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Application of the theory of planned behavior to customer switching intentions in the context of bank consolidations
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that affect customers’ switching intentions among banks in the context of mergers and acquisitions, using particularly the case of the merger between Lloyds TSB and Halifax Bank of Scotland, which took place in 2009.
Design/methodology/approach
On the basis of the theory of planned behavior, a quantitative survey was developed and administered to 515 account holders from both banks in branches located in Spain. Structural equation modeling was then utilized to evaluate the significance of direct and indirect relationships between the various factors under study.
Findings
Empirical findings indicate a significant direct relationship between switching intentions and each of: behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs, attitudes, and subjective norms. Results also reveal an inverse significant relationship between switching intentions and both control beliefs and perceived behavioral control.
Research limitations/implications
The absence of a longitudinal study measuring the actual impact of the merger on customer switching behavior is the main limitation of this study. Moreover, despite being insightful, the results of this study should be generalized with caution since the sample was based on a list purposely chosen by the banks’ management.
Originality/value
This paper discusses customer switching behavior in the context of a real-life case of banks’ consolidation.
... A review article (Ngau et al. 2023) summarizes the current status of the research based on the tripartite model of triggers developed by Roos et al. (2004). Situational triggers may be past switching experience (Hati et al. 2020), financial literacy (Diepstraten and van der Cruijsen 2019), and consumer vulnerability (Fernández-Gutiérrez and Ashton 2023); influential triggers are subjective norms (Bansal and Taylor 2002;Farah 2017;Hati et al. 2020), perceived benefits of switching behavior (Rahi et al. 2021;van der Cruijsen and Diepstraten 2017), competition (Vyas et al. 2018), and convenience (Zhao et al. 2022). Reactional triggers are critical incidents in the customer relationship that create a negative experience, including adverse reactions toward pricing (Keaveney 1995;Vyas and Raitani 2014), which increases the likelihood of switching (Ngau et al. 2023). ...
... In a Spanish study, a hypothesized positive association between PBC and bank-switching intention turned out to be negative (Farah 2017). Another study suggested that high PBC leads to bank-switching intention only when competitors have a favorable reputation (Georgiou et al. 2023), implying that the effect of PBC depends on the structure of the competition and the evaluation of competitors in the market. ...
... Study findings may indicate that the inconclusive results from previous research on the role of self-efficacy and PBC on bank-switching intention Taylor 1999, 2002;Farah 2017;Georgiou et al. 2023) may be attributed to overestimating the impact of external factors in PBC while underestimating the importance of the internal factors in self-efficacy (Parkinson et al. 2017;Terry and O'Leary 1995). Understanding how banking customers cognitively form bank-switching intentions warrants knowledge about individual motivation and persistence, creating the beliefs they have in their "(…) capabilities to produce desired effects by their own actions" (Bandura 1997, p. vii). ...
Self-efficacy and perceived behavioral control significantly predict human cognition and behavior. However, their impact is inconsistent in bank-switching studies. This study seeks to understand their roles in bank-switching intention in a heavily digitized market. In a sample of 1207 respondents representative of Norwegian banking customers from October 2023, we tested the relative importance of self-efficacy and perceived behavioral control compared to customer satisfaction and sociodemographic covariates through multivariate linear regression analyses. Self-efficacy predicted bank-switching intention better than perceived behavioral control. Echoing previous research, diminishing customer satisfaction was the primary predictor. However, satisfaction interacted with bank-switching self-efficacy, implying that low and moderate customer satisfaction is associated with increasing bank-switching intention if self-efficacy is high. A suggestion for future research is to develop validated scales for bank-switching self-efficacy. To increase competition, as requested by policymakers, policies addressing the role of self-efficacy could be considered. Customer relationship and marketing officers must understand how self-efficacy can impact customer retention and churn. This study underscores the importance of studying bank-switching self-efficacy as a determinant of bank-switching activities. It contributes to the literature by testing social cognitive theories relating to perceived individual capability in an increasingly digitized banking market in a sample with high external validity.
... The foundation of this study was guided by the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). Although TPB has been used by Olsson and Gall (2012) and Chukwuemeka and Godswill (2017), and Farah (2017a) in addressing banking customers switching behaviours, none of those studies had examined differences in the intentions of commercial bank customers from switching commercial banks. Therefore, this study will bridge this knowledge gap. ...
... Since the investment process has been simplified, there is a possibility of more commercial banks being introduced in the country. Therefore, a study on the intention of customers to switch banks is very important because customer switching behaviour is likely to occur when the intention to switch is high (Farah, 2017a). ...
... Also, factors such as lack of behavioural resources and limited opportunities may affect ones' attitude; hence, individual behaviour may be affected. Despite these criticisms, this theory has been extensively used by Olsson and Gall (2012), Chukwuemeka and Godswill (2017) and Farah (2017a) to predict customers switching behaviour in the banking sector, although, its applicability on assessing intentions of customers to switch banks has been limited. ...
The purpose of this study was to identify whether commercial banks customers in Tanzania had the intentions of switching banks services and examine the differences in their intentions to switch banks. The study sample included; customers banking with Tanzania Postal Bank Plc and those banking with the National Bank of Commerce in Dar es Salaam Region. Data was collected using self-administered questionnaires. Multistage sampling was employed to generate 188 respondents for the study. Descriptive statistics and an independent t-test were used to analyze the collected information. The results demonstrated that half of all the TPB Bank customers had higher intentions of switching banks than NBC customers. Additionally, the results also found out no significant differences in the intention to switch banks among commercial bank customers. This implied that bankers need to ensure that they deliver the desired services to their customers to reduce the intentions of the switchers because this would have an impact on the actual switching behaviour.
... Simultaneously, it should be mentioned that customers' attractiveness and/or loyalty to items is mostly determined by their positive purchase intentions [16]. According to Farah (2017), intention indicates the subjective likelihood that customers would purchase the goods and carry out a particular activity [17]. Based on the aforementioned, we may ascertain which products consumers should buy and when they will go shopping by using their purchase intention [18]. ...
... Simultaneously, it should be mentioned that customers' attractiveness and/or loyalty to items is mostly determined by their positive purchase intentions [16]. According to Farah (2017), intention indicates the subjective likelihood that customers would purchase the goods and carry out a particular activity [17]. Based on the aforementioned, we may ascertain which products consumers should buy and when they will go shopping by using their purchase intention [18]. ...
The characteristics of social media use in the healthcare sector are covered in the study. It is underlined that social media's influence in the age of digital technologies is growing, particularly in the market for medical services, which encourages patient participation in the healthcare system. Georgian healthcare providers are progressively integrating digital technologies into their practices, and a growing number of them are interacting with patients through social media marketing. Nevertheless, healthcare institutions don't use social media enough. The paucity of studies in this area is one of the causes of this. In light of this, the study that this paper presents examines how consumers' use of social media affects their intention to behave. Regression analysis has been performed to determine the associations between the variables indicated above based on the research that has been conducted. Statistically significant values were found as a consequence of the analysis, proving the hypothesis and confirming the validity of the study's items.
... This trend has led to a reduction in consumer loyalty as people readily switch between brands for various reasons. Brand switching refers to when a consumer switches from using one brand's product or service to another within the same category (Farah, 2017;Kumar and Chaarlas, 2011;Zhao and Asiaei, 2022). Although brand loyalty programs are often considered the remedy for this, research indicates that brand switching and brand loyalty are distinct factors influencing consumer choices (Bogomolova, 2011;Appiah et al., 2019;Zhao and Hassan, 2023). ...
... High SCs make it difficult for the consumer to change service providers irrespective of whether they are satisfied or dissatisfied (Temerak and El-Manstrly, 2019;Zolfagharian et al., 2017). High SCs make customers insensitive to satisfaction (Chang et al., 2017;Klemperer, 1987;Farah, 2017;Valenzuela, 2014). The SC is divided into three types: transactional cost, learning cost and artificial cost. ...
Purpose
Switching behavior is predominantly seen in the consumer buying behavior of the mobile industry. This research aims to identify the factors influencing consumers to switch from their present mobile service provider. The consumer of the mobile industry operates in a dynamic and ever-changing environment that is difficult to predict, so this paper aims to focus on these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The selection of factors was made with the help of qualitative study and quantitative research methods for further findings; with the help of a structured questionnaire, a total of 514 valuable responses were collected to get the results. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to analyze the data.
