Kisang Ryu

The influence of the quality of the physical environment, food, and service on restaurant image, customer perceived value, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intentions

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to propose an integrated model that examines the impact of three elements of foodservice quality dimensions (physical environment, food, and service) on restaurant image, customer perceived value, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intentions.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from customers at an authentic upscale Chinese restaurant located in a Southeastern state in the USA via a self‐administered questionnaire. Anderson and Gerbings two‐step approach was used to assess the measurement and structural models.Findings – Structural equation modeling shows that the quality of the physical environment, food, and service were significant determinants of restaurant image. Also, the quality of the physical environment and food were significant predictors of customer perceived value. The restaurant image was also found to be a significant antecedent of customer perceived value. In addition, the results reinforced that customer perceived value is indeed a ...

The Roles of the Physical Environment, Price Perception, and Customer Satisfaction in Determining Customer Loyalty in the Restaurant Industry:

This research aims to examine the relationships among three components of the physical environment (i.e., décor and artifacts, spatial layout, and ambient conditions), price perception, customer satisfaction, and customer loyalty in the restaurant industry. A total of 279 cases from a survey were used to assess overall fit of the proposed model and test hypotheses using structural equation modeling. The three factors of the physical environment strongly influenced how customers perceived price, and this price perception, in turn, enhanced customer satisfaction level and directly/indirectly influenced customer loyalty. Décor and artifacts were the most significant predictors of price perception among the three components of the physical environment. Furthermore, both price perception and customer satisfaction played significant partial/complete mediating roles in the proposed model. The paper provides potential ways for restaurateurs to increase customer loyalty by improving their understanding of the roles of physical environment, price perception, and customer satisfaction.

The Effect of Environmental Perceptions on Behavioral Intentions Through Emotions: The Case of Upscale Restaurants

This research built a conceptual model to show how customers’ perceptions of dining environments influence behavioral intentions through emotions in the upscale restaurant setting. An environmental psychology model was proposed to explore the linkages between customers’ perceptions and emotions (pleasure and arousal) and between customers’ emotional states and behavioral intentions. A structural equation modeling analysis revealed that facility aesthetics, ambience, and employees had significant effects on the level of customer pleasure while ambience and employees significantly influenced the level of arousal. In addition, pleasure and arousal had significant impacts on behavioral intentions, and pleasure appeared to be the more influential emotion of the two. Implications for restaurateurs and academic researchers are also discussed.

Influence of the Quality of Food, Service, and Physical Environment on Customer Satisfaction and Behavioral Intention in Quick-Casual Restaurants: Moderating Role of Perceived Price

This study examined the relationships between three determinants of quality dimensions (predictors: food, service, and physical environment), price (moderator), and satisfaction and behavioral intention (criterion) in quick-casual restaurants. Despite the importance of foodservice quality, academics and managers know relatively little about how the combined effects of quality (food, service, and physical environment) elicit customer satisfaction which, in turn, affects behavioral intention. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis with interactions showed that quality of food, service, and physical environment were all significant determinants of customer satisfaction. In addition, perceived price acted as a moderator in the satisfaction formation process. Finally, the results indicated that customer satisfaction is indeed a significant predictor of behavioral intention. The findings may provide restaurateurs with a guideline for enhancing customer satisfaction and behavioral intention level.

Relationships among hedonic and utilitarian values, satisfaction and behavioral intentions in the fast‐casual restaurant industry

Purpose – The paper aims to examine the relationships among hedonic and utilitarian values, customer satisfaction and behavioral intentions in the fast‐casual restaurant industry.Design/methodology/approach – The measures were developed based on a thorough review of the previous literature. Questionnaires were collected in classroom settings at a mid‐western university in the USA. Anderson and Gerbings two‐step approach was employed to assess the measurement and structural models.Findings – The findings indicate that hedonic and utilitarian values significantly influence customer satisfaction, and customer satisfaction has a significant influence on behavioral intentions. Utilitarian value shows a greater influence on both customer satisfaction and behavioral intention than does hedonic value. This study also reveals that customer satisfaction acts as a partial mediator in the link between hedonic/utilitarian value and behavioral intentions.Research limitations/implications – Study findings will greatly ...

