Lawrence F. Cunningham, Clifford E. Young and Hongxia Zhang
Journal of International Marketing Strategy,Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp. 39-XX

This study investigates customer-based views of generic services from a Chinese consumer perspective. The data for the study were collected using students in a university setting as surrogates for Chinese consumers and were analyzed using a multidimensional scaling technique. The study indicates that only two dimensions, customization/standardization and person/object are responsible for most of the variance in the classifications. The paper discusses the implications of the findings in both the context of theory and for service businesses operating in the Chinese environment. The study is limited by the use of university students as surrogates for consumer and the limitations of multi-dimensional scaling. Despite these limitations, the study is useful to Chinese managers of service organizations because it provides information on how Chinese consumers view generic services in general and in relation to each other in the Chinese environment. Chinese managers may gain insight into the possible ways that these managers may reposition their service in relation to other services. For Chinese service managers, this information may lead to the formulation of better strategy especially in the area of non-technical services.
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Cunningham, Lawrence F., Young, Clifford E., Lee, Moonkyu & Ulaga, Wolfgang
International Marketing Review Vol. 23, Issue 2, p. 192-210

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a study that examined how customers in the USA, France, and Korea perceived and classified a set of 13 services based on multidimensional scaling (MDS).
Design/methodology/approach – A MDS framework was used to map service classifications and actual services in the USA, Korea and France. Results from each country were then compared to the other two countries to determine similarities and differences.
Findings – Results from this research suggest that there are two underlying dimensions that explain approximately 80 percent of the total variance in service perceptions and classifications. Underlying dimensions of the classifications across the three cultures were virtually identical. Differences among the countries were based on relative positioning of classifications and/or services on the underlying dimensions.
Research limitations/implications – Evidence from diverse cultures implies that consumers perceive services in a somewhat simplistic, two-dimensional fashion rather than the complex set of classifications proposed by researchers. Although the complex classifications may be of use to service providers in organizing the delivery of services, the presentation and positioning of those services is along a much simpler framework in the minds of customers.
Originality/value – This is the first time consumer-based perceptions of services have been examined systematically across cultures using a MDS approach.

Cunningham, Lawrence F., Young, Clifford E. and Lee, Moonkyu
Service Industries Journal Vol. 25, Issue 1, p. 43 – 59.

This article reports the results of a study that examined how US, Korean and Taiwanese customers perceived and classified a set of 13 services based on multidimensional scaling (MDS). Service classifications were developed on a perceptual space where the actual services were mapped for three countries, US, Korea and Taiwan. The results suggest service perceptions and classifications. The dimensions and correlations for the classifications and services displayed many consistencies and some differences among American, Korean and Taiwanese consumers. Directions for future academic research and managerial implications are cited and discussed.

Cunningham, Lawrence F., Young, Clifford E. and Lee, Moonkyu
Public Works Management & Policy Vol. 9 Issue 1, p. 10-25

Marketing managers must be always alert to some kind of brand crisis that can occur unexpectedly. The September 11 terrorist attack dramatically changed the business environment in the United States and elsewhere and had the most pro- found impact on the American airline industry. This article reports the results of a series of longitudinal surveys on consumer perceptions of airline service quality, risks associated with air travel, and satisfaction with airlines before and after the 9/11 crisis. The results show that although the number of trips declined over the course of the research, passengers’ overall satisfaction with the airline industry, airline satisfaction, and intention to repatronize their airline generally did not change in a statistically significant manner The implications of the results are discussed from a brand management perspective.

Cunningham, Lawrence F., Clifford E. Young, Wolfgag Ulaga, and Moonkyu Lee
Journal of Services Marketing Vol. 18, Issue 6, p. 421-432

In the services marketing literature, few service classifications are based on how customers view services, and fewer of these have been validated cross-culturally. To fill this gap, this research presents the results of a study that examined how U.S. and French customers perceived and classified a set of thirteen services based on multidimensional scaling (MDS). Service classifications were developed on a perceptual space where the actual services were mapped for two countries, U.S. and France. The results of the study suggest that there are two underlying dimensions that explain approximately 80% of the total variance in service perceptions and classifications. The dimensions and correlations for the classifications and services displayed many consistencies and some differences among American and French consumers. Directions for future academic research and managerial implications are cited and discussed.