Managing Service Quality

Emerald Article: A customized measure of service quality in the UAE Naceur Jabnoun, Azaddin Khalifa

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To cite this document: Naceur Jabnoun, Azaddin Khalifa, (2005),"A customized measure of service quality in the UAE", Managing Service Quality, Vol. 15 Iss: 4 pp. 374 - 388 Permanent link to this document: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/09604520510606844 Downloaded on: 03-05-2012 References: This document contains references to 51 other documents Citations: This document has been cited by 2 other documents To copy this document: permissions@emeraldinsight.com This document has been downloaded 4286 times.

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A customized measure of service quality in the UAE

Naceur Jabnoun and Azaddin Khalifa
Department of Business Administration, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Abstract
Purpose The concerns of service quality may differ from one country to another. It is therefore crucial to develop measures of service quality that are pertinent to the country and culture where the service is offered. This paper proposes developing a measure of service quality in the UAE and then testing this measure in UAE conventional and Islamic banks. Design/methodology/approach The components of service quality were developed through a brainstorming and sorting exercise. Based on the results of this exercise, the authors developed a 30-item questionnaire comprising the ve dimensions of SERVQUAL and two other dimensions called values and image. The questionnaire was distributed to customers of UAE conventional and Islamic banks in Dubai and Sharjah. Factor analysis of the responses resulted in four dimensions. The reliability and predictive validity of these dimensions were conrmed. Finally separate regression models were developed for conventional and Islamic banks. These models were analyzed and compared. Findings Factor analysis resulted in four dimensions: personal skills, reliability, values, and image. Results of regression analysis revealed that all four dimensions were signicant in determining service quality in conventional banks. Values and image were however the most important of these dimensions. On the other hand, only personal skill and values were signicant in determining service quality in Islamic banks. Originality/value This paper emphasizes the need to customize measures of service quality to different countries. This is particularly important for multi-national corporations. This paper also provides guidelines for bank managers in the UAE on which dimensions of service quality they should emphasize in order to retain their customers and attract new ones. This paper has important research implications on the relationship between national culture and service quality and on the service quality of Islamic banks. Keywords Service quality, Banks, Measurement, United Arab Emirates Paper type Research paper

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Managing Service Quality Vol. 15 No. 4, 2005 pp. 374-388 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0960-4529 DOI 10.1108/09604520510606844

Overlooking differences between cultures has recently been shown to limit the ability of service multinationals to expand their activities internationally (Kogut and Singh, 1988; Li and Guisinger, 1991, 1992). Furer et al. (2002) argue that the importance and perception of service quality are highly dependent on customers values and beliefs that might change from one culture to another. This dependence has led to increased concern about the relationship between national culture and service quality. Winsted (1997) developed behavioral-based service encounter dimensions for the USA and Japan and identied cultural differences between Western and Asian customers. Mattila (1999) examined the impact of culture on hotel service encounters. She attempted to understand the tradeoffs that Western and Asian customers are willing to make between personalized service and pleasant physical environment in a context of luxury hotels. She also explained cultural differences between Asians and Westerners in terms of the Hofstede (1980, 1991) dimensions of national culture.

