Research on customer satisfaction of pharmaceutical e-commerce logistics service under service encounter theory

• Published in: Electronic commerce research and applications 2023-03, Vol.58, p.101246, Article 101246
• Main Authors: Wu, Jianyun, Dong, Mingqiu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Customer satisfaction; Logistics service quality (LSQ); Pharmaceutical e-commerce; Service encounter theory; Stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) framework
• ISSN: 1567-4223; 1873-7846
• DOI: 10.1016/j.elerap.2023.101246

•We combine the service encounter theory and S-O-R framework to research the logistics service quality of pharmaceutical e-commerce.•Based on the pharmaceutical e-commerce context, this paper proposes four encounter dimensions for the quality of pharmaceutical logistics services.•Increasing the encounter level of logistics service will reduce the level of perceived risk to customers.•Customer’s e-health literacy ability will weaken the influence between logistics service encounter dimensions and the user’s perception. As an important area for pharmaceutical e-commerce to maintain sustainable development, further improving the quality of pharmaceutical logistics service deserves our in-depth attention. However, a review of the previous literature reveals a lack of analysis of the quality of pharmaceutical e-commerce logistics services implemented at the user level. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate the impact situation of logistics service encounters on customer satisfaction in the context of pharmaceutical e-commerce. Using the S-O-R framework, we have constructed a structural equation model of “logistics service encounters - user perception - customer satisfaction” based on the pharmaceutical e-commerce context by combining service encounter theory with the LSQ model. A total of 610 valid questionnaires were collected and the PLS method was used to implement data statistics and hypotheses analysis. The results showed that all pathways were validated, except for the non-significant path coefficients between logistics function encounter and perceived risk. Furthermore, the degree of influence between health information encounter, interpersonal medical encounter, and internal perceptions depends on the e-health literacy capabilities of customers. This paper can help pharmaceutical e-commerce to understand the dynamics of the user-oriented logistics services market, clarify the key encounter dimensions between customers and e-commerce, and adjust their logistics service delivery management in time to maintain their sustainable position.