AN ASSESSMENT OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SERVICE QUALITY DIMENSIONS, PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN ELDORET LAW COURTS

Abstract

ABSTRACT Users of the justice system supply chain have the right to receive high levels of quality service. The 9093 service delivery received by the Judiciary between June 2012 and June 2013 are an indicator that the public is generally dissatisfied with the quality of services offered by the Judiciary. The general objective of this study was to assess the relationship between service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction in Eldoret law courts using the SERVQUAL model. The specific objectives of the study were to establish the relationship between service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction, to investigate the moderating effects of performance benchmarks on the relationship between service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction and to examine the joint effects of service quality dimensions and performance benchmarks on customer satisfaction at Eldoret Law Courts. Major theories used in this study include the assimilation - contrast theory to explain the relationships among the service quality and customer satisfaction variables, Contrast theory to provide insights into customers post usage evaluations and equity theory to effectively address the major objective to customer satisfaction through the legal reforms in the country. Data was collected from a population of 1815 respondents made up of 140 convicts, 83 remandees, 23 advocates and 82 parties with pending children cases obtained using stratified random sampling. Primary data was collected using on-the-spot-administered structured questionnaires developed on a five Point-Likert type scale and a questionnaire. Secondary data was used to compare the findings in the primary data. The instrument’s content validity was assessed using Cronbach's coefficient alpha reliability test which ranged from 0.823-0.920. Data was analysed with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. This study established that, all the service quality dimension factors are useful measures of satisfaction. This study found that all the respondents were not satisfied with the quality of services rendered at Eldoret law courts and especially the remandees who were least satisfied. The results from ANOVA provide the p value of .000 at 95% confidence level and therefore the study rejected the null hypothesis and concluded that there was a significant relationship service quality dimensions, performance benchmarks and customer satisfaction. The study findings may contribute significantly to the development of strategies by policy makers in the judiciary, reduce the levels of dissatisfaction by providing quality services and enhance service delivery in the Judiciary.