Findings
The finding shows that technology and edge-on-competition (TEC) and pricing have a negative influence on customer switching behavior. The switching cost (SC) is the most significant factor and has a positive impact, while service encounter failure (SEF) also positively impacts switching behavior.
Research limitations/implications
The findings provide important implications for consumers switching brands if they are finding alternative offers that are cost-effective and SEF from service providers
Practical implications
The study of one of the largest mobile markets is learning lessons for other markets around the world. This study will be helpful for mobile service provider companies in their branding and marketing strategies. This study will also be helpful to practitioners, educators and researchers in understanding the consumer behavior of mobile users.
Social implications
The learning of the largest mobile market will be a great learning lesson for other mobile markets around the world. Consumer behavior will help marketers follow ethical practices and make their strategy so a consumer does not switch brands and remain satisfied with the existing brand.
Originality/value
The study provides unique learning for practitioners, educators and researchers to understand the consumer behavior of mobile users. This will help marketers create factors that stop consumers from switching brands and develop strategies to retain customers.
... On the other hand, customers who perceive no improvement in performance are more likely to consider switching to alternatives. The behavior of customers leaving the bank is known as switching behavior (Farah, 2017a). ...
... A merger can result in different impacts, both positive and negative (Alvarez-González & Otero-Neira, 2020;Andrews & Goldsmith, 2015;Farah, 2017bFarah, , 2021. Post-merger, Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI) faces two customer behaviors: customer satisfaction (Alvarez-González & Otero-Neira, 2020; Keisidou et al., 2013aKeisidou et al., , 2013b and Switching Behavior (Farah, 2017a(Farah, , 2017b. This research aims to analyze the direct relationships among determinants of post-merger customer behaviors. ...
This research examined the factors that affect customer satisfaction and switching behavior in the post-merger of the state-owned Islamic banks in Indonesia. Data were collected by distributing an online questionnaire to a total of 210 Muslim customers. Furthermore, the collected data were analyzed using SEM-PLS. The findings indicate that product quality can enhance customer satisfaction, and service quality can mitigate customer switching behavior. Interestingly, the Shariah compliance also has a significant effect on customer satisfaction and switching behavior by Indonesian Muslim. This suggested that, in Indonesia, where the majority of the population is Muslim, businesses that prioritize Shariah compliance are more likely to retain customers. Implication of this research provides empirical evidence to Islamic banks regarding the significance of reputation. Based on the findings, bank management tends to consider to integrate the product quality, service quality, and Shariah compliance into the banking business model. It is essential to consistently apply Sharia compliance to enhance customer satisfaction and reduce switching behavior. The Originality of this research is the first in Indonesia to examine customers’ switching behavior in the context of the merger of the State-Owned Islamic Banks. The findings can serve as an evaluation tool for the government and Islamic bank management to strengthen the country’s economy.
... mobile payment (De Sena Abrahão et al., 2016). The constructs retained for social influence are Subjective norm (Ajzen 1991; Farah, 2017;Fishbeina and Azjen, 1975;Mathieson, 1991;Todd 1995a, 1995b), Social factors (Thompson et al., 1991) and Image (Moore and Benbasat 1991;Lu et al., 2011a). The influence of social influence is moderated by gender, age, and experience (in both UTAUT and UTAUT2). ...
... • Effort expectancy: Prior studies confirm the impact of effort expectancy on mobile payment and mobile wallet adoption (Farah et al., 2018;Megadewandanu, 2016). While Jung et al. (2020) found no influence of effort expectancy on attitude, the majority of papers found positive and significant relationship between effort expectancy and attitude (Tang et al., 2014;Musa et al., 2015 ;Khalilzadeh et al. ;2017 ;Raza et al., 2018 ;Farah et al., 2018 ;Do et al., 2019 ;Upadhyay et al., 2022). In this study, we believe that effort expectancy positively influences the attitude toward using mobile payment: ...
... Consumer switching is the process of ending a relationship with a specific company or brand (Kumar & Girish, 2021). Consumer switching is influenced by switching intentions (Farah, 2017). Many factors make up the mindset of consumers either to be loyal to the brand or to quit the brand (Sivakumaran & Peter, 2020). ...
... Insurance switching over cost can be a barrier as well (Hendriks et al., 2010). Switching costs include "search, time, transaction, monetary, emotional, cognitive, and psychological barriers" (Farah, 2017). Trust, service quality and customer satisfaction are also switching bar-riers (Kumar & Girish, 2021). ...
In this digital era, customers in the insurance sector always look for better insurance products and services at an affordable price. When customers are unsure about service, they switch over to a better service provider. This behavior is more relevant to non-life insurance. However, the switching behavior of customers is hampered by certain switchover barriers such as “brand consciousness”, “brand pride”, “brand loyalty”, etc. This study focuses on exploring switching intentions and switching behaviors of adults in India keeping “brand love” as a mediator. A structured questionnaire was employed to collect the primary data from adults having non-life insurance products to analyze switching intentions and switching behaviors. The collected data were analyzed employing SPSS software and Hayes Process Model and appropriate statistical tools. The study results show that the switching intentions of adults vary based on their age, annual income, and education. Mean scores reveal that the lesser the age, the higher the intention to switch over. Further, based on annual income, adults who earn up to Rs 2 lakhs annually have more switching-over intentions (Mean score: 3.9719) followed by adults who earn Rs more than 2 lakhs to 5 lakhs annually (Mean score: 3.7590). Mean scores of education levels regarding switching intentions are higher among more educated adults and less among those who are qualified up to the school level.
... Several studies have been conducted on customer switching behavior, specifically in the services' context, and in a variety of markets (Babu and Sundar, 2019;Bansal and Taylor, 2002;Chang et al., 2017;Farah, 2017;Lin et al., 2021;Xu et al., 2021). Despite explanations by numerous studies on switching intention and behavior, most of these studies employed either the theory of planned behavior (TPB) or push-pull theory (PPT) separately to study customer switching behavior. ...
... First, this research is original in its application of the TPB and PPT by merging both to formulate a conceptual framework in the context of electricity markets. The research builds on and enhances the existing TPB literature (Farah, 2017;Ghasrodashti, 2018;Sommer, 2011) by demonstrating how key factors such as perceived relative price and positive past switching experience and non-price factors such as negative CBR, PeWOM and positive CBR can predict customer switching attitude and intention in electricity markets. ...
This study adopts an integrated approach and combines the theory of planned behavior and push-pull theory to unpack the antecedents of customer switching intention in a contextual setting (Western Australia) that has a regulated electricity market. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used to analyze data from a survey of 405 retail electricity consumers, which reveals that perceived relative price, electronic word-of-mouth, customer-based reputation of a service provider, past switching experience, and subjective norms significantly influence attitude toward switching and switching intention. Our findings contribute to the literature on retail electricity markets by showing the importance of customer-based reputation and positive electronic word-of-mouth in shaping consumers' attitude and intention toward switching their electricity providers. The results also provide insights for electricity retailers to design better offerings and control customer switching.
... If something has gone wrong, simply putting it right does not automatically increase customer satisfaction (Herzberg et al, 1957). Furthermore, low involvement services failures can lead to high involvement acts where customers engage with service providers (in this case a bank) seeking not only correction of the error but also compensation for the inconvenience and in extreme cases customers 'switching' providers (Farah, 2017). ...
... The sensible approach is to get it 'right first time' and assume consumers are active (not passive), free to choose suppliers and can switch easily. Changes to regulations and legislation increasingly seek to make it easier for consumers to 'switch' (Farah, 2017). Arguably, if consumers know they can switch service providers easily, they will feel more in control. ...
This paper consolidates and analyses the current literature on Internal Marketing (IM) and provides a much need focus on the notion of Boundary Spanning Employees (BSEs). It identifies key studies (Lings, 2004; Ruizalba et al, 2014 amongst others) which provided the foundation for the IM model entitled "Boundary-spanning employees at the internal-external markets interface" (Richardson, 2020, p223).
