Analysis of Consumer Research
This paper is devoted to the critical review of the three articles related the theory of consumer compliance. The studies offered three different approaches to the issues raised. Empirical data was obtained with the help of in-depth interviews and secondary data analysis. Such a combination of the research methods helps saving time and cost while obtaining the information required for the analysis. Samples used in each research vary significantly as well as the goals of each research. However, they allow making conclusions regarding the goals set.
The following articles were proposed for analysis: “Gaining Compliance and Losing Weight: the Role of the Service Provider in Health Care Services”, “Automated Marketing and the Growth of “Customer Compliance” Businesses”, “Cross-Generational Perceptions and Reactions to Disciplining During Service Recovery”.
Methodology Evaluation
The study of Dellande, Gilly and Graham (2004) contributes to the research of consumer satisfaction resulting from service provider expertize. The research aimed to reveal correlation between expertize of service provider and customer satisfaction. Also, the research is to answer whether customer compliance behavior influences outcomes of weight loss programs. The model of the research is supposed to recognize the potential of the health service provider to influence consumer behavior (compliance) (Dellande, Gilly and Graham, 2004).
The research contained the sample of 376 patients and 36 nurses. The response rate of patients is 37.6% and 90% of nurses. The survey of nurses and their patients were conducted independently. The filled questionnaires were sent via post with cover sheets attached. Cover sheets were destroyed after matching nurses’ and patients’ questionnaires. This is an important ethical aspect of the research because anonymity is the most significant factor in the research design. Also, the researchers analyzed archival data of 213 patients that took part in the survey. The data was collected upon patients’ authorization that indicates ethical approach to the research as well (Dellande, Gilly and Graham, 2004).
A sample of 8 patients and 9 nurses was selected for conducting an in-depth telephone interview that lasted 30 minutes each. Additional questions were asked during telephone interviews to better interpret the quantitative results obtained.
Critical Reflection
This research concerns the problems of delivering quality services by the service providers, medical clinics in particular, to their customers. The research relates weight loss of the Lindora clinic patients and whether compliance behaviour affects the results.
There were eight hypotheses outlined concerning the connection between provider expertize, role clarity and ability to carry out the role; the influence of demographical and attitudinal homophily between the nurses and their patients on the role clarity and motivation. Also, the research researched whether role clarity makes an impact on the performance of necessary behaviors; ability to perform the behaviors required increase motivation; role clarity influences ability to perform necessary behaviors, motivation resulting in customer’s compliance with the services provided; customer’s compliance relates goal attainment; satisfaction with the services is connected with goal attainment and compliance.
The research contains vast data for consumer behavior analysis that was reflected in the research hypotheses. The results of the survey can be considered significant because the error margin equals approximately 5% (Science Buddies, 2012). According to McCracken (1988) a sample of 8 patient participants that took part in telephone interview is sufficient.
For the purposes of the current research linear regression was used to determining the optimal relationships between latent variables. Partial Least Squares (PLS) method was used because it is the best tool for conducting such a research taking into account the nature of the measures and the data that consisted of the reflective and formative indicators of the constructs (Falk and Miller, 1992).
The theoretical model used in the research provided a framework for the in-depth interviews. Depth interviews amplified qualitative data to the quantitative research thus increasing validity of the findings (Dellande, Gilly and Graham, 2004).
The study revealed the connection between provider expertize and customer role clarity, ability to perform the necessary behaviors, motivation, compliance with experts’ advices, goal achievement, and customers’ satisfaction. The study also emphasized three key customers’ attributes, namely: role clarity, ability, and motivation (Dellande, Gilly and Graham, 2004).
According to the results obtained, compliance plays the most important role in the process of weight loss. Thus, consumer diaries and role taking can be used as tools maximizing goal attainment and consumer satisfaction (Dellande, Gilly and Graham, 2004).
Comparison to Other Methods
In comparison to LISREL and EQS methods, PLS can handle both formative and reflective indicators, while other analytical methods (LISREL, EQS) handle reflective indicators only (Falk and Miller, 1992).
