A comparative study of outcome quality, perceived value, and loyalty in four-star and five-star hotels

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PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to follow a comparative framework to investigate the effects of outcome quality on loyalty through the mediating role of perceived value in four-star hotels and five-star hotels.Design/methodology/approachFollowing a review of the literature, some hypotheses were formulated to examine the effects of outcome quality on attitudinal loyalty and behavioral intention through the mediating role of perceived value. The data guiding the comparative analysis were collected from two groups of visitors staying either in four-start or five-star hotels. The sample included 356 international tourists who stayed overnight in four- or five-star hotels in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data.FindingsAnalyzing the data obtained helped to construct three models. In the first model, the effects of outcome quality on attitudinal loyalty and behavioral intention through the mediating role of perceived value in both group of customers was analyzed. In the second model, the effects of outcome quality on behavioral intention through the mediating role of perceived value were compared across the two groups. In the third model, all dimensions of attitudinal loyalty and behavioral intention were combined into one single variable called composite loyalty.Originality/valueIn the first model, the (in)direct effect of outcome quality on both of the dimensions of loyalty (attitudinal loyalty and behavioral intention) was confirmed through perceived value as the mediating variable. The results of processing the second model showed that the impact of outcome quality on behavioral intention was greater in the four-star hotels clients, whereas the effect of perceived value on behavioral intention was greater in the five-star hotels visitors. The third model revealed that the (in)direct effect of outcome quality on composite loyalty through perceived value was greater in the four-star hotels clients than that in the five-star hotels clients.