Dynamics of Management of Low-cost Carriers to Thailand Measured by the SERVQUAL Model
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Abstract
This research assesses the service quality of the Low-cost airlines operating into Thailand. By applying the SERVQUAL model of Parasuraman, Zeithaml, & Berry (1988), the five dimension of service quality were measured to find the gaps between the expected service and perceived service, leading to the level of service quality. A questionnaire was designed to collect data from the research population, international passengers on Low-cost carriers serving Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang Airport, Thailand. The research population was reached through non-probability sampling of a convenient and accidental selection from July-August 2019. Two hundred twenty-five questionnaires (N = 225) were returned, and the SPSS software program analyzed collated data using descriptive statistics to find the gaps in expected, perceived and post service quality. Cronbach’s Alpha was used to check the reliability of the Likert scales, and the Chi-square Test checked the significance between the dependent variables regardless of the hypothesis. The results were international passengers perceived the service quality delivered by the Low-cost carriers was high in four dimensions, with gaps between the expected service and perceived service less than one. Tangibility-expected service x̄ = 4.91, perceived service x̄ = 4.00, gap = 0.91; Reliability-expected service x̄ = 4.9, perceived service x̄ = 4.03, gap = 0.88; Responsiveness-expected service x̄ = 4.97, perceived service x̄ = 4.12, gap = 0.85; Assurance-expected service x̄ = 4.98, perceived service x̄ = 4.03, gap = 0.95; and Empathy-expected service x̄ = 4.94, perceived service x̄ = 3.88, gap = 1.06. The dimension of empathy was above one (1.06), meaning the perceived quality of service was lower than expected.
Keywords: Dynamics of Management, Low-cost Carriers, Thailand, Service Quality, SERVQUAL Model
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