| This research investigated and compared service quality evaluations of banking services among the customers of foreign banks and Thai banks using the three-column format of the SERVQUAL instrument. Primary research questions included the nature of the differences between the two groups of bank customers in terms of desired service expectations, adequate service expectations, perceptions of services, the measure of service superiority (MSS), the measure of service adequacy (MSA), and the rankings of the five dimensions of service quality. In addition, the study examined the differences in service quality ratings between the customers of foreign banks and Thai banks on the bases of demographic characteristics (age) and customer information (length of the customer's relationship with bank and size of customer's deposits).;A survey was conducted after the SERVQUAL questionnaire was translated into Thai and back translated into English by a certified educational institute in Thailand. Trained interviewers were assigned to collect the data from three hundred walk-in customers conveniently drawn from five major foreign banks and five major Thai banks located in the metropolitan area of Bangkok, Thailand. Data were checked for their accuracy and completeness before being used in subsequent analyses.;Data analyses were conducted using SPSS and AMOS statistical software packages. First, the scales were evaluated for their reliability and validity. Cronbach's alphas showed that the scales were highly reliable and results from confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the validity of the scales. MANOVA and ANOVA analyses were used to test hypotheses one, two, three, four, five, and seven while Mann-Whitney tests were used to test hypothesis six. Out of the seven hypotheses, five were rejected and two could not be rejected.;Major findings from the study indicated that there were significant differences of service quality perceptions between the customers of foreign banks and Thai banks in terms of desired service expectations, perceptions of services, the measure of service superiority (MSS), and the measure of service adequacy (MSA). Results showed that there was no significant difference in terms of the level of adequate service expectations between the two groups of bank customers. In addition, the analyses also suggested that there were no significant differences across the customer's age, lengths of relationship with banks, and sizes of deposits.;This research offered insightful information on the nature of the differences in service quality evaluations between customers of foreign banks and Thai banks. Findings from this research could be used for service quality planning and strategy implementation. In addition, this study also provided the evidence of reliability and validity of the revised three-column format of the SERVQUAL instrument in the context of banking services in Thailand.;Future research could extend this study to include business customers as well as expand to cover the regional Asian banking industries. Comparisons of the service quality of bank branches located in different countries could also be conducted. However, such comparative studies should also take into account the potential effects of cultural differences in service quality evaluations. |