Donthu and Yoo (1998) used Hofstedes dimensions of culture and the dimensions of service quality from the SERVQUAL scale to develop and test hypotheses relating the ve dimensions of culture with both a measure of the overall service quality expectation and the ve service quality dimensions. As an extension of the work of Donthu and Yoo, Furer et al. (2002)) mapped the relationship between the ve dimensions of SERVQUAL and the ve dimensions of culture developed by Hofstede (1991). Their study also considered contingency variables such as powerful or weak customers, male or female employees, and frequent or infrequent service situations. They also developed a Cultural Service Quality Index (CSQI) that evaluated the relative importance of each SERVQUAL dimension as a function of the ve cultural dimensions and that could be used to segment multicultural markets and allocate resources across cultural segments. The above studies have focused on the differences in the importance and perceptions of the SERVQUAL dimensions, and did not address the need to customize the SERVQUAL to adapt to different cultures. Indeed customers in some parts of the world may be concerned about certain dimensions of service quality that are not addressed by SEVQUAL. This appears to be particularly the case when we address banking service quality in Muslim countries. This paper develops a measure of service quality in the UAE and uses it to compare UAE service quality between conventional and Islamic banks. SERVQUAL The SERVQUAL scale (Parasuraman et al., 1985, 1988, 1991) has been widely utilized by both managers (Parasuraman et al., 1991) and academics (Babakus and Boller, 1992; Carman, 1990; Crompton and Mackay, 1989; Cronin and Taylor, 1992; Webster, 1989; Woodside et al., 1989). The popularity of SERVQUAL is due to a number of advantages that it has been recognized for (Buttle, 1994): . It is accepted as a standard for assessing different dimensions of service quality. . It has been shown to be valid for a number of service situations. . It has been demonstrated to be reliable, meaning that different readers interpret the questions similarly. . The instrument is parsimonious in that it has a limited number of items. This means that customers and employees can ll it out quickly. . It has a standardized analysis procedure to aid interpretation of results. SERVQUAL (Parasuraman et al., 1988, 1991) consists of the ve dimensions explained below: (1) Reliability. This dimension refers to the ability to perform the service dependably and accurately. (2) Responsiveness. This dimension refers to the willingness to help customers and provide prompt service. (3) Tangibles. This dimension refers to the physical facilities, equipment, and appearance of personnel. (4) Assurance. This dimension refers to employees knowledge, courtesy and ability to convey trust and condence. (5) Empathy. This dimension refers to the level of caring and individual attention provided to customers.

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SERVQUAL consists of two sections. A 21-item section measuring the service quality expectation within a specic sector and a corresponding twenty-one item section measuring the perception of service quality of a particular company in that sector (Parasuraman et al., 1988, 1991). SERVQUAL scores were dened as the differences between the expected service quality and the perceived one. The psychometric properties of SERVQUAL have been examined in many studies. The evidence provides general support for the validity and reliability of the instrument (Kettinger and Lee, 1995; Finn and Lamb, 1991; Lam, 1997). The major empirical problem of the instrument lies in its unstable dimensionality (Van Dyke et al., 1997; Carman, 1990). Babakus and Boller (1992) suggested that the dimensionality of service quality might depend on the type of industry being studied. They further argued that measures designed for specic industries are more appropriate than using a generic one. Dening SERVQUAL scores as the differences between expectations and perceptions was also challenged in a number of studies. Carman (1990) and Babakus and Boller (1992) questioned the appropriateness of using measures dened as differences in multivariate analysis and argued for using perception scores only. Barbakus and Boller also found that perception scores, by themselves, had stronger correlation with independent measures, such as overall quality, than do the SERVQUAL measures (expectations minus perceptions). There have been a few empirical studies that dealt with the application of SERVQUAL instrument in the banking industry such as Kwan and Lee (1994), Blanched and Galloway (1994), Jun et al. (1999); Natarajan et al. (1999), and Lassar et al. (2000). Jun et al. (1999) studied the service quality of delivering loan products. They found out that substantial differences existed between bankers and customers groups in the perceived importance of service quality dimensions. Blanched and Galloway (1994) used the SERVQUAL technique in examining quality in retail banking. In order to provide useful insights into how service might be improved, these authors attempted to develop an alternative model. They, however, adopted most of the items of the original model in their survey. They claimed that their model was general enough to be very widely applicable, and specic enough to give actionable diagnostic information. Natarajan et al. (1999) examined the continuous improvement of service operations in which the actual service experience is assessed through a customer survey. Their paper discusses a study of operations in the branch of a bank in Bangalore, India. The SERVQUAL instrument was not used, although many of its items were adopted. Lassar et al. (2000) adopted two techniques in their study for service quality perspectives and satisfaction in private banking, the rst was SERVQUAL and the second was a measure of technical/functional quality. In the second approach, technical quality involves what is provided while functional quality considers how it is provided. These two service quality measures were subsequently compared and contrasted as to their ability to predict customer satisfaction. The study provides initial support in favor of the idea that SERVQUAL and technical/functional quality-based models may be unequally or asymmetrically applicable across different settings and situations. The authors suggested to employ both of these two measures in varying situations and contexts, as well as with different customer groups. Kangis and Voukelatos (1997) compared private and public banks in Greece. They found that expectations and perceptions of most of the dimensions of service quality to

