AI, identity and the loyalty gap: emerging themes in service quality research

This review synthesises two decades of empirical research on service quality in hospitality and tourism, examining the mediators and moderators through which service quality translates into customer satisfaction, loyalty and behavioural intentions. Using a PRISMA-based systematic review of Scopus, 46 empirical studies were retained from an initial 180 records for detailed analysis. Customer satisfaction emerges as the most consistent mediator between service quality and loyalty, with gender, cultural background and technological context the most frequently studied moderators. Beyond confirming these established pathways, the review reveals three paradoxes in which higher service quality does not straightforwardly translate into greater loyalty: an over-delivery effect in which exceptional service can dampen future satisfaction; moderators that reverse direction across contexts (for example, robot service preferences flipping between full-service and quick-service restaurants); and a dual mediating/ moderating role for trust depending on customer involvement. Emerging themes around artificial intelligence in service delivery and the sustainability-quality trade-off are also examined. The review is positioned as mechanism-focused rather than dimension- or sector-focused, organising the literature around why the service-quality-to-loyalty link varies in strength and direction.