服务质量对马来西亚豪华饭店的研究

1、标题：Service Quality: A Study of the Luxury Hotels in Malaysia原文：During 1997 until 2002, the Malaysian economy experienced slower growth as compared to previous years. This was due to global events such as the September 11 attacks, global economies slowdown, the Bali bombings, the Severe Acute Respira

2、tory Syndrome (SARS), and bird flu. All this had caused a significant impact on the travel and tourism industry in Malaysia.The numbers of inbound and outbound tourists have been decreasing due to an avoidance of travel. Tourism arrivals to Malaysia dropped from 13.29 million in 2002 to 10.58 millio

3、n in 2003 (fell by 20.4%). However this decrease was not as serious as those that were experienced by some of Malaysias neighboring countries like Singapore and Indonesia. This was perhaps due to the aggressive promotional activities by the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board (Tourism Malaysia). Touris

4、m Malaysias aggressive promotions and the economic relief package extended by the government to the players in the travel industry enabled the industry to recover quite well. The promotional efforts of Tourism Malaysia as well as Malaysias increasingly strong reputation as a center for international

5、 events, for example the OIC Conference, the F1 Grand Prix, etc., boosted the slow economy and ensure that the balance of tourism payments still remain positive. Furthermore, due to Bank Negara Malaysias policy on keeping the US$ peg for the past few years, the relatively weaker Malaysian currency h

6、as become a positive factor for inbound tourism, while making outbound tourism more expensive. At the same time, domestic tourism has been steadily increasing over the period, rising 11% in 2002 to 22.2 million trips. This is because Tourism Malaysia by carrying out programmes such as Cuti-cuti Mala

7、ysia that are aimed at encouraging domestic travel has undoubtedly contributed to the increase (Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board, 2004).However, the hospitality industry that was still experiencing severe oversupply and occupancy rates have been severely affected by the SARS and bird flu crisis. Ind

8、ustry sales grew in 2002 but experienced a drastic decrease in 2003. The industry was highly competitive especially with the opening of more hotels. The number of hotels supply has increased 5.7% and the number of hotel rooms supply has increased 4.4% from year 2001 to year 2002 (Malaysia Tourism Pr

9、omotion Board, 2004). However, the year 2004 began on an encouraging and positive note. In January, Malaysia saw the arrivals of 1.4 million tourists, which was the highest monthly arrival in the history of the industry (The Star, 20 March 2004). Furthermore, hotels in Kuala Lumpur recorded an avera

10、ge occupancy of 61% for January 2004 (The Star, 25 March 2004) and tourist arrivals to Malaysia are expected to increase by 6.9% to 14.3 million by 2005 (The Star, 20 March 2004).The main concern for the Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) for year 2004 was the issue of recognition of hotel worker

11、s as professionals. The Malaysian Association of Hotels Training and Education Centre is now working towards promoting regular training and enhancing training programmes for hotel workers so that they would be recognized as professionals and increase the service quality (The Star, 25 March 2004).Hot

12、el ClassificationHistorically, hotel classification systems were formed to ensure safe and reliable lodging and food for travelers at a time when very few such trustworthy establishments existed. In the past fifty years, hospitality has reached the status of a mature industry with the unprecedented

13、growth of international tourism. As a result, the focus of hotel classification systems has shifted from consumer protection to consumer information. Presently, standardization and competitive marketing of hotel services to foreign customers and tourist professionals have appeared as driving forces

14、for instituting a local or national hotel classification system (WTO and IH&RA, 2004). According to a research study by World Tourism Organization (WTO) and International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA) (2004), the most widely used graphical symbol in hotel classification is the s

15、tar. The classification systems are mostly set up by the countries governments, and the Tourism Board and establishments are only consulted. Subsequently, they are adopted into the Tourism Law, the State Constitution or regional constitutions.In Malaysia, the official hotel classification system is

16、enforced by Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism Malaysia and it is a mandatory system. It is necessary for a hotel to be classified before it can obtain license/ permission/ registration to operate. The classification authority in Malaysia is a panel set up under the Ministry of Culture, Arts and

17、Tourism Malaysia, which consists of ministry officials and members from non-governmental organizations, such as hotel associations, tour operator associations and other relevant government agencies (WTO and IH&RA, 2004). There are two hotel classification schemes, namely the Star Rating (from on

