Journal of Services Marketing

Does customer sociability matter? Differences in e-quality, e-satisfaction, and e-loyalty between introvert
and extravert online banking users
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari
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Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari , (2014),"Does customer sociability matter? Differences in e-quality, e-satisfaction, and e-
loyalty between introvert and extravert online banking users", Journal of Services Marketing, Vol. 28 Iss 7 pp. 538 - 546
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 Does customer sociability matter? Differences
in e-quality, e-satisfaction, and e-loyalty
between introvert and extravert online
banking users
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari
Business Faculty, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, UAE

Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationships between e-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty and test how these
relationships vary across different levels of customer sociability in the UAE banking industry.
Design/methodology/approach – The relative importance of customer sociability in the relationships between e-quality, e-satisfaction and
e-loyalty was examined. A self-administered questionnaire was developed, and data were collected from a final sample of 245 bank customers. The
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study’s conceptual model and four hypotheses were tested using AMOS18.
Findings – E-quality influences e-satisfaction, which, in turn, affects customer e-loyalty. This study’s findings confirm that the relationships between
e-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty are stronger if the online banking user is an introvert (less social) rather than an extravert (very social).
Practical implications – This study demonstrates how bank managers could use the sociability level of their customers to manage the relationships
between e-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty.
Originality/value – The key contribution of this paper is that it demonstrates how the customer sociability level might affect the relationship
between customers and online banking services.
Keywords E-satisfaction, E-loyalty, E-quality, Extraverts, Introverts, Sociability, Online banking
Paper type Research paper

An executive summary for managers and executive
readers can be found at the end of this issue.
Introduction
According to Mouakket and Al-Hawari (2012), the UAE has
one of the most emerging economies in the area of west Asia,
and it is the 35th largest economy in the world. The number
of Internet users in the UAE is approximately 3.78 million in
2010, representing 76 per cent of the country population. In
the UAE, the Internet services are increasingly important in all
life aspects of people including their banking transaction.
There is a lack of the number of studies in the online
services context in the UAE and other developing countries
(Mouakket and Al-Hawari, 2012). Al-Hawari (2011)
indicated that relational patterns of the different banking
channels may change between countries. Thus, it would be
interesting to investigate the very important issue of the
e-quality outcomes in this new emerging online banking
context in the UAE.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0887-6045.htm
In the banking sector, the Internet has become a widely
used method for developing and providing services
(Al-Hawari, 2011). Banks are not only competing in the
traditional banking context, but have also expanded the scope
of competition to include the e-environment of Internet
banking services (Rod et al., 2009). Banks are currently
offering online banking services to build stronger relationships
with their customers and to gain a competitive advantage
(Santos, 2003). Several prior studies provide evidence for the
relationship between e-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty in
the context of different services (Sheng and Liu, 2010; Gera,
2011; Ganguli and Roy, 2011; Collier and Bienstock, 2006).
Mick and Fournier (1998), however, highlighted the
paradoxes in technology products and services. According to
the authors, technology would simultaneously both motivate
people and isolate them. It can offer users a sense of control
along with a sense of incompetence. It can facilitate
involvement between people while leading to disconnect and
passivity. It can lead to greater efficiency and productivity, on
the one hand, and can result in wasted time and effort, on the
other.
These variations could be credited to the fact that the
customers are motivated by not only the attributes of the
offered services and products but also the relative dispositional
characteristics, personal standards and preferences (Ferguson

Journal of Services Marketing

28/7 (2014) 538 –546 Received 8 February 2013
© Emerald Group Publishing Limited [ISSN 0887-6045] Revised 26 November 2013
[DOI 10.1108/JSM-02-2013-0036] Accepted 30 January 2014

