Impact of e-Quality and service recovery on loyalty: A study of e-banking in Spain

Abstract

The purposes of this study are twofold: (i) to propose and apply scales to measure service quality and service recovery in the setting of electronic banking (e-banking) services; and (ii) to examine the impact of electronic service quality (e-quality) and service recovery (e-recovery) on loyalty (e-loyalty) in the setting of e-banking services. An online questionnaire is used to survey 428 Spanish customers of e-banking services (123 of whom have reported a service failure) using modified versions of the E-S-QUAL and E-RecS-QUAL scales. The data are analysed by exploratory factor analysis to: (i) test the applicability of the scales to the setting of online banking services: and (ii) generate and test a model of e-quality, e-recovery, and e-loyalty using structural equation modelling. Three of the four dimensions of the original E-S-QUAL scale and two of the three dimensions of the original E-RecS-QUAL scale are confirmed in the setting of e-banking services. The study reassures managers of online banks that modified versions of the E-S-QUAL and E-RecS-QUAL scales are appropriate instruments for measuring e-quality and e-recovery. The study also provides empirical evidence that efficiency of a website and responsiveness to complaints have a positive influence on e-loyalty. The study is the first to provide definitive empirical evidence (in the context of e-banking) of the presumed link between: (i) the e-quality and e-recovery dimensions proposed in the E-S-QUAL and E-RecS-QUAL scales; and (ii) the construct of loyalty.

Keywords:

• loyalty
• recovery
• electronic commerce
• electronic service quality
• E-S-QUAL
• E-RecS-QUAL

Acknowledgement

This article was written as part of a research project entitled ‘Mejora de la satisfacción de los clientes en las empresas españolas mediante modelos y estándares de gestión de la calidad’ (ECO2009-12754-C02-01) financed by the Ministry of Science and Innovation within the aid program for R & D projects and as a part of the Ministry of Science and Innovation aid Program for the Formation of University Researchers (Programa Nacional de Formación de Profesorado Universitario).