be marginally higher in the private. Allred and Adams (2000) compared service quality at banks and credit unions. They indicate that credit unions rated signicantly higher than banks on 11 of the 14 service quality questions. Research on service quality in UAE banks is rather limited. Al Tamimi and Al Amiri (2003) compared the ve dimensions of SERVQUAL between the two main Islamic banks of UAE; Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, and Dubai Islamic bank. Their study did not attempt to address different dimensions of service quality that might be related to UAE culture. An instrument for measuring service quality in UAE banks based on the ve items of SERVQUAL was developed and tested in 2002. Factor analysis of the items of SERVQUAL resulted in three dimensions: tangibles, reliability, and empathy. They found out that reliability was the most important dimension of their instrument. While their factor analysis resulted in a three-dimension instrument, there was also no attempt to address new service quality dimensions that are particular to UAE culture. Issues such as image and the extent to which the services of an organization t the values of customers have not been addressed in any research on service quality. The importance of values as determinant of service quality can be attributed to customers desire for psychic needs fulllment (Groth, 1994). To devout Muslims, there is no value in what they consider forbidden in their religion. On the other hand, receiving a service that they consider to be allowed in their religion fullls their psychic needs particularly in environments in which religiously allowed offerings are limited. Another explanation of the importance of values in judging the level of service quality comes from means-ends models of customer value. These models are based on the assumption that customers acquire and use products or services to accomplish favorable ends. This view is prevalent in consumer behavior literature in particular, where value is dened in terms of personal values, mental images, or cognitive representations underlying customers needs and goals (Rokeach, 1973; Gutman, 1982; Peter and Olson, 1987; Wilkie, 1994; de Chernatony et al., 2000). Huber et al. (2001), for example, state that means-ends theory postulates that linkages between product attributes, consequences produced through consumption, and personal values of consumers underlie their decision-making processes (Gutman, 1991). Products and services are the means, while customers personal values are the ends. An individuals evaluation of the quality of a product or service is partly based on whether that product or service enables him or her to achieve his or her desired end states. This ends-means theory can also be found in branding literature. A brand that satises customers practical needs, for example, delivers functional value, whereas a brand that satises customers self-expression needs delivers symbolic value (Bhat and Reddy, 1998). Related to this argument is Lanning (1998), who asserts that the customers resulting experience includes one or a series of related physical or mental events leading to an end-result or a consequence that is measurably specic. Khalifa (2004) in his discussion of the buildup of customer value argues that it accumulates as the: satised needs advance from utility to psychic; customer benets offered transcend tangibles to intangibles; nature of the relationship between the customer and the supplier develops from transaction to interaction; and customer treatment shifts from being a consumer to being a person. This accumulation of value may take one of four distinct forms that can be arranged from low to high as follows: functionality, solution, experience, and meaning. The rst three forms are well