Ultimately marketing models should be operationalised if they are to move beyond being purely academic and have real, lasting impact. The benefits of having a Marketing Orientation (MO) are well established. Extant studies espoused applying the MO approach internally resulting in an Internal Marketing Orientation (IMO) as a means of implementing the abstract concept of IM. This paper critiques previous attempts at quantifying IMO and other positivist approaches to improve the adoption of IM. Furthermore, it refines Richardson's IM concept which itself will provide a platform for primary research into IM within service providers where respondents may not necessarily be aware of IM or the terms used therein (e.g. internal customers; internal markets; boundary spanning employees).
... The variables of interest were measured using scales validated in previous studies. Items that measured competitors' advertisements, price, reputation, and service failures were adopted from Zhao et al. (2022) verbatim, while items that measured switching costs and switching intention were adapted from de Matos et al. (2013) and Farah (2017) and modified according to the study context, respectively. As suggested by Verma and Sachdev (2004), the items were evaluated using a five-point Likert scale that ranges from "Strongly Disagree" to "Strongly Agree." ...
Purpose
This study investigates the gap between switching intentions and actual switching behaviors among customers, addressing a gap in previous research that focused on either intentions or behaviors in isolation.
Design/methodology/approach
A sample of 376 survey responses from retail bank customers in China were obtained through an online survey and subsequently analyzed using the Macro PROCESS.
Findings
The results indicate that factors such as reputation, pricing, service failures and competitors’ advertising significantly influence switching intentions. However, only reputation directly impacts actual switching behavior. A notable intention-behavior gap exists, with switching costs moderating this relationship by reducing the likelihood of intentions leading to actual switching.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by incorporating both intentions and behaviors into a single model. It provides new insights into the intention-behavior discrepancy and highlights the moderating role of switching costs, offering a more comprehensive understanding of consumer switching dynamics.
... The second predictor of intention, SN, is described as what an individual thinks their close referents feel about how they should act (Farah, 2017) and the perceived importance of complying (Ajzen, 1991). Hassan (2019) suggests that Muslim piety has considerable social significance, and that Muslims want to be seen as "good Muslims" in the societies they live in (Hassan and Lester, 2018). ...
Purpose
This study aims to investigate how Australian Muslims make consumption-related decisions regarding the purchase of home loan products.
Design/methodology/approach
This exploratory research used in-depth semistructured interviews with community leaders from leading Muslim ethnic communities. Seventeen community leaders from the six largest Muslim community groups by country of birth and living in Melbourne and Sydney were selected for the interviews. The interview data was analyzed using NVivo 12.
Findings
The findings suggest that despite knowledge of and concern for Islamic tenets regarding the consumption of banking and financial products, including home loans, most Muslims viewed conventional home loans (CHL) as being permitted, essential or innocuous. Reasons for such views include the interpretation of Islamic tenets, limited awareness of available Islamic home loan offerings, convenience factors related to accessing CHL offerings, service quality levels, availability of technology-based services such as internet banking, and the influence of social groups and communities.
Research limitations/implications
This research helps marketers understand the attitudes, subjective norms (SN) and behavioral factors related to the Muslim consumption of home loans.
Practical implications
The findings of this research can facilitate the development of financial products and marketing strategies that better appeal to Muslims. Such loan products can improve the uptake of home loans (and, in effect, homeowners) by Muslims, potentially improving social and financial inclusion.
Social implications
This research helps marketers understand the attitudes, SNs and behavioral factors related to the Muslim consumption of home loans, which can facilitate the development of financial products and marketing strategies that better appeal to Muslims. Such loan products can improve the uptake of home loans (and, in effect, homeowners) by Muslims, potentially improving social and financial inclusion.
Originality/value
This qualitative study explores the drivers of Muslim consumers’ uptake of home loans in Australia. Drawing upon the theory of planned behavior and the literature, antecedents to attitude, SNs and perceived behavioral control that influence intention and behavior were investigated. It identifies factors influencing decision-making related to home loans by Australian Muslims, contributing to a theoretical framework to investigate Muslims’ consumption of financial products.
... Websites that suggest relevant items based on previous purchases utilize machine learning algorithms to analyse purchase history. Retailers heavily rely on machine learning to gather and analyse data, enabling them to deliver personalized experiences, implement effective marketing campaigns, optimize pricing strategies, and gain valuable customer insights (Farah, 2017). As time progresses, machine learning in e-commerce companies will require less direct involvement from data scientists for everyday applications, making it more accessible and streamlined. ...
A major objective of this book series is to drive innovation in every aspect of Artificial Intelligent. It offers researchers, educators and students the opportunity to discuss and share ideas on topics, trends and developments in the fields of artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning and more, big data and computer science, computer intelligence and Technology. It aims to bring together experts from various disciplines to emphasize the dissemination of ongoing research in the fields of science and computing, computational intelligence, schema recognition and information retrieval. Articles are requested that describe original work.
... Grounding on the theory of planned behavior, which suggests that behavior does not follow only human will, but also is the result of attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioral control, we assume that attitude towards MB mediates the relationship between compatibility and intention. Attitude is the evaluation of behavior, either positively or negatively and is found as a major factor determining intention to use in previous research (Giovanis et al., 2019;Glavee-Geo et al., 2017;Ho et al., 2020;Lee, 2009;Nasri and Charfeddine, 2012), as is in MB studies (Farah, 2017;Ho et al., 2020;Paul et al., 2016;P€ uschel et al., 2010;Roos and Hahn, 2019). If users or potential users have a positive attitude towards MB, then their intention to use it will increase. ...
Purpose
This article aims to question the role of attitude towards behavior and bank reputation in the relationship between consumer compatibility and behavioral intention.
Design/methodology/approach
Using survey data from 640 mobile bank users in a developing country setting, the authors explored the conditional effects of users' compatibility on their future intention to use mobile banking services through attitude towards use as a function of perceived corporate reputation.
Findings
The results indicated that the attitude towards using mobile banking services has a partial mediating role in the relationship between compatibility and future intention to use. This indirect path depends on the reputation of the bank.
Originality/value
The original contribution of this study is to detail the mechanism between compatibility and usage intention that emerges within the scope of the model the authors propose and to realize this through the Johnson-Neyman approach.
... In this regard, subjective norm refers to an individual's motivation to engage in an activity that is affected by their beliefs and perceptions (Perera et al., 2021). This construct has been directly linked to switching behavior in the context of retail banking (Bansal and Taylor, 2002;Farah, 2017a). A possible explanation for this is that bank customers are influenced by the recommendation, feedback, or pressure from others within their personal network. ...
Purpose
The digital transformation in the banking industry has brought about complexity and competitiveness which has made differentiation challenging for banks. Complemented by consumer empowerment through high accessibility of information on the internet, this has led to a phenomenon known as switching behavior. The purpose of this review is to examine the determinants governing switching behavior among bank customers. This review highlights the importance of research which looks beyond pre-adoption behavior by examining post-adoption behavior; what happens after initial technology acceptance.
Design/methodology/approach
This review examines 44 journal articles researching switching behavior published between 1995 and 2022 in top journals. From a synthesis of literature, a conceptual framework for analysis and understanding switching behavior is presented.
Findings
Although various scholars have investigated switching behavior among bank customers, there are few studies which provide a comprehensive review and research classifications in this area. This review classifies key determinants of switching behavior into socio-demographic factors, situational triggers, influential triggers and reactional triggers. Structural equation modelling is the most common research methodology utilized in reviewed articles. The literature review reveals that mediators and moderators are less commonly deployed compared to determinants. Findings also indicate switching behavior studies still lack theory-driven conceptual frameworks.
Originality/value
This paper is the first systematic literature review on switching behavior research among bank customers spanning across 28 years in top academic journals. It integrates insights from 44 relevant research papers through publication trends. This review identifies key research gaps and provides future research directions.
... A widely accepted and used psychological model to determine and evaluate behavioral intentions developed by Fishbein andAjzen (1975, 1991) is the theory of planned behavior (TPB) (Gao et al., 2017;Singh et al., 2017;Yuriev et al., 2020). A wealth of earlier research shows that the TPB can be applied irrespective of the industries-retailing, hotel & restaurant, finance & banking, e-commerce, telecommunications, and RMG (AL-Nawafleh et al., 2019;Albashir et al., 2018;Carfora et al., 2019;Cheung and To, 2017;Farah, 2017;Wang et al., 2018). Besides, earlier studies evince that pro-environmental intention is greatly evaluated through the lens of the TPB framework (Ateş, 2020;Verma and Chandra, 2018;Yadav & Pathak, 2016Yuriev et al., 2020). ...
