quality in higher education. Quality Assurance in Education, 17(2), 174–190.
Buttle, F. (1996). SERVQUAL: review, critique, research agenda. European Journal of marketing, 30(1), 8–32.
Çerri, S. (2012). Assessing the quality of higher education services using a modified SERVQUAL scale. Annales Universitatis Apulensis: Series Oeconomica, 14(2), 664–679.
Çerri, S. (2014). Service Quality in Higher Education a Students’ perspective. In ICRAE2014 Conference- Paper Proceedings. Paper presented at the The 2 nd International Conference on Research and Educatıon - “Challenges Toward the Future” (ICRAE2014). Shkodra,, Albania: University of Shkodra “Luigj Gurakuqi”. Retrieved from http://konferenca.unishk.edu.al/icrae2014/cd/pdfdoc/333.pdf
Chui, T. B., & bin Ahmad, M. S. (2016). Evaluation of service quality of private higher education using service improvement matrix. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 224, 132–140.
Datta, K. S., & Vardhan, J. (2017). A SERVQUAL-Based Framework for Assessing Quality of International Branch Campuses in UAE: A Management Students’ Perspective. SAGE Open, 7(1), 1–9. doi:10.1177/2158244016676294
De Oliveira, O. J., & Ferreira, E. C. (2009, May). Adaptation and application of the SERVQUAL scale in higher education. In Proceedings of POMS 20th Annual Conference Orlando, Florida USA. Paper presented at the Proceedings of POMS 20th Annual Conference Orlando, Florida USA.
Hossain, M. M. (2014). Pervasiveness of SERVQUAL and its potential for the standards for functional quality of service. International Journal of Services and Standards, 9(1), 67–83.
Jones, J. L., & Shandiz, M. (2015). Service Quality Expectations: Exploring the Importance of SERVQUAL Dimensions from Different Nonprofit Constituent Groups. Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing, 27(1), 48–69.
Karl, K. A., & Sutton, C. L. (1998). Job values in today's workforce: A comparison of public and private sector employees. Public Personnel Management, 27(4), 515–527.
Koch, R. (2011). The 80/20 Principle: The Secret of Achieving More with Less: Updated 20th anniversary edition of the productivity and business classic. Hachette UK.
Ladhari, R. (2009). A review of twenty years of SERVQUAL research. International journal of quality and service sciences, 1(2), 172–198.
Lam, S. S., & Woo, K. S. (1997). Measuring service quality: a test-retest reliability investigation of SERVQUAL. International Journal of Market Research, 39(2), 381–396.
Legčević, J. (2010). Quality gap of educational services in viewpoints of students. Ekonomska Misao i Praksa(2), 279–298.
Mansour, D., Fathelrahman, I. H., Diab, D. M., Mohamed, H. E., & Eljelly, A. (2015). Graduate Students' Assessment of Educational Services Quality in Sudan. The Proceedings of the International Arab Conference on Quality Assurance in Higher Education, 1984–1972, University of Sharjah, UAE. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2611537
Martilla, J. A., & James, J. C. (1977). Importance-performance analysis. the Journal of Marketing, 77–79.
McNabb, D. E., & Sepic, F. T. (1995). Culture, climate, and total quality management: Measuring readiness for change. Public Productivity & Management Review, 369–385.
Mohammadi, A., & Mohammadi, J. (2014). Educational Service Quality in Zanjan University of Medical Sciences from Students' Point of View. World Journal of Education, 4(5), 86–93. doi: https://doi.org/10.5430/wje.v4n5p86
Nunnally, J. (1960). The place of statistics in psychology. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 20(4), 641–650.
Oliver, R. L. (1980). A cognitive model of the antecedents and consequences of satisfaction decisions. Journal of Marketing Research, 460–469.
Oliver, R. L. (1997). Satisfaction: A behavioral perspective on the consumer. New York, NY: Irwin-McGraw-Hill.
Parasuraman, A., Berry, L. L., & Zeithaml, V. A. (1991). Refinement and reassessment of the SERVQUAL scale. Journal of retailing, 67(4), 420–450.
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A., & Berry, L. L. (1985). A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future research. Journal of Marketing, 49(4), 41–50. doi 10.2307/1251430
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A., & Berry, L. L. (1988). SERVQUAL-A multiple-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality. Journal of retailing, 64(1), 12–40.
Pareto, V., & Schwier, A. S. (1927). Manual of political economy Tr. by Ann S. Schwier. London: Macmillan.
Pariseau, S. E., & McDaniel, J. (1997). Assessing service quality in schools of business. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 14(3), 204–218. doi:10.1108/02656719710165455
Putri, N. T., & Anggraini, L. (2018, March). Improving student satisfaction of Andalas University Dormitory through Service Quality and Importance Performance Analysis. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 319(1), 1–7. IOP Publishing. doi:10.1088/1757-899X/319/1/012063
Rasli, A., ShekarchizadehA., & Iqbal, M. J. (2012). Perception of Service Quality in Higher Education: Perspective of Iranian Students in Malaysian Universities International Journal of Academic Research in Management (IJARM), 1(1), 10–25.
Sekaran, U. (2003). Research methods for business: A skill building approach. John Wiley & Sons.
Silva, F. H., & Fernandes, P. O. (2011a). Importance-performance analysis as a tool in evaluating higher education service quality: the empirical results of ESTiG (IPB). In In the 17th International Business Information Management Association Conference, 306–315. Khalid S. Soliman.
Silva, F. H., & Fernandes, P. O. (2011b). Importance-satisfaction model for quality improvement: the case of higher education. Creating Global Competitive Economies: A 360-degree Approach In Proceedings of The 17th International Business Information Management Association Conference, 269–276, University of Pavia. Milan, Italy. ISBN: 978-0-9821489-6-6. doi: http://hdl.handle.net/10198/7115
Smithson, M. (2000). Statistics with Confidence: An Introduction for Psychologists: SAGE.
Sugiyono, D. (1999). Statistik non parametris. Alfabeta: Bandung.
Swersey, A. J. (2013). The service quality platform. Quality Progress, 46(12), 56–61.
Tharenou, P., Donohue, R., & Cooper, B. (2007). Management research methods: Melbourne: Cambridge University Press.
Tileng, M. Y., Utomo, W. H., & Latuperissa, R. (2013). Analysis of service quality using servqual method and Importance Performance Analysis (IPA) in population department, Tomohon City. International Journal of Computer Applications, 70(19), 23–30.
Ulewicz, R. (2014). Application of Servqual method for evaluation of quality of educational services at the university of higher education. Polish Journal of Management Studies, 9, 254–264.
Yildiz, S. M., & Kara, A. (2009). The PESPERF scale: An instrument for measuring service quality in the School of Physical Education and Sports Sciences (PESS). Quality Assurance in Education, 17(4), 393–415.
Yousapronpaiboon, K. (2014). SERVQUAL: Measuring higher education service quality in Thailand. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 116, 1088–1095.
Zeshan, M., Afridi, T., & Khan, S. M. (2010). Assessing service quality in business schools: Implications for improvement. International Journal of Research in Applied, Natural and Social Sciences, 2(8), 33–42.