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articulated in the literature (see, for example, Horovitz, 2000). Khalifas (2004) discussion of the fourth form of customer value is revealing. Meaning, he argues, magnies the worth to the experience. It links the immediateness of the experience to the enduringness of strongly held personal philosophy. It takes the experience to new heights of self-actualization. The difference between experience and meaning is that the former can be understood as living through something; while the latter can be thought of as living for some purpose. In other words, when the customer discovers, for example, that his/her experience is consistent with and advancing his/her beliefs and purpose in life the value he/she attributes to it intensies. The link between image and service quality has not been clearly established in the literature. However, in markets where imitation is rampant and in which there is little differentiation if any, it is unlikely for ordinary consumers (casual consumers with few frequencies of encounters and who may not have the chance to deal with more that one service provider) to nd it easy to evaluate the quality of the services they receive. In this case, they may need some kind of norm for what is good, acceptable, or expected. Image and reputation may play the role of norm or expectation setter (Oliver, 1980). Aaker and Keller (1990) found that perception of high quality for the original brand positively affects consumers evaluation of brand extensions. It has been suggested that a brand will have a perception of overall quality not necessarily based on knowledge of detailed specications associated with it. Hoch and Ha (1986) provide some explanation to this link in their study of the inuence of advertising on how and what consumers learn from product experience. We assume, of course, that the same might be extended to apply to service experience. Hoch and Ha (1986) concluded that advertising had dramatic effects on perception of quality when consumers saw ambiguous evidence about quality. They explain that consumers use advertisements as tentative conjectures about product (or service) performance, and product search and experience provide them the opportunity to evaluate the credibility of these advertisements. Reputation and brand name are built on the ability to deliver continuously on promises, and as such, they serve as extrinsic cues in evaluating service quality, especially when intrinsic cues fail to differentiate the level of service quality of one service provider from another (Zeithaml, 1988). In emerging markets, such as the UAE, brand reputation and image may play a vital role as differentiator in the mind of the consumer who may highly appreciate the services received by a reputable organization if no serious incidents happen to suggest otherwise. Methodology Instruments The rst author asked 15 managers taking a total quality management (TQM) course in an EMBA program at the University of Sharjah to have brainstorming exercise for determining the items of service quality. After writing the items on the board, the rst author asked the managers to sort these items. The sorting exercise resulted in the ve dimensions of SERVQUAL in addition to two other new dimensions that are labeled values and image. Based on this exercise, the authors developed a questionnaire including the seven dimensions. This questionnaire was pilot studied through its convenient distribution to 30 people. This pilot study resulted in the deletion of one

item. As a result the questionnaire contained 30 items including ve items of reliability, three items of responsiveness, four items of empathy, four items of assurance, and ve items of tangibles, six items of values and three items of image. Data collection Data were collected during the three months of August, September, and October of 2004. The target population includes the customers of the three Islamic banks of UAE: National Bank of Sharjah, Dubai Islamic Bank, and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank in addition to the customers of the main conventional banks such as Abu Dhabi National Bank, Dubai Commercial Bank, and Mashreq Bank. Our assistant contacted branch managers of these banks in Sharjah and Dubai, and requested their permission to allow her distribute the questionnaires to their clients. Our assistant has continued collecting data until she collected 115 responses for Islamic banks and 115 responses for conventional banks. Sample characteristics The sample includes 115 customers of Islamic bank and 115 customers of conventional banks. Females make 38.3 percent of the customers of conventional banks while they make 50.4 percent of the customers of Islamic banks. Locals make 16.5 percent of the customers of Conventional banks while they make 32.2 percent of the customers of Islamic banks. Arabs make 36.5 percent of the customers of conventional banks and 47 percent of the customers of Islamic banks. On the other hand Asian make 41.7 percent of the customers of conventional while they make only 17.4 percent of the customers of Islamic banks. With regard to educational level, people with only high school education make 15.7 percent of the customers of conventional banks while they make 16.5 percent of the customers of Islamic banks. Diploma holders make 19.1 percent of the customers of conventional banks and they make 15.7 percent of the customers of Islamic banks. Holders of Bachelor degrees make 45.2 percent of the customers of conventional banks while they make up 53.9 of the customers of Islamic banks. Finally, holders of postgraduate degrees make 20 percent of the customers of conventional banks while they make 13.9 percent of the customers of Islamic banks. The sample characteristics for both conventional and Islamic banks are shown in Table I. Factor analysis All 30 items of the questionnaire were factor analyzed using principal component extraction with an orthogonal (varimax) rotation. The number of factors was unconstrained. For the sake of convergent validity, 0.4 was used as a factor loading cut-off point. Factors including less than three items were eliminated. Using these criteria resulted in four factors totaling 29 items. These factors are labeled personal skills, reliability, image and values. The alpha coefcients of these four factors were 0.9414, 0.8518, 0.8808, and 0.9194 respectively (see Table II). These results indicate that the four factors are reliable (Nunally, 1978). This supports the internal cohesiveness of the items forming each dimension. There are 12 items of personal skills that belonged to the original dimensions of responsiveness, assurance and empathy. There are ve items of reliability. Four of these items belonged to the original dimension of reliability and one

