Assessment of Satisfaction with the Quality of Urban Management Services in Marginal Regions (Case Study: Islamabad City Karaj)

Document Type : Research article

Author

Associate Professor of Geography and Urban Planning, Payame Noor University, Iran

Abstract

Introduction
The Islamabad of Karaj is one of the fine-grained and interconnecting urban area and one of the most problematic areas in Karaj City. Most residents of these tissues are benefited from direct and indirect urban management services. This research has been carried out in Islsmabad as a metropolitan area with urban services in the city of Karaj. Accordingly, the overall objective of this research is to measure residents' satisfaction with the quality of services in the Islamabad neighborhood of Karaj. The overall objective of this research is to:

Provide a functional model for assessing the quality of services provided by urban management
Determine the citizens' satisfaction with the quality of services provided in the Islamabad neighborhood of Karaj

Based on the above objectives, the question arises whether urban management has been able to meet the expectations and perceptions of citizens in the Islamabad neighborhood in different dimensions.
The hypothesis states that there is a statistically significant difference between the type of service provided by urban management in the current situation and the expected perceptions of the quality of services provided in the five dimensions of the SERVQUAL model.
Methodology
The statistical population of the study is rural people in Islsmabad. The sample size is 328 according to Cochran formula. The main tool for collecting field research data is a questionnaire which asks the dimensions of the quality of SERVQUAL services based on the surveys conducted by the authors and the requirements of services provided by urban management by the researchers to measure it from the scale of PARASURAMAN and its colleagues. Hence, the respondents' expectations and drafts of urban management services were evaluated in five dimensions of sensitivity, reliability, assurance, response and empathy. For statistical analysis, we used nonparametric tests, Friedman tests, T test and pair test.
Results and discussion
There is a significant difference between the average satisfactions of respondents with their expectations. As their level of literacy has increased, their expectations have also been increased. Therefore, it can be added that the highest level of service quality gaps in the SERVQUAL model belongs to a group with a university degree and the lowest gap is related to those who have highlighted primary level of education.
The difference between the average expectations and perceptions of citizens about the effectiveness of urban management performance in creating judicial justice is significant at 99% confidence level. It can be said that urban management, in general, failed to meet the expectations and demands of citizens. For the final analysis and ranking of the SERVQUAL model components, the expectations of respondents about the dimensions of the effectiveness of urban management performance have been used through Friedman ranking test.
The non-parametric WILCOXON test has been used to assess the significance of the effectiveness of urban management practices on the quality of urban services. Urban management has only been able to meet the expectations of residents living in the context and in other dimensions the average expectations are significantly higher than the average perceptions of respondents.  The statistical analysis of the data shows that the highest level of service quality gap belongs to the SERVQUAL model's empathic dimension, which can make it difficult for the management to have access to long-term urban management problems. The quality gap in accountability implies that citizens do not have easy access to city executives to state their opinions, criticisms and suggestions in various areas. The quality gap in terms of assurance shows that the performance of promised services and the provision of services have not been fully operational as soon as possible and the behavior of managers has failed to meet the expectations of citizens living in Islamabad.
Conclusion
Therefore, the present study seeks to find an applied model of the SERVQUAL method to measure citizens' satisfaction with the quality of services offered by urban management. The findings of this study showed that SERVQUAL model is an appropriate tool to measure the quality of services provided in the Islamabad neighborhood of Karaj. The results of this research showed that the dimensions of the quality of urban services can be ranked in importance for the urban population of urban texture. Thus, one can assess the quality of urban services from the citizen's point of view. The results of this study showed that there is a significant difference between the satisfaction levels of the subjects with individual characteristics, so that with an increase in the level of literacy, the level of citizen’s expectations can also increase and their level of perceptions can decrease. In fact, respondents have a very different level of education, perception, and expectation of urban management services according to their type of job. This has been very influential on their satisfaction with the quality of urban services. With increase in levels of citizenship, their expectations are increased, and the highest quality service gap in the SERVQUAL model belongs to the group that has university education. Statistical analysis and inference from the content of the questionnaire indicate that there is a gap between the expectations and the perceptions of respondents in all aspects of the quality of service. In the SERVQUAL model, accountability means willingness to help customers and provide instant services to them. The existing gap suggests that citizens do not have easy access to urban management for their ideas and suggestions on urban issues. The gap in the accountability dimension implies that citizens cannot conveniently have access to urban managers and that citizens are not able to talk to urban management about their ideas and criticisms of various civil, social, and economic issues in urban neighborhoods.  

Keywords


  1. ABBASIAN et al. 2012, Analysis of the gap between students' perceptions and expectations about the quality of educational services using the SERVQUAL model, Journal of Qom University of Medical Sciences, No. 7 (2-2), pp. 37-20.
  2. Al BASSAM, T, and Al Shawi, S. (2011). Analysing the Use of the SERVQUAL Model to Measure Service Quality in Specific-Industry Contexts. In Proceedings of 14th International Business Research Conference.
  3. AkBABA, A. (2006). Measuring service quality in the hotel in Turkey. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 25(2): 170-192.
  4. AYDEMIR, S.D, and Gerni, C. (2011). Measuring service quality of export credit agency in Turkey by using Servqual. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 24, 1663-1670.
  5. BANKI, B., Basfirinci, C. S. Ar, L. M., Cilingir, Z.(2009), An application of integrating SERVQUAL and Kano’s model into QFD fir logistics services: a case study from Turkey, Asia pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, Vol. 21, No. 1, PP.106-126
  6. BUTTLE, Francis, (1995). “SERVQUAL: review, critique, research, research agenda”, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 30 No. 1, 1996, pp. 8-31.
  7. BIRKOUPOR, Naser, Goharipour, Hamed, Karimi, Mehdi, 2010, Evaluation of municipal performance based on measuring the satisfaction of people from urban services. Case study in Northern and Northern regions of Tehran, Two Urban Management Quarterly, No. 25, pp. 218-203.
  8. COLEMAN, j. (2009). Social in the creation of human capital. American journal osg Sociology, 94:95-120.
  9. CONTER, Herold (2009) Principles of Management, Volume 1 and 2, Translators Mohammad Ali Tousi, Ali Akbar Farhangi, Seyed Aminollah Alavi, Akbar Mahdavian, Management and Planning. Tehran

