• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.93-103
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• 2015

Purpose - This study plans to adopt a more sophisticated approach toward service recognition by customers in general supermarkets in order to revise the service quality measurement methods that suit the context of Korean distribution channels. In particular, in general supermarkets, where much of the shopping process is in the form of self-service, there is high reliance on the service recognized by the consumers; therefore, it is highly likely that consumers would make their purchasing decisions based on their recognition of service quality or guarantees. It also utilized service quality elements of a basic level in the KD-SQS development model in order to indicate that the quality recognized by consumers impacts their loyalty to the stores with financial value and abstract value. Research design, data, and methodology - The study suggested a theoretical model comprising 13 hypotheses on relations between theoretic variables, and conducted surveys with consumers using discount stores in Seoul and Gyunggi Metropolitan area in order to verify the hypotheses, while using SPSS 20.0, AMOS 21.0 as the verification program. The survey sheets used amounted to 332, and a structural equation model was used to analyze the reliability and validity of constituent elements and to verify the suggested hypothesis. Therefore, this study analyzes the interrelations between service quality and guarantee factors in the distribution channel and their relations with the loyalty to stores as a dependent variable. Results - First, the results of the hypotheses tests helped identify the relations between service quality, service guarantees, service value, and customer loyalty, providing an opportunity to define the relations between constituent elements. In particular, service convenience in service quality has no impact on financial values. Further, stores' service policy had no impact on abstract values. Service recognition by service convenience has an impact on abstract values such as good image, comfort, and usability, while mileage systems promote financial values for consumers. In order to improve consumer values in service quality and values, general supermarkets should improve their service convenience, membership, and mileage programs using various strategies. Conclusion - In order to improve consumer values in service quality and values, general supermarkets should improve their service convenience, membership, and mileage programs using various strategies. Further, as service guarantee systems have a significant and direct impact on customer loyalty, rather than customer value recognition, service guarantees should be used to encourage customers to re-visit the stores. Finally, this study applied the findings of preceding studies in terms of service quality measurement; it had limitations in referencing preceding studies in a comprehensive manner. It also had limits in expanding upon various preceding studies because it was difficult to apply new measurement tools due to the lack of service quality measurement tools for general supermarkets. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct more studies on service quality to measure service quality and develop measurement tools by incorporating various industry characteristics.

• Magazine of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.3943-3955
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• 1975

The purposes of this study are to evaluate the utilization characteristics of electrical power consumption, to grasp the present trends in the use of electrical equipments, to estimate the demand factor and load factor being held, and to evaluate the efficiency of electical uses for the recently electrified farms cultivating paddy rice. For the purposes, 109 sample farms located in eleven villiages electrified in six different years from 1968 to 1973, were chosen at random and investigated on 35 items concerning to electrical uses and wiring systems. The survey was carried out in 1975, in the vinicity of Suweon city. The results are summarized as follows: i) The average annual power consumption on sample farms is considered to be low, being 242.9 Kwh. in 1974, and varied according to the different electrified year and size of cultivated land, respectively. It has significant positive correlation to the area of farm, too. ii) Between the number of year of electrical uses and the power consumption, there is very significant positive correlation, which could be expressed as Y=43.041+16.108 X, where X represents the number of years of electrical uses. The annual increment of power consumption is much greater at the beginning of the electrification than that at the later years, its average being approximately 20 percent. However, it is recommended that any estimation of long-term increments should be carefully investigated. iii) The monthly power consumption varies considerably throughout a year, in which the heaviest farm load occurs in November. Observing the seasonal variation of consumption, the winter-time is the heaviest season while the summer is the lowest. The result implies house lighting is chief contribution to the present electrical consumption on the farms. Comparing the variation of monthly consumption ratios between the sample farms and industries, the electrical uses on the farms are independant of the industrial uses, and further, the agricultural uses are of inverse pattern to the farms from the results that there is negative correlationship between them, iv) The number of electrical equipments used on the farms are occupied chiefly by lighting sources. Next to the lighting sources, household appliances of small quantity and some motors are used. The mean electrical quantity is about 1, 127.4 watt, which corresponds to about 37.6 per cent to the contracted quantity. The composition of quantity is chiefly occupied by the electrical motor of about 1.5 hp., single-phased. The number of the annual utilization hours of each equipment is tabulated in Table IV-5. In contradiction to the high utilization of lighting sources and small household appliances, the motor is poorly used for approximately 22 hours in a year. v) More than 55 per cent of farms want to purchase new electrical equipments such as small household appliances and electrical motors in their number. The impulse of purchasing such items is stimulated by the contacts to the mass media and their knowledge on such equipments. Consequently, the increase of electrical uses could be prompted by such trials as education and demonstration. vi) The demand and load factors on the farms vary considerably according to the greater variation of the power consumption, daily or monthly. The daily demand factor is 22.4 per cent and load factor 18.6 per cent, while the annual demand factor is 1.3 per cent and load factor 70 per cent approximately. Therefore, the low efficiency of construction cost requires re-evaluation of the present contracted quantity of 3 Kw. or increase of electrical uses. vii) The electrical energy on the farms devoted chiefly to lighten the farm residences does not contribute to the farm incomes. Consequently, the cost of electrical consumption presses considerably upon the farm economy. Therefore, there is great need to build up the electrical uses on the farms through the development of new works and techinques to utilize any electrical equipments on the production of farm products. Further more, such the development should be related to increase the actual income of the farm consumers.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.29-34
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• 2003