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Conventional banks Gender Male Female Total Nationality Local Arab Asian European Total Education High school Diploma Bachelor degree Post graduate degree Total Islamic banks Gender Male Female Total Nationality Local Arab Asian European Total Education High school Diploma Bachelor degree Post graduate degree Total

Frequency

Percent

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71 44 115 19 42 48 6 115 18 22 52 23 115

61.7 38.3 100.0 16.5 36.5 41.7 5.2 100.0 15.7 19.1 45.2 20.0 100.0

57 58 115 37 54 20 4 115 19 18 62 16 115

49.6 50.4 100.0 32.2 47.0 17.4 3.5 100.0 16.5 15.7 53.9 13.9 100.0

Table I. Sample characteristics for conventional and Islamic banks frequencies

belonged to tangibles. There are six items on image of which four belonged to the original dimension of tangibles and two belonged to image. Finally, the resulting instrument has ve items on values that all belonged to the original dimension of values. Predictive validity The predictive validity of this instrument was tested using correlation and regression analysis. The Pearson correlation coefcient between the overall service quality and the four dimensions of the instrument are shown in Table III. This table shows that all coefcients are signicant at the 0.001 level. This supports the predictive validity of the instrument. Regression analysis was also conducted for the purpose of predictive validity.

Original dimensions Factor loading Personal skills (alpha 0.9414) Bank employees provide prompt service to customers Bank employees are willing to help customers Bank employees are ready to respond to customers request Bank employees instill condence in customers Bank employees make customers feel safe in their transaction Bank employees are consistently courteous Bank employees have the knowledge to answer customer questions Bank employees give customers individual attention Bank employees deal with customers in a caring fashion Bank employees have the customers best interest at heart Bank employees understand the needs of their customers Services of this bank are highly appreciated by my family members and/or relatives Reliability (alpha 0.8518) Bank employees provide services as promised Bank employees are dependable in handling customers service problems Bank employees perform services right at the rst time Bank employees provide services at the promised time The bank has convenient business hours Image (alpha 0.8808) The bank has modern equipment The bank has visually appealing facilities Employees have a neat, professional appearance The bank has visually appealing material associated with the service This bank is highly reputable Services of this bank are highly appreciated by people I do business with Values (alpha 0.9194) Services of this bank are in line with our social values Services of this bank are in line with my religion Services of this bank contribute to the welfare of the society Services of this bank are consistent with my personal values Services of this bank are consistent with my life goals Services of this bank have a high image in the society Responsiveness Responsiveness Responsiveness Assurance Assurance Assurance Assurance Empathy Empathy Empathy Empathy Values 0.529 0.526 0.562 0.545 0.541 0.649 0.634 0.642 0.643 0.806 0.770 0.525

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Reliability Reliability Reliability Reliability Tangible Tangible Tangible Tangible Tangible Image Image

0.697 0.726 0.709 0.701 0.504 0.769 0.704 0.650 0.610 0.668 0.607

Values Values Values Values Values Image

0.579 0.767 0.816 0.816 0.823 0.635

Table II. Resulting dimensions and their reliability coefcients

Overall People Reliability Values Image Note: * Signicant at the 0.01 level 0.750* 0.717* 0.668* 0.689*

