CROSS-NATIONAL-STUDY OF PERCEIVED SERVICE QUALITY IN LONG-TERM-CARE FACILITIES

This cross-national study of 306 nursing home residents in the United States and the United Kingdom examines the similarities and difference s in their evaluation of service quality. Service quality was defined as the differences between expectations about the service and actual p erceptions of the service delivered in terms of five dimensions: tangi bles, assurance, empathy, reliability and responsiveness. The SERVQUAL instrument was used to measure service quality. The two groups differ ed in their expectations for quality and their perceptions of service quality: US residents' ratings were lower in all respects.