Measuring Service Quality Dimensions: An Empirical Analysis of Thai Hotel Industry

Abstract

The aim of this study is to focus on hotel service quality based on the application of 29 characteristic indicators from the SERVQUAL model by comparing two hotel types, namely the boutique and the business hotel, in Thailand and to understand the expectation, perception and gaps between expectation and perception regarding hotel service quality. The study applied a self-administered questionnaire to measure the expectation and perception of service quality characteristics of hotels in Thailand. A total of 108 usable questionnaires were analyzed. The analysis shows that the service quality of hotels in Thailand was moderately low. Hotels were not able to deliver services as expected. Also, the customer expectation of the services of the boutique hotels was higher than that of the business hotels. It is observed that this study can claim to be the pioneer study of hotel service quality in Thailand; in that sense this study contributes to the literature by providing an advanced understanding of the hotel service quality in different types of hotel. This study also provides an opportunity for a comparison with other studies conducted previously in different parts of the world.