It has been well documented that white egg layers are far more resistant to fowl typhoid than the brown egg layers. In Korea, however, most consumers prefer brown eggs to white ones. Therefore, a study was conducted to Produce fowl typhoid-resistant crossbred layers producing somewhat brown-colored eggs. Several crossbred strains were obtained from crossbreeding white egg lines (W) with brown egg lines (B). These crossbred layers (W${\times}$B) produced eggs with varying degrees of brown-colored shells between the white eggs obtained from W (White) and the brown eggs from B (Brown). Eggs from the peak stage of production were collected and their eggshell color values were measured. The mean eggshell color values of White and Brown were 81.9 and 36.4, respectively. Eggs from the crossbred lines (W${\times}$B) were collected, and their eggshell color values were measured to re-group these eggs according to their color. The mean eggshell color values of Trt-White, Middle, and Trt-Brown were 70, 60, and 50, respectively (Fig. 1). A total of 247 people living in Daejeon area, mainly housewives, took part in this survey. First, they were offered eggs with varying degrees of eggshell color in a paper egg-tray, together with a questionnaire. After they filled out the first questionnaire, they were instructed that the eggshell color has nothing to do with its nutritive value. In the second questionnaire, their preference on both eggshell color and price, i.e., purchasing will, were investigated. In the first questionnaire, the Brown (eggshell color lightness 36.4) were most preferred, and the Trt-white (eggshell color lightness 70) were least preferred. No statistical significance was detected between Brown and Trt-Brown, and White and Trt-White. In the second questionnaire, the trend was the same as in the first. Although no significant difference was found between Trt-Brown and Brown, however, the Trt-Brown were most preferred, surpassing the Brown. In conclusion, regardless of the nutritive values, the Korean consumers prefer brown eggs to white ones, and this trend could be changed gradually through consumer education.

• Journal of Distribution Research
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.71-110
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• 2010