Comparatively to the two researches conducted by Sholarone Manuscripts (n.d.) and the research of Kasabov and Warlow (2009), the research conducted by Dellande, Gilly and Graham (2004) is the most comprehensive and detailed. It contains exhaustive empirical data regarding the issues of the research. The sample is the largest in comparison to the remaining articles. The three researches were based on both primary and secondary data widening sample and offering more information for analysis.
B. Automated Marketing and the Growth of “Customer Compliance” Businesses
Methodology Evaluation
The goal of this research is to reveal whether traditional businesses give way to Customer Compliance Business Model (CCBM) businesses. Beta testing was used to obtain preliminary results of the research. Two mixed groups of students aged 20-32 years participated in the interviewing. The sample includes 122 (error margin of 9% is quite high) graduated students from UK, EU and international students. The rate of responses is high; it varies from 96 to 100 per cent. The most important approach used in the research is that it is partially based on the preliminary survey of 235 respondents that limits error margin to 7% (Science Buddies, 2012). Also, the respondents were asked to interview their relatives, friends, and colleagues regarding low-cost airline using CCBM. This approach significantly increases reliability and validity of the research. Five scenarios were outlined describing each outcome helping analyze data collected. The approach is generalizable and can be applied for analysis of other service sectors (Kasabov and Warlow, 2009).
High response rate were achieved due to the requirement to fill in the questionnaires in a classroom. However, this approach is not ethical because students were required to consider the questionnaires to be the part of summative assessment on survey research. Also, students are required to study in the class rather than filling in the questionnaires for the third parties (Kasabov and Warlow, 2009).
Critical Reflection
The research concerns the issue of providing low-cost airline services to customers and their reflection regarding the services provided.
The breakdown of the goal includes analysis of the history of respondents’ and service providers’ relationships; satisfaction with the level of the services provided; analysis of the incidents of dissatisfaction with the level of services; the propensity to complain; analysis of types of complaints; analysis of interactions between service providers and customers in case of disputes; and future purchase intentions.
Using combination of primary and secondary data helps analyze a wider circle of customers using low-cost airline. Total responses of 357 regarding the quality of the services provided helps make conclusions about CCBM and non-CCBM service quality. A sample of 367 respondents lowered error margin to 5% that allows to judge about the level of significance of the research. Also, this type of research allows save time and cost on conducting interviews while offering valid and reliable results. Interviewees’ responses were organized in the form of scenarios helping conduct an analysis of data obtained and generalizing the results of the research. However, there is a lack of empirical and conceptual analysis for making adequate comparison because provision of costly services cannot be analyzed and complaints cannot be verified (Kasabov and Warlow, 2009).
The methodological approach of this research offers exhaustive data for analysis of the situation. The research allows making conclusions regarding factors influencing purchasing decision, media impact on purchasing decision, and future purchasing intentions. The conclusions are based on the analysis of empirical data.
Comparison to Other Methods
All three methods used represent combination of primary and secondary data analyses. Primary data is used for qualitative research aiming to better interpretation of the data collected. Qualitative data is used to reveal the main tendency and to approve or disapprove the assumptions made. There were hypotheses used in the first research; the assumptions were used in the other two approaches.
The main conclusion arising from the analysis of the three articles is that business approaches are changing and quickly changing environment requires quick reactions.
Cross-Generational Perceptions and Reactions to Disciplining During Service Recovery
Methodology Evaluation
The research was conducted with the help of semi-structured interviews. Using semi-structured interviews are beneficial because they can provide relatively reliable data that can be easily analysed. Also, they can generate large amount of details for the research. However, flexibility of the interview may lessen its reliability. In addition, open-ended questions are difficult to analyse as well as difficult to compare the answers. A non-random sampling was used for the purposes of the research. Call-centers employees were asked to concentrate on the most memorable incidents of failure (Holliday, 2007).