Table III. Pearson Correlations coefcients

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The regression model has the following form: OVERALL f personal skills; reliability; values; image : The summary of the regression results are shown in Table IV. It can be seen from the results provided in Table IV that the R-square is 0.667. This indicates that the four independent variables explain 66.7 percent of the variations in overall service quality. This R-square is signicant at the 0.001 level. The resulting regression model is: OVERALL 0:127 0:296 personal skills 0:220 reliability 0:252 values 0:172 image: Table IV shows that the coefcients of the dimensions of personal skills, reliability, and values are signicant at the 0.01 level, while the coefcient for image is signicant at the 0.05 level. This supports the predictive validity of the questionnaire. This also stresses the importance of customizing measures of service quality to different countries. This importance is illustrated in Figure 1, which shows the ve dimensions of the generic SERVQUAL in the rst column and the signicant dimensions of service quality in UAE banks. The second column includes the dimension of reliability which also existed in the generic SERVQUAL, the dimension of personal skills which includes items on assurance, responsiveness and empathy. More importantly the second column includes the two new dimensions of image and values. The signicance of the four dimensions of service quality within conventional banks In order to study the signicance of personal skills, reliability, values, and image in determining service quality in conventional banks, a regression model was conducted. The summary of the regression results is shown in Table V. The results provided in Table V show an R-square of 0.675. This means that the three independent variables explain 67.5 percent of the variations in overall service quality in conventional banks. This R-square is signicant at the 0.001 level. The resulting regression model is: OVERALL 0:129 0:208 personal skills 0:214 reliability 0:300 values 0:261 image:
Model 1 (constant) People Reliability Values Image Beta 0.127 0.296 0.220 0.252 0.172 t 0.554 4.156 3.333 4.847 2.900 Sig. level 0.580 0.000 0.001 0.000 0.004

382

Table IV. Summary of regression results

Notes: R square 0:667, F 112:657, sig. level 0:000

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Figure 1. Dimensions of service quality

Model (Constant) Personal Reliability Values Image

Beta 0.129 0.208 0.214 0.300 0.261

t 0.456 2.254 2.512 4.474 3.095

Sig. level 0.649 0.026 0.013 0.000 0.002

Notes: R square 0:675, F 57:186, sig. level 0:000

Table V. Summary of regression results for conventional banks

Table V also shows that the coefcients of the four dimensions are signicant. Personal skills and reliability were signicant at the 0.05 level, while values and image were signicant at the 0.01 level. The dimensions of service quality shown in column 2 of Figure 1 also remain valid for conventional banks. The dimension of values has the highest coefcients among the four dimensions. Image has the second highest coefcient. Both values and image were not considered in the previous studies on service quality in UAE banks. That study which was based on the ve dimensions of SERVQUAL found reliability to be the most important dimension while this study shows that reliability comes third in importance to values and image within UAE conventional banks. This emphasizes the importance of including the dimensions of values and image in measuring service quality in the UAE. This also stresses the importance of customizing measures of service quality to different countries.

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The signicance of the four dimensions of service quality within Islamic banks In order to study the signicance of the personal skills, reliability, values, and image in determining service quality in Islamic banks, regression model was conducted. The summary of the regression results are shown in Table VI. It can be seen from the results provided in Table VI that there is an R-square of 0.624 This indicates that the four independent variables explain 62.4 percent of the variations in overall service quality in Islamic banks. This R-square is signicant at the 0.001 level. The resulting regression model is: OVERALL 20:0137 0:410 personal skills 0:184 reliability 0:168 values 0:128 image: Table VI shows that the coefcients of the personal skills and values are the only signicant dimensions in determining overall service quality in Islamic banks. This stresses the importance of personal skills and values. Islamic banks seem to have positioned themselves in a way that meets the expectations of their customers. Indeed descriptive statistics that Islamic banks have scored highly in personal skills and in values which had mean values of 5.1319 and 5.3449 respectively. On the other hand, conventional banks had a mean score of 4.7949 for personal skills and 4.6014 for values. Table VI also shows that reliability which was found to be signicant when considering both Islamic and conventional banks are insignicant when we consider Islamic banks alone. Furthermore, the dimension of image, which was found to be the second most important dimension among the customers of conventional banks, is insignicant among customers of Islamic banks. Column three of Figure 1 shows that the number of signicant dimension of service quality have been reduced to personal skills and values. This shows that customers of Islamic banks have service quality concerns that are signicantly different from those of their counterparts in conventional banks. Customers of Islamic banks are most concerned with the human touch manifested in their service providers empathy, courtesy, and responsiveness which are included in the dimension of personal skills. Customers of Islamic banks are also highly concerned with degree to which the service they receive is in line with their religion and values. Customers of Islamic banks are however not concerned about the image and the outlook of their banks. They are also willing to tolerate low reliability if they are satised with personal skills and values.
Model 1 (constant) Personal Reliability Values Image Beta 2 0.0137 0.410 0.184 0.168 0.128 t 2 0.032 3.521 1.695 2.077 1.550 Sig. level 0.974 0.001 0.093 0.040 0.124

