Professor Janet R. McCollKennedy

1
Thesis development

• Professor Janet R. McColl-Kennedy
• University of Queensland
• AMA SERVSIG Doctoral Consortium
• 29 June 2006
• Acknowledgement (former PhD student) Dr
  Alastair Tombs

UQ BUSINESS SCHOOL
2
Getting a topic

• passion
• sustainable
• significant topic (first in field)
• wow factor
• sell it to advisor or advisor sells it to
  candidate
• can I work with this person/team?
• pragmatic (doable in the 3-4 years)
• positioning publishing, examiners

3
How will the thesis be examined?

• sustained ability to carry out a program of
  research
• significance (original findings)
• demonstrates that candidate can undertake
  independent research
• effectively communicate findings
• publishable

4
Work habits

• dont procrastinate 3 years is not a lot of
  time
• go to work 9am-6pm
• set realistic writing targets (milestones)
• daily what I will do today?
• monthly
• annual
• Plan to make several presentations
• AMA Frontiers
• AMA Summer/Winter/EMAC/ANZMAC
• departmental seminars
• small group other Phds

5
Coping strategies

• dealing with the red pen
• Phd blues highs and lows
• seeing the supervisor
• social support group

6
Confirmation document

• significance
• research design
• research program (research questions, objectives,
  hypotheses, methods)
• gaps in the literature
• literature review
• studies 1,2,3
• contributions (theoretical practical)
• glossary

7
Positioning the research

• research question(s)
• related literatures
• read widely and deeply
• what are the key gaps in the literature?
• where does my work fit in?
• table of key literature
• key themes/theories
• 5-6 key papers

8
Overall summary of literature search
SERVICE OUTCOMES Satisfaction Service
quality Repeat purchase Loyalty WOM Service
recovery
CUSTOMER RESPONSES
RELATIONSHIP MARKETING Co-opting
customers Part-time marketers Imaginary
Organisations
ATMOSPHERICS Ambient Factors Design
Factors Social Factors
CONSUMER INTERACTION Customer Customer Customer
Employee Customer - Setting
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Social facilitation
SERVICE EXPERIENCES
ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS OF PERSON-ENVIRONMENT
INTERACTION
ENVIRONMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY Approach / Avoidance
9
Summary table of literature Atmospherics in
service environments
10
Theoretical Underpinning Previous Models
Literature review - example
Employee behaviours
Employee responses
Environmental stimuli Atmospherics
Customer responses
the social servicescape
Customer behaviours
Moderators
Physical features Specifically excludes the
social aspects
Cognitive Emotional Physiological
Approach - avoidance

• The servicescape (Bitner 1992)

11
Theoretical Underpinning Previous Models
Employee behaviours
Employee responses
Environmental stimuli Atmospherics

• Approach Avoidance Theory
• (Mehrabian and Russell 1974 Donovan and Rossiter
  1984).
• Draws from the SOR paradigm
• People respond to the environment through either
  approach or avoidance behaviours (Mehrabian and
  Russell 1974).

Customer Affect
the social servicescape
Customer Behaviours
12
Theoretical Underpinning Previous Models
Employee behaviours

• Social Facilitation Theory
• (Platania and Moran, 2001 Zajonc, 1965)
• The mere presence (or absence) of others in the
  environment will have an effect on human
  behaviour.

Employee responses
Environmental stimuli Audience
the social servicescape
Customer responses
Customer behaviours
13
Theoretical Underpinning Previous Models
Employee behaviours
Employee responses
Environmental stimuli Place Occasion
Customer responses
the social servicescape
Customer behaviours

• Behaviour Setting Theory(Barker 1968 Cassidy
  1997)
• The Behaviour Setting is one aspect of the
  environment that determines the individual and
  interpersonal behaviour of those within it.
• Basic unit of the environment - Place or
  occasion specific

14
Theoretical Underpinning Previous Models
Employee behaviours
Employee responses
Environmental stimuli Affective Events

• Affective Events Theory
• (Weiss and Cropanzano 1996)
• Environmental features will influence the
  individuals affective state by facilitating or
  creating affective events

Customer Affect
the social servicescape
Customer behaviours
Dispositions
15
Development of a new conceptual framework
SOCIAL SERVICESCAPE
Customers Affective Responses
Customers Cognitive Responses
Elements of the Social Servicescape
Social Density
Customer Affect

• Purchase
• Occasion

the social servicescape
Repurchase Intentions
Displayed emotions of others
Customer Goals
Organisational Goals
Main Effects Interaction Effects
16
Research Design

REVIEW OF LITERATURE Services Marketing Atmospheri
cs Environmental psychology Social Psychology
STUDY 1 RESEARCH RESEARCH APPROACH METHODS Qua
litative Observation Analytic Induction Behaviou
ral Mapping
INITIAL THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
STUDY 2 RESEARCH RESEARCH APPROACH METHODS
Qualitative Focus Groups Analytic Induction
ADJUSTED THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
FINAL THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK CONTRIBUTION TO THEORY
STUDY 3 RESEARCH RESEARCH
APPROACH METHODS Quantitative Experimentation
Deductive 2x2x3 Factorial
17
Research program
18
Write, write, write, write, write

• chunks of writing
• it cant be perfect first time (a sculpture!)
• drafts - but practice makes perfect
• templates
• The aim of this chapter/paper is to ..
• What we are going to do? (aims and objectives)
• How we went about it? (method sample, approach,
  instrument)
• What did we find? (findings)
• What does it mean? (discussion theoretical and
  practical significance, limitations, need for
  further research,)
• References must be perfect! endnote

19
Write, revise, re-write, revise, re-write

• many drafts
• drafts help to sharpen the focus and argument
• the first draft is about getting the ideas on
  paper so that you as the writer can reflect on
  your thoughts and arguments
• leave some time in between drafts
• working drafts should be shown to others for
  comment Does it make sense? What is not clear?
  Does it link well together?
• circle of friends

20
Templates

• Sample chapter
• Introduction
• The previous chapter. However, . Therefore,
  this current chapter.
• Objectives
• The aim of this chapter is to ..
• Research Method (design, sample, analyses etc)
• Results (findings, links to other research)
• Conclusion
• Summarize and signal what the reader should
  expect next

21
Remember

• its a journey at first it seems a long journey
  and Ive got plenty of time
• Stages
• Optimistic
• Im never going to make it
• Cant wait to finish
• keep it in perspective its a PhD not a Nobel
  prize!
• be thorough
• keep focused
• be persistent test of perseverance
• Thats POST DOC!