The Role of Service Accessibility in Mediating the Influence of Service Innovation on Public Satisfaction at the Population and Civil Registration Office of Medan City

Abstract

Population administration services require fast, accurate, and easily accessible processes. This study examines the effect of service innovation on public satisfaction with service accessibility as a mediating variable at the Population and Civil Registration Office of Medan City. The research design is a quantitative cross-sectional study with a survey of 96 respondents (sample size determined using Cochran's formula). Model testing was conducted using PLS-SEM (SmartPLS) from July to October 2025. The instruments met convergent validity (outer loading ≥ 0.70) and high reliability (Composite Reliability: satisfaction 0.961; accessibility 0.935; innovation 0.943; AVE respectively 0.830; 0.741; 0.768). The model's explanatory power is strong: R² accessibility = 0.822 and R² satisfaction = 0.829. Path results show that innovation → accessibility is significant (β=0.907; p<0.001), innovation → satisfaction is significant (β=0.386; p=0.015), and accessibility → satisfaction is significant (β=0.546; p<0.001). The indirect effect test confirms the mediation of accessibility in the relationship between innovation → satisfaction (β=0.495; p<0.001). The findings confirm that service accessibility is a key mechanism that translates innovation into higher satisfaction. Practical implications suggest prioritizing innovations that directly improve access (e.g., online queuing/tracking, multi-platform channels, and service hour adjustments), accompanied by strengthening performance monitoring based on time indicators and procedural ease so that the benefits are felt equally by citizens.