Determining the reliability and validity of service quality scores in a public library context: A confirmatory approach.

摘要

This study used confirmatory factor analysis to determine model fit, reliability, and validity of the secondary data resulting from a service quality survey conducted by a large public library. The library outsourced the development of this survey, which was founded on the well-recognized SERVQUAL and LibQUAL+ service quality models. The library's resulting findings, however, included no statistical analysis as to data reliability or validity, nor did it assess model fit. Applying structural equation modeling and recognized fit indexes to the aforementioned secondary data, this study determined that the library model did not fit the data and that the data were neither reliable nor valid. It is posited that the scale purification phase may have been a primary factor in model failure. This study also developed a 9-step process for implementing the SERVQUAL model that enables the data derived from SERVQUAL-type implementations to provide superior information for decision-making purposes.