1. Introduction Today Internet is recognized as an important way for the transaction of products and services. According to the data surveyed by the National Statistical Office, the on-line transaction in 2007 for a year, 15.7656 trillion, shows a 17.1%(2.3060 trillion won) increase over last year, of these, the amount of B2C has been increased 12.0%(10.2258 trillion won). Like this, because the entry barrier of on-line market of Korea is low, many retailers could easily enter into the market. So the bigger its scale is, but on the other hand, the tougher its competition is. Particularly due to the Internet and innovation of IT, the existing market has been changed into the perfect competitive market(Srinivasan, Rolph & Kishore, 2002). In the early years of on-line business, they think that the main reason for success is a moderate price, they are awakened to its importance of on-line service quality with tough competition. If it's not sure whether customers can be provided with what they want, they can use the Web sites, perhaps they can trust their products that had been already bought or not, they have a doubt its viability(Parasuraman, Zeithaml & Malhotra, 2005). Customers can directly reserve and issue their air tickets irrespective of place and time at the Web sites of travel agencies or airlines, but its empirical studies about these Web sites for reserving and issuing air tickets are insufficient. Therefore this study goes on for following specific objects. First object is to measure service quality and service recovery of Web sites for reserving and issuing air tickets. Second is to look into whether above on-line service quality and on-line service recovery have an impact on overall service quality. Third is to seek for the relation with overall service quality and customer satisfaction, then this customer satisfaction and loyalty intention. 2. Theoretical Background 2.1 On-line Service Quality Barnes & Vidgen(2000; 2001a; 2001b; 2002) had invented the tool to measure Web sites' quality four times(called WebQual). The WebQual 1.0, Step one invented a measuring item for information quality based on QFD, and this had been verified by students of UK business school. The Web Qual 2.0, Step two invented for interaction quality, and had been judged by customers of on-line bookshop. The WebQual 3.0, Step three invented by consolidating the WebQual 1.0 for information quality and the WebQual2.0 for interactionquality. It includes 3-quality-dimension, information quality, interaction quality, site design, and had been assessed and confirmed by auction sites(e-bay, Amazon, QXL). Furtheron, through the former empirical studies, the authors changed sites quality into usability by judging that usability is a concept how customers interact with or perceive Web sites and It is used widely for accessing Web sites. By this process, WebQual 4.0 was invented, and is consist of 3-quality-dimension; information quality, interaction quality, usability, 22 items. However, because WebQual 4.0 is focusing on technical part, it's usable at the Website's design part, on the other hand, it's not usable at the Web site's pleasant experience part. Parasuraman, Zeithaml & Malhorta(2002; 2005) had invented the measure for measuring on-line service quality in 2002 and 2005. The study in 2002 divided on-line service quality into 5 dimensions. But these were not well-organized, so there needed to be studied again totally. So Parasuraman, Zeithaml & Malhorta(2005) re-worked out the study about on-line service quality measure base on 2002's study and invented E-S-QUAL. After they invented preliminary measure for on-line service quality, they made up a question for customers who had purchased at amazon.com and walmart.com and reassessed this measure. And they perfected an invention of E-S-QUAL consists of 4 dimensions, 22 items of efficiency, system availability, fulfillment, privacy. Efficiency measures assess to sites and usability and others, system availability measures accurate technical function of sites and others, fulfillment measures promptness of delivering products and sufficient goods and others and privacy measures the degree of protection of data about their customers and so on. 2.2 Service Recovery Service industries tend to minimize the losses by coping with service failure promptly. This responses of service providers to service failure mean service recovery(Kelly & Davis, 1994). Bitner(1990) went on his study from customers' view about service providers' behavior for customers to recognize their satisfaction/dissatisfaction at service point. According to them, to manage service failure successfully, exact recognition of service problem, an apology, sufficient description about service failure and some tangible compensation are important. Parasuraman, Zeithaml & Malhorta(2005) approached the service recovery from how to measure, rather than how to manage, and moved to on-line market not to off-line, then invented E-RecS-QUAL which is a measuring tool about on-line service recovery. 2.3 Customer Satisfaction The definition of customer satisfaction can be divided into two points of view. First, they approached customer satisfaction from outcome of comsumer. Howard & Sheth(1969) defined satisfaction as 'a cognitive condition feeling being rewarded properly or improperly for their sacrifice.' and Westbrook & Reilly(1983) also defined customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction as 'a psychological reaction to the behavior pattern of shopping and purchasing, the display condition of retail store, outcome of purchased goods and service as well as whole market.' Second, they approached customer satisfaction from process. Engel & Blackwell(1982) defined satisfaction as 'an assessment of a consistency in chosen alternative proposal and their belief they had with them.' Tse & Wilton(1988) defined customer satisfaction as 'a customers' reaction to discordance between advance expectation and ex post facto outcome.' That is, this point of view that customer satisfaction is process is the important factor that comparing and assessing process what they expect and outcome of consumer. Unlike outcome-oriented approach, process-oriented approach has many advantages. As process-oriented approach deals with customers' whole expenditure experience, it checks up main process by measuring one by one each factor which is essential role at each step. And this approach enables us to check perceptual/psychological process formed customer satisfaction. Because of these advantages, now many studies are adopting this process-oriented approach(Yi, 1995). 2.4 Loyalty Intention Loyalty has been studied by dividing into behavioral approaches, attitudinal approaches and complex approaches(Dekimpe et al., 1997). In the early years of study, they defined loyalty focusing on behavioral concept, behavioral approaches regard customer loyalty as "a tendency to purchase periodically within a certain period of time at specific retail store." But the loyalty of behavioral approaches focuses on only outcome of customer behavior, so there are someone to point the limits that customers' decision-making situation or process were neglected(Enis & Paul, 1970; Raj, 1982; Lee, 2002). So the attitudinal approaches were suggested. The attitudinal approaches consider loyalty contains all the cognitive, emotional, voluntary factors(Oliver, 1997), define the customer loyalty as "friendly behaviors for specific retail stores." However these attitudinal approaches can explain that how the customer loyalty form and change, but cannot say positively whether it is moved to real purchasing in the future or not. This is a kind of shortcoming(Oh, 1995). 3. Research Design 3.1 Research Model Based on the objects of this study, the research model derived is