This study aimed to investigate the readiness of the ready-made garments (RMG) sector in one of the developing countries to implement circular economy (CE) practices, which involve reusing, remanufacturing, and recycling materials and products to create a sustainable and resilient future. To achieve this goal, the study applied the revised theory of planned behavior model (RTPB) and analyzed the data using a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach. The study found that the basic elements of the TPB model, along with environmental commitment, green economic incentive, and firm maturity, can more effectively explain CE readiness than the original TPB model. The findings suggest that attitude, social pressure, green economic incentive, environmental commitment, and firm maturity significantly impact CE readiness. The results of this study have implications for policymakers in developing countries who seek to promote CE implementation in the RMG sector. By providing a unified framework to assess CE readiness, this study can help policymakers articulate strategic plans that prioritize environmental sustainability, economic benefits, and social responsibility. However, the study acknowledges that further research is needed to explore potential limitations and areas for improvement in this field.
... Perceived behavioral control is the extent to which an individual believes they can execute a behavior and some control over a behavior. Farah (2017) noted that control beliefs were positively influenced by an individual's knowledge of a behavior, as well as the individual's belief that they can carry out the behavior. Farah further pointed out that control beliefs had a significant impact on individual's choices to switch banks or stay with their current bank during a bank merger. ...
Many Americans are in a precarious financial situation: living paycheck to paycheck, unable to fund relatively trivial unexpected expenses, and unable to save substantially for retirement and other financial goals. Low financial literacy has been cited as one of the leading causes of suboptimal economic outcomes. Financial illiteracy, meaning that an individual lacks the knowledge to know what a good financial decision is and/or belief that they can execute a good financial decision, is also a source of economic inequities among genders, ethnicities, and other marginalized communities. The consequence is that a significant portion of the US population is financially fragile and in danger of being unable to meet basic needs due to unemployment, medical issues, or other financial difficulties which may arise.
This study considered financial education as a potential solution to this problem. Prior literature has indicated positive relationships between financial education and financial literacy, and between financial literacy and financial behaviors. However, there is little information on the relationship between financial education and economic endpoints. This study expanded on prior research by considering the chain of events from receiving financial education all the way through economic outcomes, using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as a scaffold. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), the study explored the complex set of factors which intervene between being exposed to financial education and economic outcomes which occur later. This study also integrated the concept of financial health as an analogue to physical health, measuring not just financial behaviors, but the economic results of those actions. The SEM analysis found a significant relationship between financial education and financial health, which was mediated by constructs in the TPB.
Propensity score matching was also used to create an artificially randomized data set, to isolate the effects of financial education on financial outcomes more strictly. The matching homogenized the demographic differences between those who received financial education and those who did not. Regression and ANOVA analyses confirmed that a significant relationship between financial education and financial health existed. The relationship was significant whether financial education was measured as a binary variable, by level of education, or by number of exposures to financial education. The strongest positive effects of financial education were seen in the domain of positive financial outcomes, specifically asset accumulation.
The evidence presented makes a strong case for financial education as an economically demonstrable solution to the problems brought on by low financial literacy. Certainly, financial education is not a standalone solution, but it can be a powerful part of a package of solutions to strengthen the financial circumstances of Americans.
... The development of consumers' purchase intentions is influenced by their general perception of a given product [37]. The more favorable this attitude, the more favorable the plan to buy [38]. Similar definitions were put forth [39][40][41] all of which concentrated on customers' propensity to purchase particular goods. ...
The research is included in a causal study that aims to test the effect of perceived service quality on purchase intention with trust playing a mediating role and perceived risk playing a moderating role in shopping Online. The hypotheses based on general theories are formulated using deductive reasoning as a foundation. Using the Likert scale, which falls under the interval category, a number of statements on the questionnaire were used to measure the four variables. Based on sample determination methods, questionnaires were distributed to those who met the criteria for research respondents to collect data. The Sobel test was used as a foundation for hypothesis testing and the data were gathered and analyzed using Simple, Multiple, and Moderated Regression Analysis (MRA). The findings of this study can be used as a guide to comprehend the traits of online shoppers for the fashion industry and serve as a foundation for developing future marketing plans to boost sales turnover during the Covid-19 pandemic, about which many business actors in the industry have complained that turnover has decreased noticeably during the pandemic. The findings revealed that Perceived Service Quality has a significant impact on Trust, Perceived Service Quality has a significant influence on Purchase Intention, and Trust has a significant influence on Purchase Intention, Perceived Risk does not affect Purchase Intention, Perceived Risk does not play a part in moderating variables that influence Trust in Purchase Intention, and Perceived Risk has no impact on Purchase Intention and has no significant impact on it.
... In addition, it is seen in many studies (Albashir et al., 2018;Farah, 2017) that ADK has a direct effect on actual behavior. The hypothesis established to measure the effect of ADK directly on actual behavior; Hypothesis 4 Perceived behavioral control (PBC) has a positive and significant effect on the actual behavior (AB) of investing in crypto assets. ...
The interest in crypto assets, known as an extremely volatile, risky and digital currency that first emerged in 2009, continued to increase day by day. Crypto assets, especially Bitcoin, have become very valuable and are now seen as an investment tool. Online survey data of 1,222 individuals were used in the study. The data were analyzed through the structural equation model. With the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior used in the research, the dimensions affecting Attitude, Subjective Norms, Perceived Behavioral Control variables and the effect of Intention on the behavior of investors, namely crypto asset investment, were investigated. According to the Standardized Regression Weights, a one-unit change in attitude affects intention 0.822, a one-unit change in subjective norms 0.048, and a one-unit change in perceived behavioral control affects intention 0.117. In addition, it has been concluded that the most important determinant of the actual behavior that reveals the investment is the intention with 0.754, while the PBC effect is 0.144. The study is a comprehensive study on crypto asset investments in Turkey, a developing country. It is aimed that the results obtained will contribute to researchers, crypto asset companies, policy makers and researchers who want to increase their market share in the sector.
... The variable perceived ease of use (EASY) is measured by indicators of the suitability of the user's wishes, the cost of using the system, user skills, user control, user expertise. The teacher's intentions to use e-learning (INTENT) are measured by indicators of desires, hopes and plans for the use of e-learning in the future (Buabeng-Andoh, 2018;Farah, 2017). These three variables were measured by a 7-point Likert scale (1 mean strongly disagree and 7 mean strongly agree). ...
During the Covid-19 pandemic, learning was carried out online using an e-learning system. With this system, all students and teachers can even carry out learning even though they are at home. This study aims to analyze teachers' intentions in using e-learning during the covid-19 pandemic. This study uses a modified model of TAM (Technology Acceptance Model). This study uses 7 Likert scales in measuring all indicators. The data analysis method uses Structured Equation Models (SEM). The results of the study show that perceived ease of use (USE) has a significant effect on teacher intentions in utilizing e-learning, while perceived ease of use (EASE) has no significant effect on the use of e-learning. Gender was not proven to be a moderating variable on the relationship between USE and EASE with teachers' intentions to use e-learning. Teacher age strengthens the USE relationship to e-learning use. However, teacher age weakens the relationship between EASE and e-learning use. Male and female teachers have the same understanding regarding e-learning. In addition, teachers with a more mature age see e-learning as a system that provides benefits for them to carry out their duties as teachers. They also focus more on improving performance. On the other hand, teachers with more mature ages are less concerned about the ease of using e-learning.
... On the other hand, Lau et al. [7] implemented the theory of planned behavior (TBP) to pinpoint perceived ease of use, time-saving orientation, convenience motive, privacy, and security. In the context of bank consolidation, Farah [8] used a TBP to forecast intentions to buy sustainable homes. The dearth of studies on the application of TPB to solve fintech despite the existence of studies regarding customer loyalty and satisfaction toward OFDS system apps, online retail, and other service industries [6,7,9,10]. ...
