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tween them (e.g. Bitner, 1990; Cronin and Taylor, 1992; Parasuraman et al., 1994).
Moreover, based on Oliver’s (1993) review of the issues, service quality is an antece-
dent to satisfaction and it is by nature, non-experiential, which is not unlike attitude in
nature that can be developed from other sources like word of mouth. Despite the ac-
knowledgement of the multi-attribute nature of both constructs, over the years, re-
searchers have been focusing on the identification of the attributes and expansive di-
mensions of service quality. Prior works in the topic differentiated between technical
and functional quality (GroEnroos, 1984) and stressed on the significance of the func-
tional or service delivery as an element of consumer evaluations. This distinction has
influenced later works where researchers (e.g. Parasuraman, et al., 1988, 1991, 1994;
Babakus & Boller, 1992; Mels et al., 1997; Carman, 1990) investigated the dimensio-
nality of service quality. Other later works like Smith (2000), provided the following
three elements of the service process in addition to outcome; access/convenience,
human elements comprising of the combination between instrumental and expressive
qualities and finally, tangibles.
The effect of consumer’s service evaluation (implicit or explicit) in service quality
and satisfaction literature indicates the relation between the constructs and consumer
behavior. Researchers have attempted to define the relationship between behavioral
intentions and satisfaction (e.g. Oliver, 1980; Mittal et al., 1999) and between beha-
vioral intentions and service quality (Parasuraman et al., 1994; Boulding et al., 1993).
Meanwhile other researchers investigated the antecedent relation between all three
constructs with conflicting findings (e.g. Cronin & Taylor, 1992; Liljander & Strand-