538
 E-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari
et al., 2010). Customers might choose a particular product or
service because it expresses their personality or social status or
to satisfy particular psychological needs (Va=zquez-Carrasco
and Foxall, 2006).
According to the customer–service worker relationship
conceptual model developed by Bove and Johnson (2000),
customers’ interpersonal orientation or sociability level would
help in anticipating the extent and nature of the relationship
between customers and service providers. Thus, the sociability
of bank customers is expected to differentially affect the
strength of the relationships between e-quality, e-satisfaction
and e-loyalty.
Sociability is a personality trait that represents the
tendency of people to be with others rather than remain
alone (Spake and Megehee, 2010). While some customers
appreciate those employees who seek regular customer
updates, others might find this approach as an interruption
in their privacy. Introvert (less social) customers seek to
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minimize social interaction with bank employees (Hills and
Argyle, 2001). Conversely, extravert (very social)
customers are more likely to value social interaction as a key
aspect for evaluating the competency of the bank. While it
is assumed that the relationships between e-quality,
e-satisfaction and e-loyalty might vary across the sociability
levels of the bank customers, how sociability affects these
relationships remains unidentified in the literature.
This study primarily aims to investigate whether the influence
of e-quality and e-satisfaction on customer e-loyalty is affected by
the level of customer sociability. If these sociability differences are
found, banks may need to change their perception on offering the
same benefits to all the customers for managing customer
e-loyalty; more customization might be required to offer the best
services and, ultimately, foster stronger relationships. This study
explains further the opportunities of how bank managers could
use the sociability level of their customers to have more efficient
and effective online relational strategies.
E-services quality
The growth of online services has dramatically changed the
way in which customers and organizations interact (Ganguli
and Roy, 2011). Online service quality is one of the most
researched topics in the field of marketing due to its
relationship with cost, satisfaction, retention and loyalty
(Gounaris et al., 2010). Important issues within the e-service
quality literature include the dimensions and outcomes of
online service quality (Lin and Ho, 2009).
E-service quality has been defined extensively in the
literature by many different authors. Overall, e-service quality
can be defined as the general evaluation and judgment of
customers regarding the excellence and quality of services
delivered in the virtual marketplace (Santos, 2003). Several
prior studies have assessed e-services quality such as Zeithaml
et al. (2002), Parasuraman et al. (2005), Ribbink et al. (2004)
and Barnes and Vidgen (2002). Zeithaml et al. (2002)
developed an e-service quality model (E-SQ) consisting of
seven different dimensions, namely, ease of use, privacy,
graphic design, information availability, reliability,
compensation and contact. Later, Parasuraman et al. (2005)
developed a measure of e-service quality on online shopping
sites including four different dimensions – fulfillment,
539
Journal of Services Marketing
Volume 28 · Number 7 · 2014 · 538 –546
efficiency, availability and privacy. Ribbink et al. (2004) also
developed a five-dimension model of e-service quality
provided by online book and CD stores ease of use, e-escape,
customization, responsiveness and assurance.
Although variations exist between the different models
proposed in the literature, similarities and consistencies can
also be found among them. For example, factors like the
ease of use, assurance/privacy, e-responsiveness and Web
site design overlap in many different studies. To measure
customers’ perceptions of e-service quality, this study uses
five different dimensions mainly adopted from three
popular models; Ribbink et al. (2004) model, Parasuraman
et al., 2005 E-SERVQUAL model, as well as Zeithaml et al.
(2002) model: efficiency, reliability, e-responsiveness,
privacy and contact. Those factors are also widely used in
other measurement models of online services quality.
Efficiency (adopted from Parasuraman et al., 2005) refers
to the ease and speed of accessing and using the site.
Reliability (adopted from Zeithaml et al., 2002) refers to the
ability to perform online services accurately without
technical problems. E-responsiveness (adopted from
Ribbink et al., 2004) refers to the quick response to
customer requirements. Privacy (Parasuraman et al., 2005)
refers to whether the customer feels confident dealing with
the site. Finally, contact (adopted from Zeithaml et al.,
2002) refers to the ability of the Web site to offer the option
of real-time communication.
E-satisfaction
Customer satisfaction has been studied intensively in the field
of marketing in both traditional and online contexts
(Al-Hawari and Ward, 2006; Al-Hawari, 2011; 2013, Ganguli
and Roy, 2011). Customer satisfaction was conceptualized as
a transaction-specific construct as it results from immediate
post-purchase reaction (Oliver, 1993). However, due to the
complex nature of the relationship between customers and
their primary banks, satisfaction was conceptualized in this
study from a cumulative perspective and defined as the
customer’s overall evaluation of a product or service provider
(Al-Hawari and Ward, 2006).
The relationship between service quality and customer
satisfaction was the primary concern of researchers who
analyzed services within the traditional context (Oliver, 1993).
Many studies have confirmed that service quality leads to
higher level of customer satisfaction (Ganguli and Roy, 2011)
in many services contexts; telecommunications, hospitals,
hotels, travel agencies and online services. This is because
customer satisfaction is a result of a single or a prolonged set
of service encounter/s. Hence, customers judge their
satisfaction only after they have experienced the excellence
level of a service (Gounaris et al., 2010).
In the e-context, customers’ e-satisfaction was defined by
Szymanski and Hise (2000) as the cumulative effect of a group
of discrete experiences with a service provider over a period of
time. E-satisfaction measures the degree of customers’ overall
evaluation of the online shopping experience (Gounaris et al.,
2010). In the e-context, many researchers have also proved the
