Table 1

Overview of perspectives on service design and examples of related methods

PerspectiveService design studiesRelated conceptsExamples of methodsFocus and qualities of methods
The dyadic interaction perspective
Service is a design category that can be specified in advance, produced by the firm and delivered to the customerShostack (1982) InteractionBlueprintsFocus: Customer–firm interactions
Bitner (1992) IHIP characteristicsFlowcharts
Berry et al. (2002) Service conceptExperience clue managementQualities: Visualizing the service delivery system for smooth service operation and reliable service quality; managing the customer–firm interactions for improved customer experiences; identifying interactions that are critical to customer satisfaction
Goldstein et al. (2002) Service encounterTouchpoints
Bitner et al. (2008) Service delivery systemCritical incident technique
Clatworthy (2011)  Customer journey maps
Lemon and Verhoef (2016)   
The systemic interaction perspective
It is not possible to design services as outputs because value is created during use and contextually contingent. Customers co-create value by combining resources from multiple sources, thus requiring a systemic approach. Institutions govern value co-creation activitiesPatrício et al. (2011) Service scienceCo-designFocus: System of actors and technologies (and the links between them) that are involved in enabling a service
Teixeira et al. (2012) Service-dominant logicMulti-level service design
Tax et al. (2013) Design for serviceCustomer experience modellingQualities: Mapping the service system, journey and touchpoints that underpin the customer's value creation process within and beyond the firm's control; understanding future use situations for service innovation; coordinating the multi-actor and level constellation for enabling new ways of creating value
Pinho et al. (2014) Service ecosystemsService delivery network
Wetter-Edman et al. (2014)  Storybraids
Holmlid (2018)  Actor network mapping
Trischler et al. (2018a, b)  
Čaić et al. (2019)   
Vink et al. (2019)   
The customer activity perspective
A service is seen as an input into a customer's activity. Value and experiences emerge within customer activities, requiring an understanding of how service can support customer goalsVisser et al. (2005) Customer-dominant logicContextmappingFocus: One actor (customer or user) with a focus on exploring the activities in which they engage to achieve a desired goal or end state
Christiansen et al. (2016) Customer experienceJobs to be done
Maffei and Sangiorgi (2006) ATActivity system mapsQualities: Exploring the goals, experiences and potential conflicts among users of the service in a situated and wider context of action; immersing into the real-world context of service use and gathering rich contextual and situated data on user experiences
Van der Bilj-Brouwer (2017) Situated actionNeeds and aspirations-modelling

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