Abstract

This study is designed to examine the effects of information source effects of the word mouth have on the formed expectations for the private institution and to explore the formed expectations' effects on the actual sales of the educational service. Moreover, its purpose is in analyzing what medication effects the pre-conceived expectation has on selecting the educational service. After testing hypothesis, the results showed that the source effects of the information from word of mouth had a significant effect on the expectation factors, in terms of expertise, similarity, likability and familiarity expectation factors. However, it was found that effect was not significant for the truthfulness. The significant result was found on the expectation factors before visiting the private institution on selecting educational service, indicating a positive effect. As for the influence of source of the word of mouth information on selecting educational service, the results from the mediation effects of the expectation factors on selecting the educational service showed that for expectation factors, expertise had the partial mediation effect, truthfulness, perfect mediating effect, similarity, partial mediation effect, likability, perfect mediating effect, and familiarity, perfect mediating effect. A test of the mediating role of attribute expectations in the influence of WOM message source attributes on educational services choices showed the following: 1) It was proven that attribute expectations played a partial mediating role in the influence of expertise and similarity, respectively, on educational services choices. 2) On the influence of trustworthiness, likability, and familiarity on educational services choices, respectively, attribute expectations had a full mediation effect. This research differs from the previous ones, which focused only on consumer satisfaction with educational services offered by private educational institutions in that it covers not only the influences of both WOM source attributes and key component factors of educational services on both educational services choices and satisfaction with such services but also the influence of WOM source attributes on attribute expectations prior to the first visit to a particular private educational institutions, and in turn the influence of such attribute expectations on educational services choices. Most particularly, the significance of this study lies in the fact that in an effort to more clearly explain the causal relationship between WOM source effects and educational services choices a test of the mediating role of attribute expectations was conducted. Although the research seems simple, some theoretical implications can be drawn as follows: WOM message source effects on educational services choices were positive and moreover these positive impacts are likely to be reinforced by means of the mediating variable of attribute expectations.