impact of online service quality on customer e-satisfaction
(Sheng and Liu, 2010; Gera, 2011; Al-Hawari and Ward,
2006). Thus, the first hypothesis was formalized as:
 E-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari
H1. Online service quality has a direct and positive impact
on customers’ e-satisfaction.
E-loyalty
Loyal customers are considered very important for any
business’ survival (Ganguli and Roy, 2011) due to their
relationship with the company’s market share and profitability
(Tsoukatos and Rand, 2006). Various definitions have been
suggested in the literature for the concept of loyalty. Some
authors have focused on the behavioral aspects to
conceptualize loyalty reflected by retention (Bansal and
Taylor, 1999), while others have extended the behavioral
aspects to include the emotional component that reflects the
ultimate level of customers’ loyalty (Ranaweera and Prabhu,
2003). The emotional aspects of customer loyalty might
include recommending a favorable brand to other customers,
continuing business with the same company and considering a
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favorable brand as the first choice (Al-Hawari et al., 2009).
In this study, customer loyalty is measured using both
behavioral and emotional aspects. The definition of customer
loyalty can also be extended to the online context. Thus,
customer e-loyalty is used to measure the re-use of Internet
banking services by customers as well as their emotional
attachment to the services.
Intensive research has been conducted in different
industries on the relationship between service quality and
customers loyalty within the traditional context. Many studies
found positive, significant relationships between the two
constructs (Parasuraman et al., 1988, Zeithaml et al., 1996).
In the e-context, e-service quality can influence customers’
behavioral intentions such as re-visiting the Web site and
positive word-of-mouth recommendation (Carlson and
O’Cass, 2010). Gounaris et al. (2010) indicated that some of
the factors that drives customers to return to an Internet
service are content, Web design and uniqueness. Hence,
customers return to a particular Internet site based upon
his\her experience in interacting with the site. Many
researchers have proved, in practice, the positive influence of
e-service quality on customers’ e-loyalty (Ganguli and Roy,
2011). Therefore, it can be argued that:
H2. Online service quality has a positive influence on
customers’ e-loyalty.
In the traditional context and across many different industries,
many studies found a positive, strong relationship between
customer satisfaction and customer loyalty (Carlson and
O’Cass, 2010). These findings were also supported within the
online context (Gounaris et al., 2010). Gera (2011) indicated
that many authors in different online services contexts
concluded the e-satisfaction has a direct, significant and
positive impact on e-loyalty. Prior studies on Internet services
found that customers satisfied with a particular organization’s
Web services are more likely to have re-purchase intentions,
recommend the Web site to others and spread positive word of
mouth about the Web site’s services (Collier and Bienstock,
2006). Thus, it can be expected that:
H3. Customers’ e-satisfaction has a positive influence on
their e-loyalty.
540
Journal of Services Marketing
Volume 28 · Number 7 · 2014 · 538 –546
The measurement of customers’ sociability
There were two major approaches to measure customers
sociability in the literature. First, Ferguson et al. (2010)
method which state that the traits of agreeableness and
extraversion reflects other or socially oriented personality
types. According to Ferguson et al. (2010), agreeableness
refers to the quality of the interpersonal relation, while
extraversion measure the strength and the power of the
relationship. Second, Spake and Megehee (2010) focused
solely on the extraversion part of sociability. The sociability of
consumers according to Spake and Megehee (2010) centered
around customers tendency to affiliate and stay with others.
Spake and Megehee (2010) classified consumers sociability
accordingly into extraverts and introverts. Very social people
are usually known as extraverts. Extraverts prefer to be around
other people, need excitement, enjoy physical activity and like
to engage in various social interactions (Mooradian and Swan,
2006). Conversely, introverts are usually considered less social
people and quiet individuals who enjoy reading books rather
than being close to and around others. Migliore (2011),
supporting Spake and Megehee’s (2010) approach, indicated
that sociability of people can be signified by people
extraversion level. This paper adopts Spake and Megehee
(2010) approach of defining and measuring sociability of
customers, as it is widely used, indicative, simple to use and
direct.
Customers’ sociability and online behavior
Customers’ attitudes and behavior toward a particular
organization are not only based on customers’ interaction and
experiences with the organization, but are also be subject to
personal standards, preferences and traits (Ferguson et al.,
2010). Personality traits interact with customer responses to
service experiences to create a particular attitude about the
organization that might lead to attitudinal intentions and
subsequent behaviors (Bagozzi, 1992). However, little
research has been conducted on the issue of how customer
personality might affect customer relationship management
(Spake and Megehee, 2010). For example,
Va=zquez-Carrasco and Foxall (2006) demonstrated that the
strength of the relationship between customer satisfaction and
loyalty is influenced by the personal characteristics of
individuals.
In the two contexts of online and offline, is there any
differences on how the personal characteristics of individuals
affect the relationships between quality satisfaction and
loyalty? When technology used by firms, Parasuraman and
Grewal (2000) claimed that buyer-seller relationship might be
subject to change. Bitner (2001) listed the potential positives
as well as the dark side to the infusion of technology into every
aspect of service.
Bitner (2001) indicated that technology gives a potential for
new services offerings; opens a new way to deliver services in
more accessible, convenient, and productive ways; and
technology enables both customers and employees to be more
effective in getting and providing services. Bitner (2001), on
the other hand, warned of the potential negative outcome of
using technology. Technology might isolate people, convey a
feeling of incompetence, result in wasted time and effort,
 E-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari
initiate customers concerns about privacy and confidentiality
and contribute in losing of real human contact.
In consistent with Bitner’s (2001) view, Mick and Fournier
(1998) in their technology paradoxes model claimed that
technology would simultaneously both motivate people and
isolate them. It can facilitate involvement between people,
while leading to disconnect and passivity. These variations on
how customers might respond to the business use of
technology could be justified by the personal characteristics of
individuals.
In the online context, to the best of my knowledge, no study
has tried to investigate the influence of personal characteristic
of customers’ sociability on their e-loyalty. This study aims to
explore how customer sociability influences the relationships
between service quality, customer satisfaction and customer
loyalty within the online banking context. If these sociability
differences are found, bankers would deeply understand why
paradoxes happen when customers use online banking
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services. Bankers, thus, have to practice more customization
to offer the best services and, ultimately, foster stronger
relationships.
Customers might choose a particular product or service
because it expresses their personality and social status
(Va=zquez-Carrasco and Foxall, 2006). Very social customers
usually consider social interaction an important key factor in
evaluating how they are treated by their banks and judge
banks’ service quality on the basis of the level of social
interaction (Spake and Megehee, 2010). Their social skills
would make them and the retailer more willing to interact
personally to establish and continue this relationship
(Ferguson et al., 2010). Conversely, introvert customers prefer
doing things individually rather than socializing; they don’t
like much talking and they are socially isolated (Spake and
Megehee, 2010). Introvert customers usually seek to minimize
social interaction with employees (Matzler et al., 2006), and,
therefore, might pay more attention to the online experience
itself as it lacks human interaction. H4 was formulated
accordingly:
H4. The relationships between e-quality, e-satisfaction and
e-loyalty are expected to be stronger for introvert bank
customers relative to extravert ones.
Methodology
This study was conducted in two stages. Stage 1 involved a
pilot study which was conducted to refine the test instrument.
Twenty online bank users were interviewed in the pilot testing
phase. Apart from a few word and typing mistakes, the
outcome of the pilot study was satisfactory in terms of content,
clarity and the use of the proper level of language.
In Stage 2, a final version of a self-administered
questionnaire was developed, and data were collected from
bank customers who are regular users of their primary bank
online services. Any bank customer not using online banking
services was discarded from the study. The sample selection
was done by two well-trained research assistants. Subjects
were approached in different locations – mainly, shopping
malls and banks branch facilities – at different times in the
major cities of Dubai and Sharjah in the UAE. All of the
conceptual model constructs were measured using existing
541
Journal of Services Marketing
Volume 28 · Number 7 · 2014 · 538 –546
and tested scales. All statements in the survey were measured
on a five-point Likert scale (from 1: strongly disagree to 5:
strongly agree).
The demographic part of the survey included questions
concerning customers’ age, gender, education level and how
often customers use their bank’s online services. The research
assistants approached approximately 450 regular users of
online banking services and, of those, 245 responded
successfully (approximately a 54 per cent response rate).
Moreover, 46.7 per cent of the respondents were aged
between 18 and 30 years. Bank customers aged between 31
and 40 years represented 35 per cent of the sample, 55 per
cent of the sample were males. Around 64 per cent of the
sample has a college degree. Finally, 68 per cent of the
respondents used their online banking services either once
every fortnight or once a month; the rest of them used it daily
or once a week.
The NEO five-factor inventory (NEO–FFI) approach of
measuring personality traits, originally developed by Costa
and McCrae (1995), was used to measure customers’
sociability level. Four items of extraversion were used to
classify banks customers’ social level. Extraversion reflects the
tendency of people to affiliate with others and not be left alone
(Spake and Megehee (2010). The bank customers who scored
less than 2.5 on average on the four items were classified as
introverts, while those who scored above 3.5 on average were
considered extroverts.
Online service quality was defined and measured in the
literature as a multidimensional construct. Many studies have
found a strong correlation between the different factors related to
online service quality, resulting in multicollinearity problems.
The multicollinearity problem indicates that each dimension in
the proposed construct lacks a separate identity (discriminant
validity). This study investigates the overall influence of online
service quality, rather than the influence of each dimension, on
the proposed dependent variables. Thus, this study used six
different items, where almost each item represents one of the five
adopted dimensions of online services quality, namely, efficiency,
reliability, e-responsiveness, privacy and contact.
Four different items were adopted from Sheng and Liu
(2010), Gera (2011) and Gounaris et al. (2010) to measure
customers’ e-satisfaction levels. Finally, the construct for
e-loyalty was measured by using four different items adopted
from Ganguli and Roy (2011) and Al-Hawari (2013).
Analysis methods
This study’s conceptual model and four hypotheses were
tested using AMOS18. Tests of reliability, convergent validity,
discriminant validity and confirmatory factor analysis were
used first to validate the measurement model’s good-of-fitness
indexes. The structural model was then estimated to test the
study hypotheses.
Measurement model analysis
To test the internal consistency reliability (R) for each
measurement item, composite reliability (CR) test and
average variance extracted (AVE) were used (Fornell and
Larcker, 1981). In the first run of the measurement model, the
R for the majority of measurement items was around or greater
 E-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty Journal of Services Marketing
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari Volume 28 · Number 7 · 2014 · 538 –546