The most significant and rapidly expanding fintech services in Nepal are provided by several fintech firms. Customer satisfaction must be compared side by side even if every organization has made an effort to expand the usage of services. Many studies have concentrated on evaluating the impact of various factors on customer satisfaction, but significantly fewer studies have been conducted to explore the factors and focus of machine learning. Based on the planned behavioural theory (TPB), the study is concentrated on exploring and evaluating customer satisfaction on a different stimulus offered by F1 Soft (a fintech firm in nepal), customers’ loyalty and the compatibility they gain through the company’s services. By exploring various factors affecting customer satisfaction by using principal component analysis (PCA) and explainable AI (XAI), the study explored the eight factors (customer service, compatibility, ease of use, assurance, loyalty intention, technology perception, speed and firm’s innovativeness) which affect customer satisfaction individually. Furthermore, by using support vector machine (SVM) and logistic regression (LR), the major contributing factors are explained with local interpretable model-agnostic explanation (LIME) and Shapley additive explanations (SHAP). SVM holds the training accuracy of 89.13% whereas LR achieves 87.88%, and both algorithms show that compatibilty issues consider the major contributing factor for customer satisfaction. Contributing toward different dimensions, determinants, and the results of customer satisfaction in fintech, the study suggests how fintech companies must integrate factors affecting customer satisfaction in their system for further process development.
... It is understood that attitude has a higher positive effect on intention than other variables (SN and PBC). These results are consistent with the previous findings indicating the role of attitude in determining a positive adoption intention for Islamic banking and financing products in developed and developing countries (Shih & Fang, 2004;Alam et al., 2012;Amin et al., 2012;Doğan et al., 2015;Farah, 2017;Dilek, 2019;Jouda et al., 2020). ...
Despite the increase in the number of service recipients from the banking sector and the increasing competition among banks, the share of Islamic banking in Turkey, which is a Muslim country, is low compared to other Islamic countries. This situation makes the customers' choice of participation banks very important. The fact that there are few studies investigating this situation in the literature is the main motivation for the research. For this reason, Theory of Planned Behaviour was used to reveal the factors that enabled the adoption of Islamic banking in Turkey. In the study, online survey data of 695 people were used. The data were analyzed through the structural equation model. With the Planned Behavior Model used in the research, the effects of Attitude, Subjective Norms, Perceived Behavioral Control and Intention on Actual Behavior, that is, Islamic banking service usage, were investigated. According to the Standardized Regression Weights, it was determined that the effect of attitude on intention was higher than the subjective norm and perceived behavioral control. Given this high impact of attitude on intent, it is important for Islamic banks to focus on activities that will increase positive consumer attitudes towards their services. In addition, it was concluded that the most important determinant of real behavior was PBC.It is thought that the results will provide findings that will provide competitive advantage to Islamic banks that want to increase their customer potential and market share in the sector.
... If a customer determines to change from one platform to another platform with higher perceived risks and costs, it will affect the status quo bias on the current platform (Park et al., 2017). On the other hand, due to high degree of uncertainty, customer is unable to change the platform either for attractive benefits or higher switching costs (Samuelson Zeckhauser, 1988;Farah.,2017). Losses and negative results are related to switching costs (spiritual in terms of Status quo bias). ...
A large number of customers have used traditional e-commerce portals, where there are no assurance of product quality, display of all features, picture search, virtual chat service, product recommendation and tracking facility. Due to these disadvantages,the customers have switched to Alibaba and Tencent products line and remain in the ecosystem.present study drew on Quo Bias theory to investigate the customer behaviour to remain on the e-commerce platform.Twenty-eight in-depth interviews were conducted to extract the variables and proposed a model based on risk theory as well as CRCB framework. An offline survey was distributed to 649 (valid) ecommerce users; valid data was assessed and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results show CRCB was influenced by switching cost and comparative attraction. Moreover, negative (undesirable) attitudes mediate the relationship between risk perception and CRCB, has a positive impact on undesirable WoM. The study findings help the managers and policy makers to devise a new policy and serve the customers in a better way.
This paper systematically examines the literature review in the field of customer switching behavior. Based on the literature review, it can be concluded that customer switching behavior is a topic that has been widely researched, with a focus on various industries, particularly banking and telecommunications. Research trends in this area have shown a positive direction in recent years, and the amount of research being done in marketing and data science is relatively balanced. In marketing, correlational studies are predominant, with a focus on identifying relationships between customer satisfaction, price-related variables, attractiveness of alternatives, service failure, quality, and switching costs to switching behavior. The PPM model is also gaining popularity as an important development for switching behavior because it considers both push and pull factors. Data science research has shown promising results in predicting customer switching behavior, with each research paper achieving good predictive accuracy. However, research gaps spanning the fields of marketing and data science need to be addressed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the drivers of customer switching behavior. Overall, the literature review shows that customer switching behavior is an important concern for businesses, and further research in this area is essential to gain a better understanding of customer behavior and develop effective strategies to retain customers.
The researcher examined mergers and acquisitions of banking industries in India following independence. Mergers and acquisitions are recognised as crucial to a company's success. M&A benefits greatly improve and support long-term growth strategies. The study adopted a descriptive research method to determine the influence of merger and acquisition on public sector bank customer satisfaction. Two elements have been studied in order to identify the impact of merger and acquisition as well as customer satisfaction as a result of merger and acquisition. According to the findings, the 14 IMAPSB elements have been factored into two separate factors: Enhancement and Growth Factor and Innovation and Goodwill Factor. Most of the time mergers and acquisition brings the synergy to the Indian banks.
In light of the fast expansion of digital banking, it is of the utmost importance to
know the causes driving the acceptance of Islamic digital-only banks, particularly in
Indonesia, which has a considerable Muslim population. This study examines the influ-
ence of religiosity and environmental concern on switching behavior towards Islamic
digital-only banks in Indonesia. This study conducts an exploratory examination of
how religiosity and environmental concerns influence switching behavior towards
Islamic digital-only banks. Data from a survey involving 99 respondents in Indonesia
were examined utilizing structural equation modeling with partial least squares (SEM-
PLS). The study’s findings show that environmental concern significantly influences
switching behavior to Islamic digital-only banks, with a path coefficient of 0.259 (p <
0.01). Religiosity also positively a%ects switching behavior, though with a weaker e%ect
(path coefficient 0.175, p < 0.05). Environmental concern emerged as a stronger pre-
dictor of switching intentions compared to religiosity. The model explains 13.6% of the
variance in switching behavior (R& = 0.136). These findings reveal that environmen-
tal considerations and religiosity play a role in shaping switching intentions towards
Islamic digital-only banks, with environmental factors having a more pronounced ef-
fect. To promote adoption, Islamic digital-only banks should emphasize their environ-
mental benefits and sustainability initiatives in addition to Sharia compliance.
Technological disruption due to Covid-19 is a challenge for banking sector businesses to maintain the business sustainabiilty, considering that offline service which were initially the focus of best practice, then had to be changed to online services. In an effort to maintain business sustainability, several state-owned sharia banking companies merged to become Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI), and this is interesting because the merger was carried out at the beginning of Covid-19 in Indonesia. This research aims to identify the influence from E-Channel service variable on the switching intention of BSI customers in North Maluku, moderated by the Covid-19. The population is BSI North Maluku customers. The sampling method used was purposive sampling and a total of 212 respondents were found. This research uses the SEM-PLS analysis method with the consideration that this research tends to be exploratory research. The results of this research show that ease of E-Channel service can reduce the switching intention of BSI customers in North Maluku. Meanwhile, providing easy E-Channel services during Covid-19 force majeure conditions was able to help reduce BSI customers' switching intention but was deemed not statistically significant enough, resulting in the second hypothesis being rejected. The findings in the research show that BSI does not have to consider certain factors to improve its E-Channel service, considering that customer loyalty is fundamentally influenced by the optimality of the E-Channel service itself.
Purpose
This study aims to assess how ethical sales behaviour affects switching costs typology, mediated by trust and moderated by brand affiliation, monthly contributions and the number of dependent beneficiaries in medical schemes in South Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative study targeted a non-probability judgement sample of 250 main members of medical schemes, elicited near health-care facilities in South Africa’s Gauteng province. Data was collected in a face-to-face survey and analysed using structural equation modelling on AMOS version 29 and PROCESS procedure for Statistical Package of Social Science release 2.041.
