Responsible service employee behaviour and its impact on customer satisfaction during the coronavirus crisis

Figures & data

Figure 1. Perceived service employee responsible behavior and its impact on customer satisfaction during the coronavirus crisis.

Table 1. Examples of satisfying and dissatisfying service encounters in the sample

High satisfaction

I was out shopping and following the guidelines when another customer bumped into me from the back. I politely asked them to get behind the marked area of the shop floor, but he ignored me. The supervisor of the store (a really lovely lady), was in the isle we were in, and proceeded to gently ask the gentleman to move back to the previous point he had just been in. The man was rather rude and began to curse at her. I couldn’t read the expression on the supervisor’s face, as she was wearing a mask, but her eyes spoke volumes of concern and a little bit of, perhaps anger or disappointment … she ended up removing the man from the store. All I could do was thank her in earnest, and after sanitizing my hands, I got her and her staff a card and some chocolates to, hopefully, show them that they are supremely appreciated. (female, 36 years) I had what I felt was very satisfying interaction with an employee at my local butchers’ shop. This is a small town shop which generally uses an old fashioned ‘sit up and beg’ bicycle outside the shop to advertise and display the origins of their meat on an attached chalk board. The bike is very large and has a basket on the front. To the amusement and admiration of all customers the bicycle has been moved inside the shop in front of the counter. This only leaves room for one customer at a time in the shop (good thing), with the remainder queuing outside. This enforced distancing has become quite a talking point in the shop and has made a potentially tense situation very relaxed and even quite numerous. (female, 70 years)

Low satisfaction

I visited a supermarket to do some shopping. I made sure I was clear and covered and kept my distance, but I wasn’t wearing a face mask but was more than 2 meters away when I approached an employee and asked him how he was and asked for help locating the eggs, he then took a few steps back with an angry look, I could tell through his eyes as he was wearing a mask and said not to speak with him as I do not have a face mask, but I wasn’t displaying any symptoms, and there were others around that didn’t have a face mask either, I felt very sad, angry and unclean. (male, 64 years) During lockdown there was a knock at the door and I opened it as I was expecting a parcel. Instead, there was a man standing right on the doorstep, saying he worked for a firm that laid driveways and asking if I needed any work doing. I was furious – he was right in my face and had been round all the other houses on the street. This firm was trying to capitalise on people being at home but completely disregarding social distancing advice and putting people at risk. I would not now use this company under any circumstances. (female, 45 years)

Table 2. The properties of the multi-item measures

Variables	Items	Loadings	CA	CR	AVE	M	SD
Perceived employee responsible behaviour	Th e employee kept a social distance. The employee was concerned with how close the customers were in relation to each other. The employee wore protective items (gloves etc).	0.86 0.84 0.75	0.75	0.86	0.67	6.93	2.86
Perceived employee morality	The employee was capable of telling right from wrong. The employee could understand negative and positive consequences of her/his behaviour. The employee appeared to have had a sense of what is fair. The employee could distinguish between what is good and what is bad.	0.92 0.96 0.96 0.98	0.97	0.98	0.91	7.06	2.97
Perceived employee humanness	The employee behaved very much like a human being. The employee was humanlike. The employee acted like human beings typically do.	0.97 0.97 0.92	0.95	0.97	0.91	7.67	2.69
Customer satisfaction	How dissatisfied or satisfied are you with the employee? To what extent did this employee meet your expectations? Imagine an employee that is perfect in every respect. How near or far from this ideal did you find this employee?	0.99 0.98 0.97	0.98	0.99	0.96	6.46	3.52

Table 3. Path coefficients for the associations in the proposed model

Association	Path coefficient	t	p
Employee responsible behaviour – Employee morality (H1)	0.54	11.44	<0.01
Employee morality – Employee humanness (H2)	0.79	15.41	<0.01
Employee humanness – Customer satisfaction (H3)	0.22	3.97	<0.01
Employee morality – Customer satisfaction	0.58	9.23	<0.01
Employee responsible behaviour – Employee humanness	−0.04	0.55	0.59
Employee responsible behaviour – Customer satisfaction	0.25	6.23	<0.01