The effect of digital service quality and usage on Generation Z's perception of city uniqueness: Bursa Metropolitan Municipality application

In today's world, digitalization has brought significant transformation to the delivery of municipal services, with e-service quality playing a decisive role in shaping the image of cities. Particularly, Generation Z, as a generation that extensively uses digital platforms, constitutes a critical target audience for the perception and evaluation of municipal services. In this context, this study quantitatively examines the effects of e- service quality and digital municipal applications on Generation Z's perception of city image. The study evaluates how factors such as performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions contribute to city image through e-service quality dimensions (efficiency, system availability, fulfillment, and privacy). Additionally, the effects of demographic variables such as gender, age groups, and usage frequency on these perceptions are analyzed.According to the research findings, the indirect effect of performance expectancy on city image was found to be significant only through the privacy dimension. This result indicates that users evaluate city image based on elements such as privacy and security, while performance perception does not directly shape city image through other e-service quality dimensions. When examining the indirect effects of social influence, it was found to negatively impact city image through the privacy dimension. On the other hand, facilitating conditions contributed positively and significantly to city image through the privacy dimension. This study provides valuable insights into understanding the indirect effects of digital municipal services on city image. By focusing on privacy and security policies and enhancing user-friendly designs, municipalities can strengthen the positive impacts of their digital services on city image.