than 0.7, indicating good reliability (Holmes-Smith, 2001).
However, the item “My online banking services provide the
option to speak to a live person in case of a problem” was
deleted, as its R value was 0.356.
In the second run of the measurement model, the R values
for all the measurement items were greater than or close to 0.7
(Table I). The values of CR and AVE exceeded the minimum
acceptable values of 0.7 and 0.5, respectively (Holmes-Smith,
2001), thereby indicating the reliability of the measures and
subsequently yielding very consistent results (Zikmund,
2003).
Convergent validity of the measures was satisfactory
because all the estimated loadings of the indicators on the
specified factor were significant and below the 0.05 level
(Anderson and Gerbing, 1988). To test for discriminant
validity, the procedure described by Fornell and Larcker
(1981) was used. The analysis showed that the AVE for each
pair of variables was greater than the squared correlation for
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Accordingly, the measurement model provides reasonable
explanation for the observed covariance among the proposed
constructs.
Structural modeling and hypotheses testing
The overall fit indices for the proposed structural model
(Figure 1) were ␹2 ⫽ 138 (df ⫽ 62, p ⫽ 0.00), ␹2/df ratio of
2.2, CFI of 0.943 and RMSEA of 0.07 (Hair et al., 1995).
These values indicate that the model fits the data reasonably
well. The details of analysis are shown in Table III.
Three out of four hypotheses were supported in this study.
H1, H2 and H3 were evaluated on the full sample size of 245
by closely examining the path coefficients and the significance
levels among the constructs in the proposed model. The
significance of these paths and the standardized regression
weights are presented in Table III. If the significant level
(p-value) of particular path below or equal to 0.05, the

