Building Customer Loyalty in Intercultural Service Encounters: The Role of Service Employees’ Cultural Intelligence

Abstract

Intercultural service encounters, in which customers and service employees from different cultures interact, are becoming more common in the market. Despite the importance of such encounters for international marketers, limited research attention has been directed to this area. Drawing on social exchange theory, this study examines how frontline employees' cultural intelligence (CQ) influences customer loyalty outcomes of service quality perceptions. Specifically, the authors propose that the three components of CQ-cognitive, emotional/motivational, and physical-have differential moderating effects on the perceived service quality (PSQ)-customer loyalty link and that these effects vary across two national markets. Data collected with a multirespondent (i.e., frontline service employees and customers) cross-cultural research design indicate that cognitive CQ negatively mitigates the impact of PSQ on customer loyalty in an emerging market context while emotional/motivational CQ has a positive moderating effect in a mature market setting. When service employees have high physical CQ, the positive role of PSQ in creating and maintaining customer loyalty is strengthened in both markets. The authors discuss these implications for theory and practice.

Customer experiences in the age of artificial intelligence

“…The measurement items ( Appendix A ) for all constructs were adopted from previous studies: AI- enabled customer experience ( Foroudi et al, 2018 ; Oh et al, 2012 ; Otto & Ritchie, 1996 ), AI- enabled service quality ( Wolfinbarger & Gilly, 2003 ; Chang & Wang, 2011), relationship commitment ( Fullerton, 2005 ), trust ( Wang et al, 2019 ; Paparoidamis, Tran, & Leonidou, 2019 ), perceived convenience ( Collier & &Sherrell, 2010 ), personalisation ( Chellappa & Sin, 2005 ) and perceived sacrifice ( Merisavo et al, 2007 ; Shin & Lin, 2016 ). We used multiple items to measure each factor.…”

Marketing of Cultural Services: Social and Cultural Challenges of the Region

“…Based on the theory of social exchange, authors Paparoidamis N.G., Tran H.T.T., Leonidou C.N. examine how the cultural intelligence of employees affects the results of customer loyalty in terms of perceptions of service quality [19]. This statement is relevant to the process of providing cultural services because the perception of these services and the emotional impact is a key component [20,21].…”

Influence of servicescape on behavioural intentions through mediation and moderation effects: A study on Malaysia’s full-service restaurants

“…As for the presence of employees, customers will feel more comfortable interacting with those perceived as similar to themselves (Paparoidamis et al, 2019), especially when they believe that such similarities could help employees anticipate and understand their desires, needs and preferences. Therefore, this sense of similarity perception at service will generate satisfaction and willingness to pay.…”