Table VI. Summary of regression results for Islamic banks

Notes: R square 0:624, F 45:689, sig. level 0:000

Conclusion This paper started with the assumption that service quality concerns are different from one culture to another. A brainstorming and sorting exercise resulted in seven dimensions of service quality in the UAE. These dimensions include ve dimensions of SERVQUAL in addition to the dimensions of values and image. The authors developed a 30-item questionnaire addressing the seven dimensions of reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, tangibles, values, and image. A total of 230 responses were collected from customers of conventional and Islamic banks in the UAE. Factor analysis of the responses resulted in four dimensions: personal skills, reliability, values, and image. The new dimensions of the questionnaire were both reliable and valid. Separate regression models were developed for conventional and Islamic banks. Based on these regression models, it was determined that values and image were the most important dimensions of service quality in UAE conventional banks. This stresses the need for the development of service quality measure for different national cultures. Managers using generic widely used measures such as SERVQUAL may end up missing important concerns of their customers. Multi-national companies should go beyond customizing their services to different countries to customizing their measures of service quality. This particularly important when national cultures favor certain service attributes and/or prohibit others as manifested in the example of banking in Muslim countries. On the other hand personal skills and values were the only signicant service quality dimensions among the customers of Islamic banks. This shows that customers of Islamic banks have service quality concerns that are different from those of their counterparts in conventional banks. Customers of Islamic banks are most concerned with the impressions of sincerity, trust, and caring given to them by their service providers. They are also highly concerned with the religious aspects of the service. Islamic banks have positioned themselves in a way that meets the expectations of their customers. Indeed descriptive statistics that Islamic banks have higher mean scores in personal skills and in values than conventional banks. Customers of Islamic banks are, however, not signicantly concerned about the reliability and image of the service they receive. Managers of Islamic banks should therefore pay a lot of attention to personal skills and the religious validity of their service in order to retain their current customers. The insignicance of reliability, which was found to be the most important dimension of service quality in a number of industries including banking (Parasuraman et al., 1991) shows that customers of Islamic banks can be tolerant of delays and mistakes made by the their service providers so long as they perceive that the service is acceptable to Islam (religiously acceptable) and their service providers are courteous, trustworthy, responsive and empathetic. They probably believe that reliability problems can be xed so long as their service providers are sincere and willing to help. This can also be explained by the relatively low number of Islamic banks in the UAE something which may lead customers to consider the availability of Islamic service as a privilege in itself. The increase of the number of Islamic banks may give customers more choices and allow them to be more demanding in terms of reliability and image. On the other hand, the tolerance of the customers of Islamic banks to problems of reliability reduces the competitiveness of Islamic banks and their ability to attract non-Muslims or less religious Muslim customers who are more concerned about reliability than the current customers of Islamic banks.

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Limitations The major contribution of this paper lies in the development of a UAE measure of service quality that includes the two dimensions of values and image in addition to the ve dimensions of SEVQUAL. This measure was developed based on the assumption that the concerns about service quality may differ from one country to another. This measure was, however, only tested in the banking industry. Future research should consider testing this instrument in different UAE service industries. Values are certainly more important when the services considered may be unlawful in a certain religion such as the case of interest rates in Islam. In other services such as health care where religion is neutral, values may play less important role. Furthermore, in order to validate the importance of the need for customizing measures of service quality to different countries, similar studies should conducted be in various parts of the world. The sample size of 230, though sufcient may be at the low side particularly for conducting factor analysis. This considered as one the limitations of this work. A larger sample size that will include respondents from all cities of UAE and possibly other Gulf countries should be considered in the future. Finally the insignicance of reliability in determining service quality in the UAE Islamic banks may be due to the rather limited number of Islamic banks in the UAE. Future research should be conducted in countries where Islamic banking services are more accessible.
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