Service quality and intention to recommend in low-cost and full-service airlines in Turkey

Abstract

This study contributes to the knowledge of airline service quality in Turkey. The aim is to investigate the relationship between service quality and intention to recommend in the context of competitive strategies. For this purpose, a survey study under fuzzy environment is performed in Istanbul, Turkey. After comparing service quality and intention to recommend in full-service and lowcost airlines, a binary logistic regression model is constructed to reveal the factors that are important for intention to recommend. The results show that lowcost airlines in Turkey have substantially lower service quality scores and intention to recommend. Furthermore, the model points out empathy, tangibles, and responsiveness as the significant quality dimensions for intention to recommend. However, reliability and assurance dimensions have been found insignificant along with all control variables of age, gender, travel type, travel frequency, travel purpose, airline company, income level, and education level.