the same pair, indicating that each construct was distinct
(Table II).
The confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the
chi-square for the whole model was 138.022 (df ⫽ 62,
p ⬍ 0.05), and the normed chi-square was 2.226. Other fit
indexes include comparative fit index (CFI) ⫽ 0.943, Tucker–
Lewis index (TLI) ⫽ 0.916, incremental fit index (IFI) ⫽
0.944 and normed fit index (NFI) ⫽ 0.903. The root mean
square error of approximation (RMSEA) was 0.071. All the
values were satisfactory and above the recommended values.
hypothesis was considered accepted, otherwise, the hypothesis
was rejected. The analysis of the full sample size of 245
respondents showed that online service quality has a
significant relationship with customer e-satisfaction at
p ⫽ 0.000, thus supporting H1. On the other hand, online
service quality was found to have a non-significant relationship
with customers e-loyalty, p-value ⬎ 0.05; thus, H2 was
rejected (Table III). Further, e-satisfaction was found to have
a direct, positive and significant relationship with customers’
e-loyalty at p ⫽ 0.00; H3 was, thus, accepted.

Table I Outcomes of the reliability test for each factor

Variances estimated
Variable ␭i errors Critical ratios Composite reliability Variance extracted
Online service quality
Complete a transaction quickly 0.627 0.528 9.586 0.83 0.51
Free from errors 0.835 0.297 7.758
Services are secure 0.604 0.454 7.568
Services are easy to use 0.605 0.473 8.412
Web site is attractive 0.671 0.464 8.523

E-satisfaction
Accuracy of my online bank transactions 0.731 0.509 10.524 0.82 0.53
Security of my online bank 0.726 0.463 10.400
Interface design 0.753 0.453 10.758
I am satisfied with my online banking services 0.703 0.482 10.079

E-loyalty
Encourage my friends 0.794 0.642 9.564 0.84 0.56
Say positive things 0.845 0.445 9.593
Recommend my online banking services 0.755 0.291 10.327
My first choice 0.635 0.412 9.941

Table II Discriminant validity test outcomes

a
E-quality E-satisfaction E-loyalty
E-quality 0.52 0.535
E-satisfaction 0.43 0.545
E-loyalty 0.32 0.49
a
Note: The upper level (in bold) represents the AVE, while the lower level represents the squared correlations for every pair

542
 E-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty Journal of Services Marketing
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari Volume 28 · Number 7 · 2014 · 538 –546

