Cultural Difference and Consumer Satisfaction When Interacting With Technology Mediated Customer Services

Information technology mediated customer service is a reality of the 21st century. This study seeks to answer the research question “Does culture influence consumer satisfaction when interacting with technology?” Using 668 responses collected from US, China and Kuwait, the study investigates customer preferences over two service delivery models along with perception differences in customer service quality. Some significant differences are found in both customer purchasing preferences and perception of customer service quality in the three different cultures. Even with these cultural differences, it appears there are greater similarities than differences across these widely different cultures, economies and geography, which suggests that the use of technology to support business operations continues to make our world smaller and ever more similar in positive and subtle ways