A framework of satisfaction for continually delivered business services

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to present a new framework for the evaluation of satisfaction in continually delivered business services (CDBS) contexts based on applicable theoretical perspectives and extant empirical research. Design/methodology/approach – The paper first describes and justifies the importance of the CDBS context. Then, a literature review of CDBS satisfaction research over the past ten years is presented and utilized in conjunction with theoretical insights from expectancy disconfirmation theory and social exchange theory to develop conceptual definitions, a general conceptual framework, and research propositions. Findings – The resulting conceptual framework focuses on global CDBS provider satisfaction as the outcome of three more specific satisfaction assessments: service satisfaction (driven by the actual performance of the service), economic satisfaction (driven by the customers’ economic outcomes from the exchange relationship) and social satisfaction (driven by the customers’ social outcomes and interactions in the exchange relationship). Originality/value – The study is the first to develop a framework of satisfaction for the CDBS context and presents propositions to guide future satisfaction research. The conceptual framework leverages insights from two existing models of satisfaction formation: expectancy disconfirmation (which provides deeper insight on service satisfaction) and social exchange theory (which provides deeper insights on social and economic satisfaction). The integration of these two models results in a more comprehensive view of satisfaction formation in the CDBS context than by using either model separately.