Figure 1 Theoretical model

E-quality E-satisfaction E-loyalty

Less social Very social

customers customers

Table III Results of structural equation analysis for the two competing models
Theoretical model tested for the Theoretical model tested for the Theoretical model tested for
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The relationships between full sample (n ⴝ 245) H1, H2 sample of introverts (n ⴝ 71) the sample of extraverts
variables and H3 testing H4 testing (n ⴝ 78) H4 testing
E-quality ¡ e-satisfaction 0.661ⴱⴱ 0.760ⴱⴱ 0.663ⴱ
E-quality ¡ e-loyalty Not significant Not significant Not significant
E-satisfaction ¡ e-loyalty 0.672ⴱⴱ 0.660ⴱ 0.506ⴱ
␹2 138.22 112 112
Df 62 62 62
␹2/df ratio 2.226 1.82 1.82
CFI 0.943 0.88 0.815
Significant paths 2 2 2
R2 (e-satisfaction) 0.437 0.577 0.440
R2 (e-loyalty) 0.578 0.577 0.540
Notes: * p ⬍ 0.05; **
p ⬍ 0.01

To test H4, the sample was divided into two sub-samples on
the basis of customers’ sociability level. The same proposed
model was then tested first for the introverts’ samples and
second for extraverts’ sample to determine how the
relationships vary across different levels of customer
sociability. The sample size of very social respondents
(extraverts) who scored more than 3.5, on average, on the four
items of sociability was 78, while that of less social
respondents (introverts) sample who scored less than 2.5 was
71. All of those respondents who scored around 3 (precisely
between 2.5 and 3.5) on the average of the 4 items of the
sociability construct were excluded from the study sample.
This exclusion had to be used to make sure that respondents
are clear cases of either introverts or extraverts and not in the
middle.
As shown in Table III, the model fits the two samples
appropriately. The ␹2 difference test indicated no significant
difference between the two models (␹2 difference ⫽ 0, df ⫽ 0,
p ⬎ 0.05). However, due to the lack of differences between the
two models, the four criteria developed by Morgan and Hunt
(1994) cited in Yen and Gwinner (2003) were used to
compare the two structural equation modeling (SEM) models.
These criteria include overall model fit as measured by CFI,
percentage of the proposed significance paths, amounts of
variance explained by R2, and parsimony assessed by the
parsimonious normed fit index (PNFI).
The CFI for the sample of less-social customers (introverts)
was higher than that for the sample of very social customers
(extraverts). The number of significant paths in the two
samples was the same. Two out of three proposed paths were
significant for the two samples. Regarding the ability of the
model to explain the variance in the outcomes, as measured by
R2, the model for the sample of less social customers explains
customer e-satisfaction and e-loyalty better than that for the
sample of very social customers. Finally, the model for the
sample of less social customers had a higher PNFI value than
that for the sample of very social customers (0.616 and 0.471,
respectively). Obviously, the model for the sample of less
social customers is a more accurate and useful representation
of the relationships among the proposed constructs in
comparison to that for the sample of very social customers.
Accordingly, H4 was accepted.
Discussion and conclusion
This study aimed to investigate the relationships between
e-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty and test how these
relationships vary across different levels of customer sociability
in the UAE banking industry. This study revealed interesting
results for the aforementioned relationships that could be
useful for decision makers in the banking industry.
This study’s results confirm the importance of managing
online service quality as a vital tool for triggering customer

