An investigation of self-concept: Actual and ideal self-congruence compared in the context of service evaluation

Abstract

This article describes two studies that tested the basic tenet of congruence theory-that there is a relationship between self-concept and evaluation of product concept. The present paper extends the range of previous empirical work by considering the above relationship in a service context, using restaurants and hotels. In the first study, the degree of congruence is assessed by the gap score formula and in the second uses the direct score formula. In both cases the results are regressed against measures of satisfaction, attitude, service quality and behavioural intention. The study highlights the importance of self-concept and suggests that the actual and ideal self-congruence have a variable influence on the above variables. The results presented here also suggest that an applied scale may be useful for evaluating product concept and self-concept. © 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.