18、e- to five-star), and the Orchid Rating (from one- to three-orchid). The Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism Malaysia introduced the Orchid Classification Scheme in order to accommodate those hotels such as beds and breakfast, inns, boarding houses, rest houses and lodging houses, which do not qua

19、lify for any Star Rating (Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism Malaysia, no date).In this research, focus was given to the luxury hotels. Only those hotels rated four-star (4S) or five-star (5S) were included in the research study.Influence of Service Quality in HospitalityKing (1995) mentioned tha

20、t hospitality in the commercial setting is a specific kind of relationship between individuals, which in this context is the hospitality service provider and customer. In this relationship, the host understands the needs and wants of the customer, which give pleasure to the customer and enhance his

21、or her wellbeing and comfort. The host will deliver with generous and flawless face-to-face interactions. The objective is to enhance guest satisfaction and develop repeat business.Kandampully (2000) revealed that service quality is crucial to the success of any service organization. As the customer

22、s participate in the production and consumption of services, they interact closely with various aspects of the organization. This inside knowledge gives them the opportunity to assess critically the services provided, in particular the quality of service. Customers will assess service quality by com

23、paring the service they get with the service they desire. Hence, service quality plays a critical role in adding value to the overall service experience. Since superior quality is one of the crucial factors within the control of the hospitality service provider, Lee, Barker, & Kandampully (2003)

24、 suggested that enhancing the quality of service at all levels of service delivery has therefore become mandatory for organization survival.The purpose of this study is therefore to assess the expectations and the perceptions of service quality dimensions in Malaysias luxury hotels from the hotel cu

25、stomers perspective by applying a modified version of the SERVQUAL model (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1988). This study has the following objectives: to determine the service-quality attributes that constitute fundamental service-quality dimensions in evaluating hotel operators;to examine and

26、to compare relative importance attached by customers in terms of their expectations and perceptions bytype of hotels (four-star or five-star hotels); andto identify the role of service quality towards customer satisfaction in the hospitality industry.LITERATURE REVIEWConcept of ServiceFor the last t

27、wo decades, economies have experienced an extensive social and economic transformation globally. One of the most significant of these changes is the increased rate of spending on services. Service industries are leading the economy. Services lie at the hub of the economic activity of society and are

28、 linked closely with many other sectors of the economy (Kandampully, 2000). Services are not limited to the service industries, for example, a manufacturer like IBM can be highly involved in the service business. Services are deeds, processes and performance. The broad definition of services suggest

29、ed that intangibility as a key factor of deciding whether an offering is a service (Zeithaml and Bitner, 2003).Services are generally described in terms of four unique characteristics, namely intangibility, inseparability, heterogeneity, and perishability. Intangibility can be defined as something t

30、hat cannot be touched, seen, tasted, heard, or felt in the same manner in which goods can be sensed (Groth and Dye, 2000). It has been said that intangibility is the single most important difference between products and services (Santos, 2002). Due to the intangibility characteristic of services, th

31、e firm may find it hard to understand how consumers perceive their service and evaluate service quality (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1985).Services possess the inseparability characteristic since the service provider usually creates or performs the service at the same time as the full or parti

32、al consumption of the service take place. The conversion is highly visible and it is not possible for the service provider to hide any mistake or quality shortfall. Furthermore, the involvement of the customer in the delivery process introduces an additional factor, which causes the service provider

33、s to have little or no direct control over the service experience (Ghobadian, Speller, and Jones, 1994). With this condition, the consumers input becomes vital to the quality of service performance (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1985). There are high degrees of variability in the performance of

34、services. Services are difficult to standardize, in contrast to manufactured goods. The quality of a service can vary from producer to producer, from customer to customer, and from day to day (OBrien and Deans, 1996). Service providers have to rely heavily on the ability of their staff to understand

35、 the requirements of the customer and react in an appropriate manner (Ghobadian, Speller, and Jones, 1994).Perishability is a characteristic of services that prevents them from being stored, warehoused, or inventoried (Lamb, Hair, and McDaneil, 2000). Unlike manufactured goods, it is impossible to h

