Antecedents and consequences of service quality in a higher education context : A qualitative research approach

<b>Purpose – </b>The purpose of the paper is to report on the perception of students in regard to critical antecedents, dimensions and consequences of service quality with an aim to develop a theoretical model in the context of a university in Australia.<br /><b><br />Design/methodology/approach –</b> This research used focus group discussions with 19 students who had been studying in undergraduate and postgraduate level programs at an Australian university.<br /><br /><b>Findings – </b>The findings show that the critical antecedents to perceived service quality are information and past experience. There are three aspects of perceived service quality, namely, academic, administrative and facilities. Student satisfaction and student trust are found to have direct and positive relationships with perceived service quality as consequences; and brand performance and behavioural intention are found to have indirect relationships with perceived service quality mediated through satisfaction and trust.<br /><b><br />Originality/value –</b> This paper found three separate themes and their relationships with service quality in the context of a university. These themes are: information, past experience and brand performance. Perceived service quality was found playing an important role in this theoretical model. The model provides a good explanation of university brand performance and students' behavioural intentions.