10. CURRENT, Saeed, Biglari, Negin, Medical Rad, Gholamreza 2011, and Satisfaction of Students of Agricultural College of Tarbiat Modares University from the quality of educational services provided to them using the ServQual Service Quality Model, Iranian Journal of Agricultural Economics and Development, 4, no. 2, pp. 207-199.

11. DONELLY. M. Neil J.Kerr, Rimmer. R and Shiu. M, (2006), “Assessing the quality of police service using SERVQUAL”. An international journal of police strategies & management vol.29 No.1, 2006, pp.92-105.

12. EBRAHIMZADEH, Issa and Kamasi, Hossein, 2013, Evaluation and Analysis of Quality of Municipal Services Based on the Sarqual Model (Case Study of Sanqor Municipality), Quarterly Journal of Urban Planning, Second Year, No. 6, pp. 172-153.in persian Abbasian et al. 2012, Analysis of the gap between students' perceptions and expectations about the quality of educational services using the SERVQUAL model, Journal of Qom University of Medical Sciences, No. 7 (2-2), pp. 37-20.

13. ENAYATI, Taraneh, Toghani, Farshid and Nasirpour Daresi, Negar, 1392, Quality evaluation of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences based on SERVQUAL model, Journal of Health Promotion Management, No. 2, pp. 40-32.

14. EBRAHIMI, Loghman, 2010, Evaluation of municipal services quality based on SERVQUAL MODEL, Master's thesis in geography and urban planning, Sistan and Baluchestan University.

15. HAM, L., Hayduk, S. (2016). Gaining Competitive Advantages in Higher Education : Analyzing the Gap between Expectations and Perceptions of Service Quality. International Journal of Value-Based Management, number 16 (223-42).

16. JAMAL, A. and Nasser, K. (2003). “Factors influencing customer satisfaction in the retail banking sector in Pakistan”, International Journal of Commerce and Management, 13:2. pp. 29-53, (2003).

17. LEGCEVIC, J. (2010). Quality gap of educational services in viewpoints of students. Ekonomska misao praska, (2) 279-298.

18. KADAGO, Joseph, and Sandoz Simone, Ham Haber Johannes (2014): Good urban governance, Actor’s relations. And Paradigms: Lessons from Nairobi, Kenya, and Recife, Brazil, 46th ISOCARP Congress.

19. LADHARI, R. (2009), a review of twenty years of SERVQUAL research, International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences, Vol. 1, No 2, PP. 172-198.

20. MARTINEZ, J. (2010). Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 17 (1).

21. MIRAFKANI, Seyyed Haidar, Olia, Mohammad Saleh and Jamali, Reza 2009, Reengineering of Quality Management in Higher Education Institutions (Case Study: Graduate Students of Yazd University), Quarterly Journal of Research and Planning in Higher Education No. 53, pp. 157-131.

22. NAZEMI, Shamsuddin, Pedramnia, Sarah 2009, Evaluation and Analysis of Service Quality Using the Servoqual Model, Case Study of Mashhad Urban Green Space, Mashhad Pajouhisi Quarterly, No. 3, pp. 33-17.

23. OSMAN, Z., and Sentosa, I. (2013). Service Quality and Customer Loyalty in Malaysian Rural Tourism: A Mediating Effect of Trust.1 (1): 31-42.

24. PAKDIL, F., Aydin, O.(2007), expectations and perceptions in airline services: an analysis using weighted SERVQUAL scors, Journal of Air Transport Management, Vol. 62, No. 4,pp. 229-237.

25. PARASURAMAN, A., Zeithaml, v. and Berry, L. L (1988). SERVQUAL: A multiple-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality “journal of Retailing. Vol.63.pp.12-37.

26. PETER, S. & Michael, H & Debra, H. (2000). Why do they leave, why do they stay? Perception of service quality at a new university. ANZMAC.1197-200.

27. RADJEEP, S. (2010). SERVQUAL and model of service quality gaps: A framework for determining and prioritizing critical factors from faculty perspective in higher education. International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology, 2 (7), 3297-3304.

28. RODRIGEZ, P. G., Vazquez B., Vaughan, R., Edwards, J., (2009). Quality dimensions in the public sector: municipal services and citizens perception, International Review public Nonprofit Marketing. Vol.6, pp.75-90.

29. SIRVANSI, M.B. (2015) Critical issues for TQM implementation in higher education. TQM Mag.; 16(6), 382-386.

30. SHAFIEE SABET, Naser and Miroohed, Negin Sadat, 2017, Evaluation of the quality of services provided by the Islamic Revolution Housing Foundation on the basis of the SERVQUAL model. Case study of residential settlements in Varamin. Journal of Geographical Space, Vol. 7, No. 23, pp. 104-90.

31. TOFIGHI, Shahram et al. 2011, Quality of educational services from students' point of view; SERVQUAL MODEL Quarterly Journal of Educational Strategies, No. 1 (21-26), pp. 40-23.

32. YAHYAPOUR, Mehdi, Hashemi, Seyyed Manaf, 2011, Principles of Basis of Urban Services Management in the Municipality, First Edition, Publications of the Organization of