A three-item semantic differential scale measuring a consumer's perception of the severity of a service delay — specifically whether the wait is seen as long, unacceptable, and unreasonable. Items span the short/long, acceptable/not acceptable, and reasonable/not reasonable dimensions of delay perception, providing a brief and face-valid measure of how negatively a delay is evaluated. Applicable to service failure, service recovery, and waiting time research.
7-point semantic differential
Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.
Two reliability estimates: α = .72 (Study 2 follow-up, n = 134) and α = .83 (Study 5, n = 17) — You, Yang, Wang & Deng (2020). RELIABILITY CAUTION: The α = .83 estimate comes from an extremely small sample (n = 17) and should be treated with caution; the more reliable estimate from n = 134 is α = .72, which falls below the preferred threshold. The scale is included on the basis of the .83 estimate but researchers should note the small-sample provenance of that figure and consider revalidating before use. Scale source not stated — appears original to the authors. Used as a manipulation check in both studies.
You, Yanfen, Xiaojing Yang, Lili Wang, and Xiaoyan Deng (2020). When and why saying 'thank you' is better than saying 'sorry' in redressing service failures: The role of self-esteem. Journal of Marketing, 84(2), 133–150.
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