A comparative study of positive and negative electronic word-of-mouth on the SERVQUAL scale during the COVID-19 epidemic - taking a regional teaching hospital in Taiwan as an example

Abstract

Background In recent years, studies have shown that electronic WOM (eWOM) directly reflects consumers’ post-purchase psychological perception and directly affects repurchase behavior. This information is valued by institutions in various fields. Within the scope of the evaluation of service characteristics, medical service is the least visible and most difficult service attribute to evaluate. Service organizations must have high trust attributes. Therefore, an eWOM review significantly influences people’s decision-making process when choosing a healthcare provider. The purpose of this research is to combine eWOM reviews with the SERVQUAL scale in a comparative study of positive and negative eWOM reviews of a regional teaching hospital in Taiwan. Methods This research obtained data from publicly available eWOM reviews on Google Maps of a regional teaching hospital in Taiwan over the past 10 years (from June 24, 2011, to December 31, 2021) using website scraping technology. The semantic content analysis method was used in this study to classify eWOM reviews according to the revised PZB SERVQUAL scale. Results Statistical analysis was conducted. During the COVID-19 pandemic, positive reviews showed a downward trend. Among the five determinants of the SERVQUAL of PZB, positive eWOM reviews performed best in “assurance” with a positive review rate of 60.00%, followed by 42.11% for “reliability”. For negative eWOM reviews, “assurance” performed the worst with a positive rate of 72.34%, followed by “responsiveness” at 28.37% and “reliability” at 26.95%. Conclusion Since the onset of COVID-19 in 2020, negative eWOM has increased significantly and exceeded the amount of positive eWOM. Regardless of positive and negative reviews, what patients care most about is “assurance” of the professional attitude and skills of medical staff, which urgently needs to be strengthened. In addition, good “reliability” will help to develop positive eWOM. However, “responsiveness” as indicated by poor service waiting time can easily lead to the spread of negative eWOM. Hospital management should focus on these service-oriented qualities.

Exploring Consumers’ Negative Electronic Word-of-Mouth of 5 Military Hospitals in Taiwan Through SERVQUAL and Flower of Services: Web Scraping Analysis

“…The findings revealed that the average rating was 3.4 for medical centers, 3.27 for regional hospitals, and 3.08 for military hospitals, indicating that military hospitals’ ratings were lower than those of comparable civilian hospitals. However, on the basis of our comprehensive review and search, only Lee et al [ 17 ] have explored both positive and negative eWOM within the context of military health care institutions. Furthermore, their study was confined to a single health care institution, providing somewhat restricted insights into the broader comprehension of eWOM within the hospital sector.…”

“…Their focus was primarily on applying the theory of cognitive dissonance, the theory of the strength of weak ties, and the theory of perceived risk, with no cases integrating SERVQUAL theory. In our search within the “Health Care Sciences & Services” field, only Lee et al [ 17 ] studied positive and negative WOM at a regional teaching hospital in Taiwan. They found that during the COVID-19 pandemic, negative reviews exceeded positive ones, with “Assurance” performing the worst in negative eWOM among the 5 determinants of PZB SERVQUAL, followed by “Responsiveness” and “Reliability” [ 17 ].…”

“…In our search within the “Health Care Sciences & Services” field, only Lee et al [ 17 ] studied positive and negative WOM at a regional teaching hospital in Taiwan. They found that during the COVID-19 pandemic, negative reviews exceeded positive ones, with “Assurance” performing the worst in negative eWOM among the 5 determinants of PZB SERVQUAL, followed by “Responsiveness” and “Reliability” [ 17 ]. Since the study was limited to one hospital, its extrapolation to all health care institutions is insufficient.…”

“…Moreover, eWOM during COVID-19 was notably characterized by low trust and high perceived risk [ 34 ]. The research conducted by Lee et al [ 17 ] showed that during the COVID-19 pandemic, negative reviews surpassed positive reviews.…”

Role of Social Media Marketing in Building Cause-Oriented Campaigns

“…In an epoch characterized by the amalgamation of technology and societal awareness, the function of social media marketing has gone beyond traditional limitations, manifesting as a dynamic agent that propels significant transformation through cause-driven initiatives (Sengupta & Behera, 2015). Social media platforms have undergone significant transformations, emerging as influential instruments that facilitate interpersonal connections, magnify diverse perspectives, and mobilize collective endeavors (Lee et al, 2022). Consequently, their capacity to mold and influence attitudes, behaviors, and societal outcomes has attracted considerable scholarly interest (Ushakov & Shatila, 2022).…”