The Impact of Service Quality on Service Satisfaction and Store Loyalty: Service Value as a Moderator

Purpose – The convenience store business sector in South Korea has contributed to economic growth and job creation, and the growth potential of this market segment remains very high. In addition, service value is a more important factor than price in determining purchase intention. Research in the convenience store market is relatively very low compared to other retail sectors. In particular, research on service quality for the convenience of retailers who examine and analyze customer behavior and service quality factors used in the convenience store side of the situation is very inadequate. We have investigated the relationship of store service quality, service satisfaction, and store loyalty. In addition, we have examined the way service value moderates the relationship among these variables. Research design, data, and methodology – The questionnaire was developed using modified and supplementary questions based on the KD-SQS and RSQS models. The study suggested a theoretical model composed of 15 hypotheses on the relations between theoretic variables, and surveys conducted with consumers in discount stores in the Seoul and Gyunggi Metropolitan area in order to verify the hypotheses. We used the SPSS/PC statistical packages to analyze the results. The number of surveys used was 227. Moreover, a structural equating model was also used to analyze the reliability and validity of the composing elements and to verify the suggested hypotheses. Results – The overall results of this study are as follows. First, all service quality elements have a significant effect on service satisfaction. Second, all service quality elements have a significant effect on store loyalty. Third, service satisfaction has a significant effect on store loyalty. Finally, when the participants were divided into high and low service value the results of the multiple regression analyses showed that only the relationship between policy of service quality and satisfaction, and hum