Open AccessCitizens’ satisfaction with public service: A question of quality and expectations?
Author(s) -
Morten Hjortskov
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
politica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2246-042X
pISSN - 0105-0710
DOI - 10.7146/politica.v50i3.131189
Subject(s) - affect (linguistics) , quality (philosophy) , service quality , service (business) , public relations , business , psychology , political science , marketing , philosophy , communication , epistemology
Satisfaction surveys are increasingly used to inform citizens and decision makers about the quality of public services. This use of satisfaction surveys demands a close relationship between citizens’ satisfaction and the actual quality of the service. Research is mixed on this point, which may have large implications for the use of citizen satisfaction surveys. In this study, I investigate two aspects of the relationship between quality and satisfaction: Does an objective measure of service quality and the citizens’ expectations to the public service affect the citizens’ satisfaction levels? This question is investigated using satisfaction data from schools in the City of Aarhus from 2011 and 2013 as well as data from the national tests. The results show that both the objective measure of quality and citizens’ expectations affect satisfaction with Danish schools.