Findings
The results show that ethical sales behaviour negatively affects trust and positively affects evaluation, monetary and personal relational loss costs. Trust positively affects personal relational loss costs, economic risk, evaluation, monetary and benefit loss costs. Moreover, trust mediates the effect of ethical sales behaviour on evaluation, monetary and personal relational loss costs. Finally, the number of dependent beneficiaries, monthly contributions and brand affiliation significantly moderate these interactions.
Originality/value
The paper validates the application of commitment-to-trust theory in mediating how the effects of the general theory of marketing ethics on switching costs typology differ according to the number of dependent beneficiaries, monthly contributions and brand affiliation with medical schemes.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and perceived benefits on consumers’ intention to purchase energy-efficient appliances (EEAs) in an emerging market.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 400 samples were collected via a self-administered questionnaire distributed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The data was analyzed using multiple regression analysis to assess the hypothesized relationships.
Findings
The results of this study reveal that attitude is the key predictor of consumers’ intention to purchase EEAs, followed by perceived benefits of EEAs. This positive attitude stems from the realization that reducing electricity consumption is not only crucial but also a commendable and valuable practice. They can contribute to the collective effort to mitigate climate change, reduce carbon emissions and conserve valuable natural resources. Their positive attitude toward EEAs reflects their sense of responsibility, mindfulness and desire to make an important contribution to promoting sustainability and creating a better future for generations to come.
Practical implications
Energy-efficient companies, retailers and marketers should implement a range of appealing cash rebate programs to stimulate immediate sales, foster future purchases of EEAs and reshape the perception that EEAs are costly. By implementing such rebate plans, the perceived financial burden on consumers is alleviated, resulting in improved attitudes toward EEAs and heightened recognition of their perceived benefits. Consequently, this encourages a surge in demand for EEAs, thereby further propelling the growth of the industry. These sustainable practices align with SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
Originality/value
This study stands out for its exceptional contribution to theory, as it applies the theory of planned behavior as the underpinning theory and simultaneously integrates the perceived benefits of EEAs into the proposed model, aiming to foster consumers’ intention to purchase EEAs. What sets this study apart is its examination of an emerging market, which complements and expands upon previous research predominantly conducted in developed (Western) economies.
The discrepancy between customer expectations and experiences can result in significant adverse consequences. This study, exploratory in nature, utilised the structural equation modelling technique to reveal how competitors’ effective advertising influences customers’ expectations of in-using banks, triggering their switching intentions in line with the expectation-confirmation theory, with a dataset of 471 responses from retail bank customers in China via an online semi-structured survey with a convenient and non-probability method. This study revealed that competitors’ effective advertising not only directly influences customers’ bank switching intentions but also indirectly impacts customers’ switching intentions by influencing customers’ expectations of price and service quality. The study also found that the price was positively correlated with customers’ perceptions of service failure and customers’ switching intentions, while service failure is associated with customers’ switching intentions. This study is the first attempt in the literature to examine customers’ decisions to switch banks that focus mainly on competitors’ effective advertising and provide in-depth insights.
A person’s beliefs in individual abilities, such as self-efficacy or perceived behavioral control, profoundly affect emotion, cognition, and behavior. However, the influence of such beliefs is not apparent in current research on bank-switching intention and behavior. Moreover, the relationship between bank-switching intention and the sources that promote self-efficacy and perceived behavioral control has received even less attention. In a study with a representative sample of 1245 adults in the Norwegian market, we looked at the role of four promotional sources of self-efficacy, i.e., enactive mastery experience, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and physiological and affective states, in bank-switching intention. In line with past research, we found a negative association between customer satisfaction and bank-switching intention. However, bank-switching intention was positively associated with promoters of self-efficacy in bank-switching behavior, particularly persuasion from significant others and a feeling of engagement. This feeling of engagement also interacted with customer satisfaction on bank-switching intention. Our findings suggest that bank-switching intentions cannot be attributed solely to customer dissatisfaction. They also involve social cognitive aspects promoting individual self-efficacy and human agency. The effects of significant others and internal emotional activation are important when decoding bank-switching intention.
Purpose
Commercial banks are the catalysts for meeting the financing needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). However, not all commercial banks are equally attractive to SMEs because of differences in banking services’ key attributes. Moreover, customers’ preferences vary between Islamic and conventional banks. This paper aims to identify factors motivating SMEs to establish business ties with banks in Oman.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors collected data from 217 SMEs through a questionnaire survey. The data were analyzed using a t -test and structural equation modeling (SEM). In addition, the research applies the theory of planned behavior as a theoretical framework.
Findings
The t -test results show that SMEs place greater emphasis on electronic banking, convenient locations, religious beliefs and favorable terms and conditions. The results from the SEM analysis show that the SMEs in Oman consider attractive packages, including favorable rates, transaction processing time, fees and the availability of technology-enabled services, when choosing a bank. Moreover, customers who are aware of Islamic banking products are optimistic about the future of Shariah -based banking.
Originality/value
As a Muslim-majority country, Oman lags behind its Gulf Cooperative Council peers in terms of the development of the Islamic banking system. For the success of this mode of financing, it is essential to know which factors SMEs prioritize to establish ties with Islamic banks. Hence, the research is expected to provide new information for bank management to devise financial products attractive to investors.
Purpose
As opposed to conventional promotional methods, Word-of-Mouth (WOM) communication, especially when negative, significantly shapes customers’ repurchase decisions and preferences. Therefore, this study aims to examine the interplay between negative WOM and bank service failures, with a focus on the mediating role of customer switching intentions and the moderating role of switching costs in this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
Using an online semi-structured questionnaire survey, a dataset comprising 411 responses was gathered from retail bank customers in China. This dataset was subsequently analyzed using SPSS PROCESS.
Findings
Consistent with the social exchange theory, our study revealed a significant relationship between service failure and both bank customers’ intention to switch and negative WOM communication. Additionally, we observed that switching intentions significantly influence negative WOM communications, acting as a mediator between service failures and negative WOM. Furthermore, our findings indicated that switching costs moderate the direct effect of service failures on negative WOM and moderate the indirect effect of service failures on negative WOM through switching intentions.
Research limitations/implications
This study provides significant policy implications aimed at minimizing bank service failures and subsequent negative WOM communications among bank customers.
Originality/value
This study empirically investigates the role of service failures in promoting negative WOM communication, demonstrating a partial mediation effect of switching intentions in this relationship. Moreover, the study highlights that switching costs moderate service failures’ impact on customers’ switching intentions.
This study explores how university students across various Malaysian institutions have embraced social media for learning purposes amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. A comprehensive online survey, administered to 549 participants, focuses on constructs of the HBM and TBP, perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived barriers, health motivation, perceived benefits, self-efficacy, perceived behavioural control, subjective norms, as well as attitude, and behavioural intention. Following meticulous data analysis utilizing partial least squares structural equation modeling, the study verifies the reliability and validity of the measurement model. The findings indicate that perceived severity, perceived barriers, perceived benefits, self-efficacy, perceived behavioral control, and subjective norms exert significant influence on students’ attitudes, thereby molding their behavioral intentions. This underscores the pivotal role of these factors in shaping students’ perspectives and intentions, providing valuable insights for educators and policymakers. While perceived susceptibility and health motivation exhibit limited impact, the proposed model explains a substantial proportion of the variance in attitude and behavioural intention. This study underscores the nuanced dynamics of social media adoption in the educational context and provides insights valuable for educators and policymakers navigating the challenges posed by the global pandemic.
This study explores educators' perspectives on the School Information System (SIS) in a Senior High School within the Gomoa West District. Using a quantitative method, data from 346 respondents were analysed through descriptive analysis. Results indicate that school leadership significantly influences SIS adoption; supportive leadership fosters its use, although not universally among district leaders. Teachers' positive attitudes towards the SIS correlate with their acceptance of it. The study suggests government-led training to prepare teachers for student and school management systems, promoting digital technology integration in classrooms for improved education in Ghana's senior high schools. Overall, the research underscores the SIS's potential in enhancing decision-making support in education.
The chapter discusses the features of using social media in the healthcare industry. It is emphasized that the role of social media in the era of digital technologies is especially increasing in the market of medical services, which leads to greater involvement of consumers in the field of healthcare. Digital technologies are gradually being introduced in the field of healthcare in Georgia, and an increasing number of medical organizations are using social media marketing to communicate with patients. Nevertheless, the use of social media by healthcare organizations is insufficient. One of the reasons for this is the lack of research in this field. With this in mind, this chapter presents a study that considers the impact of social media marketing activities on healthcare consumer behavior. Social media marketing activities, consumer engagement, consumer trust, and behavioral intention are selected as the main variables of the research. A conceptual model of the research has been developed, and relevant hypotheses have been formulated.