DINESCAPE: A Scale for Customers' Perception of Dining Environments

ABSTRACT This study explored the dimensions of the physical environment of upscale restaurants to develop the DINESCAPE scale. Relevant literature in environmental psychology and marketing was reviewed, highlighting empirical and theoretical contributions. The procedures used in constructing and refining a multiple-item scale to assess DINESCAPE in the upscale restaurant setting are specified in this paper. Based on quantitative analyses, a six-factor scale was identified, consisting of facility aesthetics, ambience, lighting, service product, layout, and social factors. The reliability and validity of the scale and the factor structure are presented, along with potential applications of the scale.

Intention to Experience Local Cuisine in a Travel Destination: The Modified Theory of Reasoned Action:

This article proposes a modified theory of reasoned action model in which past behavior was added to the original theory of reasoned action model. Using the proposed model, this study investigated the interdependence between attitudinal and normative components and also examined the model’s ability to predict tourist behavioral intentions to try local cuisine in a hypothetical situation. A structural equation analysis showed that the model had strong predictive ability for tourist intentions to experience local cuisine. Attitude and past behavior were significant predictors of tourist behavioral intentions. In addition, the interdependence between attitudinal and normative components were partly supported. Implications of the findings are discussed as well.

Moderating Role of Personal Characteristics in Forming Restaurant Customers' Behavioral Intentions: An Upscale Restaurant Setting

ABSTRACT This study attempted to investigate the relationships among overall service quality (OSQ), customer satisfaction (CS), and behavioral intentions (BI), such as repeat visit intention (RVI) and word-of-mouth intention (WOMI) by considering the moderating role of personal characteristics (gender and age) in an upscale restaurant setting. Structural equation analyses showed that OSQ was an antecedent of CS, and CS was a significant predictor of RVI and WOMI. In addition, metric invariance test revealed that the strength of the relationships among study constructs was, in general, strongly influenced by personal characteristics. Specifically, the CS-RVI link was stronger for women than for men, and the OSQ-CS-WOMI link was stronger for the high-age group than for the low-age group. However, the OSQ-CS-WOMI link was found to be equal across genders, and the influence of age on the CS-RVI link was identical across groups. The findings from this study will provide restaurant managers/marketers with a guideline for developing effective marketing/service strategies for customer retention.

Influence of Experiences on Memories, Satisfaction and Behavioral Intentions: A Study of Creative Tourism

ABSTRACT To date, few empirical studies have focused on the constituents of creative tourists’ experience and its consequences. This study aims to bridge this research gap by examining the effect of creative tourists’ experience on their memories, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions. Data were collected from 296 creative tourists, selected through purposive sampling, at selected resort hotels in the Malaysian states of Terengganu and Kedah. The results show that creative-tourist experience is a second-order factor with five dimensions, namely escape and recognition, peace of mind, unique involvement, interactivity, and learning. The results of structural equation modeling show that creative tourists’ experience is a good predictor of their memories, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions. The proposed model and findings can greatly help researchers and practitioners understand the concept of creative-tourist experience and its complex relationships with their memories, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions.

Key Factors Driving Customers’ Word-of-Mouth Intentions in Full-Service Restaurants The Moderating Role of Switching Costs

To date, little empirical study has tested the effects of service encounter performance, satisfaction, trust, commitment, and switching costs on word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions in a single framework. To fill this gap, this study attempted to investigate the roles that these variables play in determining WOM intentions of customers in a full-service restaurant by considering monetary and nonmonetary switching costs as moderators in WOM intentions, along with satisfaction, trust, and commitment. The results of the structural equation modeling showed that encounter performance, satisfaction, trust, and commitment had essential roles in generating WOM intentions, whereas satisfaction, trust, and commitment were found to act as partial or complete mediators in the proposed framework. Last, the tests verified the moderating effects of monetary and nonmonetary switching costs on the bonds linking encounter performance and satisfaction to WOM intentions. However, the paths from trust and commitment to WOM intentions were not moderated by switching costs. A key finding was that the perception of high switching costs may diminish customers’ intent to share word of mouth. Rather than attempt to create high switching costs, however, restaurateurs may improve WOM and reduce defections by paying careful attention to service excellence and meeting guests’ needs and desires.