Feeling Better While Waiting: Hospital Lobby in Portugal and South Korea

DOI 10.14707/ajbr.150017

Sandra Maria Correia Loureiro
Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL) and Business Research Unit (BRU/UNIDE) and SOCIUS
Eduardo Moraes Sarmento
Universidade Lusófona and ISEG/UTL
Rui Lopes
Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL)
Ki Nam Jin Yonsei University
Abstract

This study aims to explore the effect of three factors of Servicescape on customers’ emotion, perceived quality and image. The proposed model was tested in medical tourism context in Portugal and S. Korea, using a sample of 359fully completed questionnaires. Findings reveal that ambient and design are the most important factors in formation Servicescape itself in the case of Portugal hospitals and design and social factors in the case of S. Korea hospitals. Servicescape is an effective antecedent of customer image, perceived quality and pleasure-feeling. Finally, the article also provides managerial implications and suggests avenues for further research.
Key words: ambient factor, design factor, social factor, perceived quality, pleasure-feeling, medical tourism