This paper intends to empirically examine the creation of customer satisfaction, along with the influence of service value, corporate image and trust in Portuguese mobile banking services. The negative relationship between customer satisfaction and brand switching intention was also tested. The data was analysed by employing exploratory as well as confirmatory analysis and a Structural Equation Model was extracted from 120 Portuguese respondents. The results suggest a strong impact of corporate image in service value and both are positively related with customer satisfaction.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the factors affecting deposit withdrawal intentions among Moroccan profit-sharing investment account holders.
Design/methodology/approach
Applying the push-pull-mooring (PPM) theory, a quantitative survey, based on insights brought to light by a previous qualitative study, was developed and administered to 166 depositors from five participatory banks at branches located in Morocco. Structural equation modeling was then used to evaluate the significance of relationships between the various variables under study.
Findings
Empirical findings showed that the PPM model with a second-order construct structure exhibited a better representation of the observed variables as compared to a first-order factor model. The results of the structural analysis indicated a significant direct relationship between withdrawal intention and each of the PPM model constructs: push and pull factors were found to have a positive impact on withdrawal intention, while mooring factors had a significant inverse relationship with withdrawal intention. The results of this study also revealed that the moderating role of the mooring construct was found in both relationships between push and withdrawal intention and between pull and withdrawal intention.
Research limitations/implications
The absence of a longitudinal study measuring the actual withdrawal behavior is the main limitation of this study. Furthermore, withdrawal intention was examined without differentiating between individual and corporate depositors. Finally, despite being insightful, the empirical findings should be generalized with caution, as the sample was purposely chosen by the banks’ management.
Practical implications
This study implied that participatory banks should stress the importance of mooring factors, as they strongly inhibit depositors’ intention to shift their funds to the conventional banking system. Moreover, this study provides great indications to Moroccan regulators and policymakers on a number of issues that can be used to develop policies that could improve the participatory banking system.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study represents the first attempt to confirm the effectiveness of the PPM model in examining depositor-withdrawal intentions. This study is also the first of its kind to address profit-sharing investment depositors’ apprehensions in the Moroccan context, to the best of the authors’ knowledge.
This paper examines how journal-, article-, and author-related factors influence citation counts in the business field using 236 journal articles collected from an AACSB medium research output business school in the Middle East between 2017 and 2021. Results from association tests demonstrated that journal rank and format, the subfield of the article, and author prestige are significantly related to the number of citations. Results from CHAID further demonstrated the presence of an interaction/joint effect among variables; in particular: (1) articles published in Q1 WoS journals that are also authored/co-authored by prestige authors resulted in the highest number of citations; (2) articles published in Q2–Q3 WoS journals that also belonged to the business and management domain resulted in an average number of citations, and (3) articles published in Q4 or unranked journals in WoS also ranked Q3–Q4 or unranked in Scimago resulted in the lowest number of citations. These results provide theoretical implications and practical recommendations for faculty and business schools interested in enhancing their scholarly impact and rankings.
The purpose of this research is to examine the determinants of banking employees’ readiness to support the transformation to the full-fledged Islamic banking system in Libya. Using the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and employing survey questionnaires of 323 employees of 10 conventional Libyan banks analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). This research revealed that the readiness of Libyan banks’ employees is influenced significantly and positively by attitudinal, religious and subjective norms. Moreover, attitude toward transformation is the most critical factor that determines readiness among bank employees. This indicates that bank employees are willing to support the transformation process toward Islamic banking. Due to the unstable security situation in Libya, this research is confined to two states (Tripoli and Benghazi). Further researches may extend applying the proposed model to other states in the country, which may enhance the generalisability of this research’s findings. Overall, this research provides support for the transformation process to Islamic banking as a way to evaluate the readiness of Libyan banking employees for such change. Also, this research emphasizes the importance of undertaking a pre-implementation evaluation of readiness for change in Libyan commercial banks.
The objective of the study is to analyze the determinant factors of online purchase intention in the marketplace in Indonesia. The factors causing the low intention to purchase online purchases include social media marketing (SMM), customer relationship management (CRM), and customer trust. In this study, the target population is the public in general who follow Lazada Indonesia's official marketplace accounts (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Tiktok) through the influence of SMM and CRM on online purchase intention with mediating and moderating effects of customer trust. In this study, researchers took a sample of 18 (number of indicators) x 10 = 180 respondents. Of the 5 direct hypotheses tested, all of them showed a significant effect, except for one hypothesis, namely the influence of CRM on Purchase Intention which has no significant effect. As for the indirect effect of the two tested hypotheses, both of them showed significant results. In other words, customer trust can act as a mediator between endogenous and exogenous variables.
The banking and financial sectors have witnessed a significant development recently due to financial technology (FinTech), and it has become an essential part of the financial system. Many factors helped the development of this sector, including the pandemics such as Covid-19, the considerable increasing market value of the FinTech sector worldwide, and new technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing and mobile technology. Moreover, changes in consumer's preferences, especially the Z-generation (digital generation). FinTech shifted the traditional business models to mobile platforms characterized by ease of access and swift transactions. Mobile technology became the main backbone for FinTech innovations and acts as a channel to deliver FinTech services that overcome all geographical and timing barriers, thus enhancing financial inclusion. Mobile perceived Trust (MPT), or the trust in using financial business models via mobile technology, is a crucial factor in the FinTech context that has mediation effects on the intention and adoption of different FinTech business models. Unfortunately, few studies have explored MPT mediations on consumers' intention to adopt FinTech innovations using mobile technology. Typically, many studies examined trust/MPT as an independent and unidirectional variable and investigated its effects on behaviour intention without predicting its mediation effects. This study aimed to develop a systematic literature review on MPT mediation in FinTech, focusing on the period from 2016 and 2021, in journals ranked Q1 and Q2, and known-based theories such as the technology acceptance model, the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, and the mobile technology acceptance model. This study found that only four articles were published in Q1 and Q2 journals. In these articles, the MPT was used as a mediator, and its effects were measured on the intention and adoption of the behaviour.
This paper defines the mediator performanceof the online brand community (OBC) over social media (SM) and customers' purchase intention. Tocomprehend the relationships between the variables, a survey was conducted to quota the clash of online brand community and purchase intention of individuals through social media using Instagram for a makeup community in Nigeria and to explore the ramification of online brand community toconsumers purchase intention. 384 people responded to the questionnaire distributed in a Nigerian online brand community. To comprehend the liaison between social mediaalong with purchase intention, and mediator roles of online brand community, an analysis called mediationwere conducted by applying PROCESS macro for IBM SPSS refined by Hayes.The indication of this probe was to aid brand owners to understand the usefulness of a brand community and social media platforms to increase sales.
The study examined factors influencing customers' switching intentions among retail banks after regulatory-induced mergers and acquisitions occasioned by banking sector reforms. The approach was quantitative through a survey design. Following a comprehensive review of extant literature, five antecedents were identified and conceptualised as determinants of switching intentions, and survey data were collected from 392 customers of the affected banks. Subsequently, partial least square structural equation modelling was used to test the research model. Empirical insights established direct relationships between price, reputation, and ineffective communication as antecedents to customer switching intentions in the context of regulatory-induced mergers and acquisition. The availability of suitable substitutes moderated the direct relations between price and switching intentions. This study is the first of its kind to interrogate switching intentions after a banking sector reform. It contributes to theory and practice by further interrogating the already empirically tested antecedents of switching in the context of regulatory-induced bank mergers and acquisitions. Additionally, the study enhances the switching literature by submitting evidence on the role of suitable substitutes as a moderator.
