Authors : Regina Muduli; Simasiku Mwiya Mufalali; Mukwalikuli Mundia; Jackson Sishumba; Jimmy Sikachelela

Volume/Issue : Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 4 - April

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/43w7ruxk

Scribd : https://tinyurl.com/387vxbt2

DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26apr1806

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Abstract : This study examines whether customer satisfaction in a sport-service context is better explained by symmetric neteffects modeling or asymmetric configurational modeling. Specifically, it investigates how the 7Ps service marketing mix jointly and independently relate to satisfaction at OYDC Zambia Sports Development Centre. Using survey data from 201 customers, the study employs hierarchical OLS regression with HC3 robust standard errors alongside fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA). The symmetric model estimates additive net effects, while fsQCA identifies sufficient configurations and tests equifinality and causal asymmetry. Robustness checks include alternative calibration thresholds and stricter consistency cut-offs. OLS indicates that the 7Ps collectively increase explanatory power but no single element exerts a significant independent effect in the full model. In contrast, fsQCA reveals multiple sufficient configurations producing high satisfaction, demonstrating equifinality, substitution effects and causal asymmetry. No single P is necessary for satisfaction. The study reconceptualises the 7Ps as interdependent configurational systems rather than independent levers and contributes to the symmetric–asymmetric modeling debate in service marketing, particularly within an emerging economy context.

Keywords : Service Marketing Mix, 7Ps, fsQCA, Configurational Theory, Customer Satisfaction, Emerging Economies.

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