Six sigma-oriented methodology for multivariate capability analysis to measure service quality in virtual education environments

Online education programs have become increasingly ubiquitous in the last few decades. This phenomenon has created the need for properly assessing service quality in virtual education environments. Traditional methods focus only on the technical aspects of online education, or manufacturing-like service transactions, thus neglecting vital factors that influence perceived service quality, such as human behaviour, support activities and administrative responsiveness. This paper proposes a service quality evaluation methodology for virtual education environments, incorporating elements from the Six Sigma methodology and multivariate capability analysis. The results show that implementing a Six Sigma approach in virtual education could provide the tools for decision-makers to direct their efforts to key quality-related aspects in order to improve student satisfaction levels and perceived service quality.