The antecendents and consequences of service quality in the health insurance industry in Saudi Arabia

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the antecedents and the consequences
of service quality in the Saudi health insurance industry. Specifically, it aimed at
investigating both the mediating effect of customer satisfaction on the relationship
between perceived service quality and customer loyalty, and the moderating effect of corporate image on the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction. The motivation for this study was driven by the inconsistent findings in the literature concerning the relationships between the antecedent and the consequences variables
related to perceived service quality. Due to these inconsistencies, a new research stream
emerged which suggests investigating the effect of possible mediating and moderating variables that may better explain such inconsistencies. Accordingly, this study has integrated different theories such as the expectancy-disconfirmation theory, service quality theory and social exchange theory to map and position the possible relationships between the variables in the conceptual framework. The study utilized a survey questionnaire which was randomly distributed to 800 customers of 3 major insurance companies in Saudi Arabia. Out of the 420 returned questionnaires, 400 were found to be complete were and used in the analysis. Correlation and hierarchical regression analysis were used to analyze the direct and indirect relationship between the related variables in the study. The results revealed that communication, information and communication technology (ICT), customer knowledge and prior experience were positive determinants of perceived service quality. Moreover importantly, the mediating effect of customer satisfaction on the relationships between perceived service quality and customer loyalty was confirmed by the findings. This study also found that there was a moderating effect of corporate image on the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction. Finally, managerial, policy and theoretical implications as well as directions for future research were discussed