36、ave a final check on quality. It needs to be done right at the first time (Ghobadian, Speller, and Jones, 1994).Measuring Service Quality GapsLewis (1987) suggested that what can be measured are the differences between the abstractions. So, it is the logic that if we can measure the difference betwe

37、en expectations and perceptions, which is defined as perceived quality, therefore we can determine the level of satisfaction. This concept is quite similar with Parasuramans (1985) service quality model, which applied the expectancy-disconfirmation theory. Parasuraman (1985) defined service quality

38、in ten major dimensions that consumers use in forming expectations about and perceptions of services. In a later research, Parasuraman (1988) revised and defined the service quality in five dimensions reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangibles. The model suggested service quality

39、 as the gap between customers expectations (E) and their perception of the service providers performance (P). Hence, the service quality score (Q) can be measured by subtracting customers perception score from customers expectations score:Q = P - ELamb, Hair and McDaniel (2000), and Zeithaml and Bit

40、ner (2003) have also discussed that there are five key discrepancies that can influence customer evaluations of service quality:Gap 1 is the gap between customers expectations and managements perceptions of those expectations.Gap 2 is the gap between managements perception of what the customer wants

41、 and specifications of service quality.Gap 3 is the gap between service quality specifications and delivery of the service.Gap 4 is the gap between service delivery and what the organization promises to the customer through external communication.Gap 5 is the gap between customers service expectatio

42、ns and their perceptions of service performance.Therefore, it shows that customers expectations towards a specific hotel stay will influence their perceptions, and this will have a great effect on their satisfaction towards the service they get.Zeithaml and Bitner (2003) stated that in order to mana

43、ge service quality, it is important to manage the gaps between expectations and perceptions on the part of management, employers and customers. The most important gap (Gap 5) is that between customers expectation of service and their perception of the service actually delivered. Hence by referring t

44、o the gap model, it states that a service marketer must close the customer gap (Gap 5). In order to do so, the service provider must close the four other gaps (Gap 1, 2 3, and 4) within the organization that inhibit delivery of quality service. Serious action must be taken because how the customers,

45、 in these case hotel customers, perceive the level of service performance that meets their expectations will reflect on the quality of service provided by the organization.According to Lewis (1987), the gaps measurement may be a significant marketing tool. It also has the advantage of being less abs

46、tract, even though not completely. It also considerably eases the task of measuring service quality.出处：Pei Mey Lau; Akbar, Abdolali Khatibi; Yong Gun Fie, David. Service Quality: A Study of the Luxury Hotels in MalaysiaJ.Journal of American Academy of Business.2005.07(09),pp.46-55标题：服务质量：对马来西亚豪华饭店的研

47、究译文：简介由于全球诸多事件，诸如美国911事件，全球经济疲软，巴厘岛爆炸案，SARS和禽流感等的发生，致使1997年至2002年间马来西亚的经济发展较之前缓慢了许多。这些事件的发生均对马来西亚的旅游产业造成了重大影响。为避免旅游期间遇到麻烦，境内外旅客大幅减少。马来西亚旅游人数从2002年的1329万下降至2003年的1058万（跌幅20.4%），但即使如此，跌幅仍小于其周边国家如新加坡和印尼。这其中也许有因为马来西亚旅游促进局积极宣传的一份功劳。马来西亚旅游当局的积极促进和经济救济方案使旅游行业复苏的相当不错。通过伊斯兰会议组织会议、F1大奖赛等的活动的推广工作，使马来西亚逐渐成为一个日益

48、强大的国际活动中心，促进了经济发展，确保旅游业的国际收支依旧保持乐观。此外，由于马来西亚国家银行过去几年对保持美元的汇率政策，原本较弱的马来西亚货币在使境外旅游更加昂贵的同时，使境内旅游更为便宜方面已成为一个积极的因素。与此同时，国内旅游在此期间一直在稳步增加，2002年达到2220万人次，增幅达到11%。这是因为马来西亚旅游局通过开展诸如Cuti-cuti马来西亚等方案鼓励国内旅游发展，这无疑有助于国内旅游的增长（马来西亚旅游促进局，2004）。然而，饭店业仍面临着严重的供过于求，入住率严重受到SARS和禽流感危机的影响。2002年行业销售增长，但在2003年经历了大幅度下降，该行业竞争激烈

