An exploratory study of service quality in the Malaysian public service sector

Purpose - The paper seeks to obtain a better understanding of the extent to which service quality permeates within the Malaysian public service sector by drawing on management and customer perceptions of service quality. Design/methodology/approach - Two separate surveys were distributed to managers and customers across 86 branches of a public sector department within the Malaysian Ministry. The manager survey comprised instruments relating to organisational service performance, while the customer survey contained instruments relating to service quality and customer satisfaction. A total of 430 manager and customer surveys were completed, representing a 95 percent response rate. Findings - The results support the conceptual model in demonstrating a strong correlation between service quality dimensions, service performance and customer satisfaction. In particular, service providers classified as "excellent" were rated most favourably in terms of responsiveness, access and credibility. Research limitations/implications - The generalisability of the results is limited by the absence of the employees' perception of service quality. Practical implications - This research adds to the body of knowledge relating to public service quality management. Originality/value - The originality of this paper lies within the context in which this study took place. The study addresses key relationships between service dimensions, service performance and service quality within the Malaysian public service sector. Although previous research has addressed similar issues within the context of the public sector, relatively few studies pertain directly to Malaysian public services.