Facilitating Service Co-Production: A Dramaturgical Perspective

Abstract

Unlike products, the production and consumption of service occurs simultaneously with service users acting as co-producers of service. This role is significant as the quantity, quality and experience of service is often reliant on the quality of user efforts. Thus, service designers need to consider the co-productive roles various service actors are required to play at the time of service consumption. This awareness allows designers to facilitate this role taking process by setting the stage for users as well as other service actors to successfully play their part in the production of service. As service interactions are dyadic social interactions, a dramaturgical perspective can inform service design in design, staging and facilitation of service actor roles in service co-production. This perspective highlights the importance of the definition of situation and user ability in role performance. Attention to user roles and privileges, the presence of other service actor roles, the ability in fulfilling desired roles, the setting, required tools and service evidence can inform service design process in facilitation of user participation in successful service co-production. Further investigation is needed to evaluate the adoption of this perspective in design of services.