Title: Relations between service quality and students' willingness to pay for online education during COVID-19

Authors: Ahmet Demir; Kezhan Salar Abdulqadr; Bayad Jamal Ali; Pakzad Fadel Saleh; Venkatesh Andavar

Addresses: Tishk International University, Near Shorish Hospital, Qirga, Shorsh St., Sulaymaniyah 46001, Iraq ' Komar University of Science and Technology, Chaq Chaq, Qularaisi, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq ' Komar University of Science and Technology, Chaq Chaq, Qularaisi, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq ' Komar University of Science and Technology, Chaq Chaq, Qularaisi, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq ' Salale University, 112 Kilometers, Fiche, Oromia, Addis Ababa/Finfinne, Ethiopia

Abstract: This study explores the effects of students' perceived service quality on value, satisfaction, and willingness to pay for an online education during COVID-19. The data were from 250 private university students in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. A hypothesised model was tested using structural equation modelling. The results revealed that empathy and reliability affected students' value and satisfaction, and tangibles, assurance, and responsiveness were variables that did not affect satisfaction and value. Moreover, the matter was the main determinant of the willingness to pay for an online education relative to satisfaction. This study, limited to the Kurdistan region of Iraq, has implications for lecturers and the administration of online teaching because students are a type of customer of private universities, given financial affairs. Moreover, no study has evaluated the links between service quality, value, satisfaction, and students' willingness to pay during COVID-19, making this research valuable for private universities.

Keywords: service quality; online education; willingness to pay; WTP; higher education; private universities; COVID-19.

DOI: 10.1504/MEJM.2023.133762

Middle East Journal of Management, 2023 Vol.10 No.6, pp.637 - 662

Received: 02 May 2022
Accepted: 17 Jun 2022
Published online: 03 Oct 2023 *

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