The sample of consumers analyzed consisted of 51 participants who were selected after the advertisement was placed in local media in UK and Germany. There were 27 participants selected from baby-boom generation and 24 from generation Y in the sample. The sample is balanced because it contains relatively equal number of baby-boomers and generation Y participants. There were 31 British and 20 German consumers interviewed. The interviews were personal or tape-recorder and lasted no more than 57 minutes (Scholarone Manuscripts, n.d.).
Ethical issues were regulated according to Gummesson’s (2003) saturation criterion when the interviewee decides where to stop if he or she does not want to be interviewed for some reason or other.
Critical Reflection
The aim of this research is to attach importance to the influences on behaviours of different generations – the problem that was identified as a marketing gap by Thompson and Thompson (2009) with the help of an analysis of call-center interactions.
The research was to address several questions, namely: customers’ expectations regarding provision of services and recovery, the way customers make sense of rationalizing or reacting to being disciplined by the service provider of being compliant asking for recovery, whether negative experiences affected intended and actual customers’ behaviors.
The sample is non-representative and small-scale. However, it can be considered normal for the purposes of this research and the data obtained with the help of this research offers enough information for analysis showing that quite often attempted to exert influence over customers. This is one of the main contributions of the research (Scholarone Manuscripts, n.d.).
The findings do not fully reflect the expectations in service marketing. However, some findings were surprising. For example, customers accepted disciplining and compliance irrespectively to the threat of failure. The results of the research showed that on the one hand, entering of new market players that exert disciplining and compliance are welcome; on the other hand, some service providers attempted to persuade customers that disciplining and compliance are beneficial for both parties. The conclusions of this study cannot be validated because of small sample size (Scholarone Manuscripts, n.d.).
Comparison to Other Methods
The qualitative part of the research offers more information than the quantitative part of it.
The main assumptions concerned predispositions towards complaining, expectations about interactions between service providers and customers, behavioral intentions, exert of control and reactions to the control application. The main goal of the research was to answer whether service providers have propensity to exert controlling activities over customers.
This research is comparatively more generalized than the other two. Obviously, further more detailed research is needed. The purpose of conducting this kind of research is to reveal general tendency of the issue. Thus, testing findings and conclusions are needed to diverse service sectors. Also, further research is needed to reflect on perspectives of service provider employees and to verify customer perspectives.
Conclusion
The three articles were reviewed to evaluate and compare the approaches to empirical data analysis. All of the articles related customer compliance to service providers. The approaches offered in the studies can be used for analysis of the activities of other service providers. Some of the studies are designed to ask generalized questions and others aimed at specific questions. The methods used in the studies are generalized, but each research has its limitations. Each research results can be improved in a specific way and the results of the analyses can be interpreted taking into account a particular case.
References
Dellande, S., Gilly, M.C. and Graham, J.L., 2004. Gaining compliance and losing weight: the role of the service provider in health care services. The Journal of Marketing, 68(3), p. 78-91.
Falk, F. R. and Miller, N.B., 1992. A primer for soft modeling. Akron, OH: University of Akron Press.
Gummesson, E., 2003. All research is interpretive! Journal of Business and
Industrial Marketing, 18, p. 482-492.
Holliday, A., 2007. Doing and writing qualitative research. London: Sage.
Kasabov, E. and Warlow, A. J., 2009. Automated marketing and the growth of “customer compliance” businesses. Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice, 11, p. 30– 50.
McCracken, G., 1988. The long interview. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
Sсholarone Manuscripts, n.d. Cross-generational perceptions and reactions to disciplining during service recovery. The Service Industries Journal, p.1-30.
Science Buddies, 2012. Sample Size: How Many Survey Participants Do I Need? [online] Available at: <http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/Soc_participants.shtml> [Accessed 01 November].
Thompson, N. and Thompson, K., 2009. Can marketing practice keep up with Europe’s ageing population? European Journal of Marketing, 43, p. 1281-1288.
