The development and test of a model of total quality: Organizational practices, TQ principles, employee attitudes and customer satisfaction

A Process Model of Quality Management is proposed which includes organizational practices, principles of total quality, employees' attitudes, and customer satisfaction. The model was tested with regression analyses which found that specific organizational practices can be linked to employees' perceptions of three principles of quality management; the quality principles are, in turn, related to employees' attitudes of commitment and empowerment; and these two attitudes are ultimately associated with estimates of customer satisfaction. The results of this study are discussed for their implications for research and practice.