543
 E-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari
satisfaction with online banking services. These results are
consistent with that of other studies (Sheng and Liu, 2010;
Gera, 2011; Al-Hawari and Ward, 2006). This study’s
findings are also consistent with that of previous studies with
respect to the role of e-satisfaction in anticipating bank
customers’ e-loyalty (Collier and Bienstock, 2006; Gounaris
et al., 2010). However, the direct relationship between
e-quality and e-loyalty was not supported in this study. This
finding is not surprising as the literature confirms the direct
influence of e-quality on e-loyalty (Ganguli and Roy, 2011) as
well as the indirect influence of e-quality on e-loyalty via
e-satisfaction (Gera, 2011; Kassim and Abdullah, 2010).
Previous studies have examined the effect of the social level
of customers on the relationships between e-quality,
e-satisfaction and e-loyalty but have not found any empirical
evidence supporting it. Thus, one major finding of this study
is that the relationships between e-quality, e-satisfaction and
e-loyalty are stronger if the online banking user is an introvert
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(less social) rather than an extravert (very social) (Spake and
Megehee, 2010; Mick and Fournier, 1998; Matzler et al.,
2006). That is, e-quality is considered more important by
introverts than by extraverts, and introverts exhibit loyalty
toward banks’ online services based on e-quality.
Managerial implications
The evidence from this study provides some important
practical guidelines for managing customer relationships in
the context of UAE’s online banking services. Overall, this
study’s results demonstrate the importance of e-quality in
managing customers’ e-satisfaction and e-loyalty toward their
online banking services. This study demonstrates further how
bank managers could use the sociability level of their
customers to manage the relationships between e-quality,
e-satisfaction and e-loyalty.
Mick and Fournier (1998) in their technology paradox
model warned that technology would simultaneously both
motivate people and isolate them. It can facilitate involvement
between people, while leading to disconnect and passivity.
This study results proved that these variations can be credited
to the fact that the customers are motivated by not only the
attributes of the offered services and products but also the
uniqueness of their sociability. Bank customers showed
different relationships with online banking services based on
their sociability level.
The sociability of bank customers has a differential impact
on the relationships between e-quality, e-satisfaction and
e-loyalty. Therefore, banks should rethink their strategy for
customer relationship building. Instead of treating all
customers equally, some degree of customization should be
applied. The results indicate that customer relationship
management depends on the customers’ level of sociability. A
more challenging issue is the identification of customers’
sociability level. The appropriate relationship management
strategy should then be implemented to facilitate customers’
e-loyalty toward the banks’ online services. Information on
customer sociability levels can be acquired through surveys or
direct observation. Customization is good for banks to gain a
competitive advantage.
Less social customers seek to minimize social interaction
(Hills and Argyle, 2001); thus, they prefer using online
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Journal of Services Marketing
Volume 28 · Number 7 · 2014 · 538 –546
banking services as they involve minimum social interaction.
When it comes to designing the bank online system, banks
must give priority to introvert customers over extravert
customers, understand their online preferences, and aim to
meet these preferences. Bank managers have to offer introvert
customers all possible online options that minimize their social
interaction. A user-friendly and multi-functional Web site can
facilitate this process, through which banks can gain a
competitive advantage over other banks that do not
differentiate between customers based on their sociability
level.
Although online services are important for extravert
customers, these customers are more likely to value social
interaction as a key aspect in evaluating the competency of
banks and enjoy the benefits of a long-term personal
relationship. Overall, it might not be an appropriate marketing
strategy for banks to ignore a high level of face-to-face banking
in favor of less expensive online banking services. The sole
focus on online services would likely have a negative effect on
very social customers’ evaluation of the competency of banks,
and thus, affect banks’ long-term profitability.
Limitations and future research opportunities
Sociability and customer preference patterns may vary across
different countries and cultures. Consequently, if the findings
and managerial implications of this paper are to be applied to
other regions with different cultures, additional research will
have to be undertaken to validate the consistency of these
results. In addition, the sample size of introvert and extravert
customers might be considered small to test the proposed
theoretical model. Thus, a larger sample might be helpful in
obtaining a more accurate picture of how the relationships
between e-quality, e-satisfaction and e-loyalty vary across
different sociability levels of customers. This study covered
only the impact of one personality trait on e-service quality–
e-satisfaction– e-loyalty relationships. For more precise
relational strategies, it would be interesting to consider how
other personal factors such as customers’ emotional stability
and customers’ openness might interfere with e-service
quality– e-satisfaction– e-loyalty relationships.
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About the author
Mohammad A Ahmad Al-Hawari has awarded his PhD
from Central Queensland University, Australia. Al-Hawari is
currently working as an Assistant Professor at the University of
Sharjah. Al-Hawari particularly interest in doing research on
Customer Relationship marketing, e-Marketing, service
marketing and bank marketing. Al-Hawari has published over
20 papers in the field of marketing. Mohammad A Ahmad
Al-Hawari can be contacted at: malhawari@sharjah.ac.ae