Public Perception of Massage Therapy

Authors : Özlem ÖZDİNÇ

Pages : 271-278

View : 56 | Download : 10

Publication Date : 2020-09-06

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :Massage therapy, as a service, is susceptible to churn for its misconceived efficiency and practice. However, therapists and massage businesses could frame messages that highlight, for instance, their service proficiency or price promotions on the public’s perception of massage to overcome such misconception. We tested this prediction in two studies. In study 1 insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(n = 1,925);, we distinguished four groups of individuals by their massage perception insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(positive, negative); and whether they had ever received a massage insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(yes, no);. In study 2 insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(n = 1,209);, we observed the four types of people that study 1 determined to compare the influences of a service expert and discount on their perceptions of massage therapy in a 2 insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(therapist: expert, nonexpert); x 2 insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(discount: yes, no); Solomon four-group experiment. There is evidence that positive perception is prone to service expert among those who had received a massage before. Those who experienced massage service for the first time, however, were prone to a bargain. Despite their lack of practical experience, these results imply that inexperienced and emerging therapists insert ignore into journalissuearticles values(e.g., students on practicum, interns); could help a massage business create customers when their imperfect services are bundled with an economic incentive. An expert therapist could, then, convert the initially discount-prone receivers of massage into quality-prone repeating customers and justify a price premium.
Keywords : Complementary and alternative treatments, Massage therapy, Public perception, Solomon four group, New Zealand

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