Service research has largely overlooked how customers' physiological conditions influence their ability to engage with service environments. This study examines jetlag as a form of physiological disruption and investigates how circadian misalignment influences tourists' involvement in tourism activities, perceived service experience quality, and satisfaction. By integrating person-environment (P-E) fit theory with Social Zeitgeber theory, the study conceptualizes jetlag as a boundary condition that constrains customer engagement with service environments.
Survey data were collected from 1,178 international travelers across three travel contexts involving varying levels of time-zone disruption: long-haul travel to North America, medium-haul travel to Oceania and domestic travel within India. The proposed conceptual model was tested using structural equation modeling to examine the relationships between jetlag, tourist involvement, service experience quality, satisfaction and the moderating role of vacation duration.
Jetlag reduces cognitive, emotional and behavioral engagement in service encounters, lowering perceived service quality and satisfaction. While longer vacations provide partial relief, physiological disruption still constrains active participation, revealing limits to conventional service assumptions.
The study focuses on satisfaction and does not examine loyalty, word-of-mouth or long-term behavioral outcomes. Future research could explore how physiological disruptions influence broader customer behaviors and engagement across different service contexts.
This research is among the first to conceptualize jetlag as a service phenomenon and extend P-E fit theory to include biological constraints. It contributes to service theory by demonstrating how human physiology interacts with service environments, providing actionable guidance for managing customer well-being and engagement across global contexts.
