Service Climate Effects on Customer Attitudes: An Examination of Boundary Conditions

The aim in this study was to extend theory on service climate by examining 2 boundary conditions for the effects of service climate on customer attitudes. Climate for service is defined as employee perceptions of the practices, procedures, and behaviors that get rewarded, supported, and expected with regard to customer service and customer service quality. A retail bank's 160 branches in the central United States constituted the sample. Branch employees' perspective on branch-targeted service climate showed a stronger positive relationship with customer satisfaction than branch employees' perspective on organization-targeted service climate. Frequency of customer contact moderated the relationship between branch employees' perspective on branch-targeted service climate and customer satisfaction. This relationship will be stronger was contact frequency increased. These findings are the first to validate the proposition in service climate theory that contact between employees and customers underlies service climate effects on customer attitudes.