A longitudinal investigation to test the validity of the American customer satisfaction model in the U.S. hotel industry

This study was designed to test the validity of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) model specifically for the hotel industry. The main objective of this study was to determine consistency of the ACSI hotel model over three periods: 1994, 2001, and 2009. The model was tested using the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) technique using a two stage data analysis procedure. The findings from multi-group structural equation modeling showed that the model fit of ACSI lodging is consistent, regardless of economic conditions, demonstrating the validity of that model. Several plausible interpretations are presented in explaining meaningful patterns of path coefficients, for each of the study test periods. Furthermore, as the model tests validate the model fit of the hotel ACSI, academicians studying customer satisfaction may use the theoretical underpinnings and conceptual foundation of the model as a basis for their research.