49、，尤其是随着越来越多的饭店开业。从2001年至2002年，饭店的供应量增加了5.7%，而饭店房间的供应数量增加了4.4%（马来西亚旅游促进局，2004）。然而，2004年是一个令人欢欣鼓舞的年份。一月份，马来西亚迎来了140万旅客，这是历史月度到达的最高行业记录。此外，2004年1月吉隆坡饭店的平均入住率为61%（The Star，2004.03.25），到2005年马来西亚的旅客人数预计将增加6.9%至1430万（The Star,2004.03.20）。2004年马来西亚饭店协会(MAH)关注的重点是工作人员作为专业人士的认可问题。马来西亚饭店培训教育中心现正努力促进和加强对饭店工作人员的

50、定期培训，使他们成为被认可的专业人士，并以此提高服务质量（The Star,2004.03.25）。饭店分类从历史上看，饭店分类制度的形成，是为确保旅客安全可靠的食物和住宿。在过去五十多年里，国际旅游产业接待已经发展到了一个成熟的地位，因此，饭店的分类系统的重点已经从保护消费者转变为消费信息了。目前，针对外国消费者和旅游专业人士的饭店标准化和竞争性市场表现为对于地方或国家实行饭店分类制度的一个驱动力（WTO and IH&RA, 2004。据世界旅游组织（WTO）和国际酒店及餐馆协会（以下简称IH&RA）（2004）的调查研究显示，星级是最广泛使用的图形符号。分类系统大多是由国

51、家政府所设立，旅游局和旅游机构仅是作为顾问。随后将通过旅游业的法律，国家宪法或地方宪法。在马来西亚，官方饭店分类制度是由马来西亚文化、艺术和旅游部强制执行的，一家饭店必须先分类，才能取得牌照/许可/注册资格。马来西亚饭店的分类是按照文化、艺术和旅游部门的权威文化所进行的，包括政府官员和非政府组织如饭店协会，旅游经营商协会和其他相关政府机构（WTO和IH&RA, 2004）。饭店有两种分类法，即星级（从1至5星级）和兰花等级（从一到三兰）。文化、艺术和旅游部介绍了马来西亚兰花分类计划，以使如床和早餐，客栈，旅店和招待所等不符合任何星级的住所有所适应（文化、艺术、旅游局。无日期）。在此研究

52、中，重点是考虑豪华饭店，仅那些四星级（4S）或五星级（5S）酒店列入了这次的研究调查中。服务质量的影响King（1995）提到，在一个商业环境下好客是个人之间的关系，在这里则是热情周到的服务供应商和消费者的关系。在这种关系中，主人了解消费者的需求，使其愉悦，提高他或她的幸福指数。主办单位提供优厚的和完美的面对面的交流。我们的目标是提高客户满意度和重复业务发展。Kandampully(2002)显示，服务质量是任何服务组织成功的至关重要的因素。正如客户参与服务的生产和消费，他们密切与该组织的各个方面互动，使他们有机会批判评估提供的服务，特别是服务质量。通过比较，客户将评估他们得到的服务与他们期望

53、的服务的质量，因此，服务质量在整体的增值经验中发挥了关键作用。由于上乘的服务质量是提供商控制的关键因素之一，Lee.Barker和Kandampully(2003)建议，加强在各个层面提供的服务质量已成为组织生存的关键，因此应是强制性的。该研究的目的是评估期望服务与通过应用SERVQUAL模型（Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1988）修改后的服务质量的比较。该研究有以下目标：1 确定服务质量的根本属性，构成饭店经营服务质量评估标准2 审查和比较客户相对重视的饭店类型和期望3 确定客户对服务质量满意度在服务行业中的作用文献回顾服务理念在过去20年，经济经历了一个广泛的全球社会和经济变革。这些变化带来的最重要的一项是在服务方面的支出增长速度。服务行业处于经济的领先地位，服务处于社会经济活动中心，与经济直接挂钩（Kandampully，2000）。服务并非仅限于服务行业，例如像IBM制造商也可高度参与服务业务。服务是行动，过程和性能。