Welfare benefits and the customer: a longitudinal perspective

In the UK the Benefits Agency is seeking to process its business more efficiently, and commissioned research to investigate the number and nature of the contacts customers have with the Agency. The paper draws on this research and outlines the case for adopting a longitudinal perspective to elucidat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The International journal of public sector management 1998, Vol.11 (5), p.354-366
Main Author: Stafford, Bruce
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Claimants
Customer satisfaction
Customers
Information seeking
Justification
Longitudinal studies
Relationship
Service delivery
Social policy
Social security
Social services
Welfare
Welfare benefits
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:In the UK the Benefits Agency is seeking to process its business more efficiently, and commissioned research to investigate the number and nature of the contacts customers have with the Agency. The paper draws on this research and outlines the case for adopting a longitudinal perspective to elucidate and analyse customers' contacts with a welfare provider. No research design is unproblematic, and the lessons learned in mapping the customers' contacts will be discussed. In particular, the difficulties encountered and the solutions adopted in drawing a sample representative of pieces of business, in designing a contact grid, and in operationalising the notion of a contact will be elaborated. Some key findings from the research are used to illustrate the advantages of a longitudinal study.
ISSN:0951-3558
1758-6666
DOI:10.1108/09513559810226743