Using focus groups to investigate service quality determinants for customer satisfaction in selected university libraries in Sri Lanka

Abstract

This study aimed at establishing service quality determinants which may affect customer satisfaction in university libraries in Sri Lanka. Using the literature, 113 service quality determinants were identified. These were then reviewed by eight focus groups in four different universities. Forty of the determinants were perceived to be applicable to their context. The participants also added 14 quality requirements which they thought were not provided for in the list. Finally, the content and face validity of the 54 determinants were evaluated by a panel of experts who ultimately reduced them to 50. This study recommends the use of the identified quality determinants by library administrators and policymakers in the higher education sector in Sri Lanka to gauge the levels of customer satisfaction and assure quality of service.