The banking and financial sectors have witnessed a significant development recently due to financial technology (FinTech), and it has become an essential part of the financial system. Many factors helped the development of this sector, including the pandemics such as Covid-19, the considerable increasing market value of the FinTech sector worldwide, and new technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing and mobile technology. Moreover, changes in consumer's preferences, especially the Z-generation (digital generation). FinTech shifted the traditional business models to mobile platforms characterized by ease of access and swift transactions. Mobile technology became the main backbone for FinTech innovations and acts as a channel to deliver FinTech services that overcome all geographical and timing barriers, thus enhancing financial inclusion. Mobile perceived Trust (MPT), or the trust in using financial business models via mobile technology, is a crucial factor in the FinTech context that has mediation effects on the intention and adoption of different FinTech business models. Unfortunately, few studies have explored MPT mediations on consumers' intention to adopt FinTech innovations using mobile technology. Typically, many studies examined trust/MPT as an independent and unidirectional variable and investigated its effects on behaviour intention without predicting its mediation effects.
This study aimed to develop a systematic literature review on MPT mediation in FinTech, focusing on the period from 2016 and 2021, in journals ranked Q1 and Q2, and known-based theories such as the technology acceptance model, the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, and the mobile technology acceptance model.
This study found that only four articles were published in Q1 and Q2 journals. In these articles, the MPT was used as a mediator, and its effects were measured on the intention and adoption of the behaviour.
Although considerable evidence suggests that setting goals increases the odds of behavior changes that lead to goal attainment, less research has been conducted examining what underlying traits allow some to successfully attain their goals when others do not. This study, using the Theory of Planned Behavior, examines the affects of individual control beliefs on financial goal progress. Findings suggest that low control beliefs are significantly associated with less financial-goal progress; however, the receipt of expert financial advice can reduce this negative effect and result in higher levels of goal progress than that of individuals with high control beliefs.
Explored is how shopping centre attributes can be adapted to culture-relatedshopping behaviour of expatriates. While awareness of consumer ethnicity and effectivenessof culture-based market segmentation are on-going and relevant topicsin retailing, there is only limited information available on consumer behaviour ofexpats, as well as on the translation of market segmentation strategies to shoppingenvironment. An online survey among British, Japanese, and American expatriatesin the Amstelveen/Amsterdam region (the Netherlands) points out the importance ofboth lifestyle and ethnicity for the shopping behaviour. Managerial implications forretailers, shopping centre developers, and operators are also discussed.
Voting intention has become an issue of concern worldwide with regard to successful political elections. With only 6% of South Africa's youth having registered to vote in the 2014 elections, it is of vital importance to get a better understanding of the main reasons behind these statistics and factors that have influenced voting intentions. Although several studies have explored this area of research, it remains a topic of interest. This research paper aims to examine the factors behind voting intention of the youth in South Africa, as most are in their first or second democratic election. This study adds to existing literature on political parties as brands and factors influencing the youth's intention to vote. These factors include advertising mediums, convenience factors of location and registration, and social pressures from peers or family on voting intention. By means of quantitative research, two hundred and fifty questionnaires were distributed amongst students from the University of Witwatersrand. The findings indicate that five of the six hypotheses are insignificant with the exception of radio advertising. The results of this study provide political parties with a better understanding of the factors that prove to be ineffective when targeting Generation Y consumers in South Africa. It further provides political parties with an opportunity to more successfully reach such individuals through other media platforms.
Today, with the development in wireless and mobile technologies, Mobile Commerce (mcommerce) is expected to make substantial impact on the business landscape. The mobile cellular market is the fastest growing telecommunication market in terms of subscriber numbers and popularity in India. Mobile Commerce market in India is expected to grow at a CAGR of 71.06 percent by the year 2016. The substantial increase of the mobile users is linked with greater adoption for mobile-commerce in India. At present, Indian users indulge in mobile purchases for low value transactions such as entertainment services, games, and music downloads. Mobile commerce is quite popular in the developed countries but in India it is in nascent stage and yet to take off. This study captures users' acceptance behaviour towards M-commerce by applying theory of planned behaviour (TPB) model developed by Ajzen (1991). Results indicate that attitude and perceived behavioural control have positive and significant impact on individual's intention while subjective norm has a positive but not significant impact on intention. Further, intention is found to be significantly and positively related with behaviour.
This study measures users' intention to practice green personal computing and tests their extrinsic motivations for green personal computing. We develop a theoretical framework in which four extrinsic motivation factors (i.e., integrated regulation, introjected regulation, identified regulation, and external regulation) are combined with the theory of reasoned action. We then examine their relationships using structural equation modelling. Our results reveal the significant roles of both integrated and identified regulations in influencing users' attitude toward green personal computing. We have also confirmed the positive impacts of both introjected and external regulations on subjective norms about green personal computing. Both attitude and subjective norms are proved to be positively related to users' intention to practice green personal computing. These four extrinsic motivation factors also exert significant indirect effects on behavioral intention of green personal computing through attitude and subjective norms.
Purpose – Th e banking and financial sector is a dynamic sector that regularly goes through a series of structural changes. Global bank consolidation an d concentration processes have prompted a lively discussion on the part of scholars and practitioners regarding the infl uence of concentration on the efficiency and competition levels in the banking system, the financial and macroeconomic stability of countries and the growth of economies. It has been noted that the banking sector tolerates high levels of concentration rather well compared to other business sectors, thanks to the apparent benefits of concentration on the increasing stability of the financial system. Th e aim of this article is to identify underlying causes affecting the mergers and acquisitions in banking and to assess their eff ect on the domestic financial system. Design/methodology/approach – Th e authors used qualitative and quantitative methods of study in analysing the impact of bank mergers and acquisitions on the country’s financial system. Th e qualitative analysis has allowed the authors to present their own interpretation of the issue at hand, and has given them a chance to approach the problem of the study holistically. Th e quantitative study has provided a basis for analysing dynamic regularities, performing and comparing calculations, assessing data interrelation and reliability. Th e article includes logical analysis and synthesis of studies dealing with bank mergers and acquisitions. To identify the potential elements that lead to stability in the financial system, and the possible impact that the on-going consolidation process might have on the banking sector, the authors have carried out expert analysis. Findings – Mergers and acquisitions in banking take place to enhance the wellbeing of shareholders and to attain an economic eff ect; the aspect of stability in mergers and acquisitions is short-lived and is usually inspired by the government. Lithuania’s modern banking market has evolved through mergers and acquisitions; strategic investors have helped countries with transitional economies ensure the stability of their banking systems and capitalise on economies of scale. Several large banks operating in a small open economy (and a transitional economy in particular) provide the backbone for the stability of its financial sector. Originality/Value – Th is article dealing with the impact of mergers and acquisitions of banks on the country’s financial system is a new and original piece of scientific work that evaluates the mutual ties of banks’ mergers and acquisitions, as well as their eff ect on the domestic financial system. Th e authors have conducted an in-depth study of the impact of mergers and acquisitions on the country’s financial system, revealing potential problems involved in merger and acquisition transactions.
Orientation: Organisations compete fiercely to recruit the best graduates, because they consider them a rich source of future talent. In the recruitment literature, it has become increasingly important to understand the factors that influence graduate applicant intentions.
Research purpose: Drawing on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), we tested a model proposing that applicant intention is a function of their attitude towards applying, beliefs about referent other’s expectations (subjective norms) and perceived behavioural control with respect to this behaviour.
Motivation for the study: The study was motivated by the need to shed light on graduate applicants’ decisions to apply to an organisation of their choice.
Research approach, design and method: The study used a quantitative design to test hypotheses that attitudes towards behaviour, norms and control beliefs would influence intention to apply. We surveyed prospective job seekers (N = 854) studying at a South African university about their beliefs regarding the job application process.
Main findings: Structural equation modelling showed reasonable fit of the proposed model to the survey data. Latent variable analysis demonstrated that perceived behavioural control and subjective norm explained intention to apply. With the combination of all three variables, only attitude towards applying did not play a significant role in the prediction of intention to apply, which is contrary to previous research.
Practical/managerial implications: The findings highlight the role of salient control beliefs in the application process. Efforts by universities and organisations to affect intentions to apply may potentially benefit from focusing on support services that could enhance feelings of control and minimise perceived obstacles. Recruiters could focus on control to increase potential recruitment pools.
Contribution/value-add: The study contributes to the recruitment literature in three ways. Firstly, TPB is shown to be a useful framework to explain graduate applicants’ intention to apply, as this theoretical model found empirical support. In doing so, the present study advances our understanding of how graduates’ intentions to apply are formed. Secondly, the results showed that applicants’ control and normative beliefs dominate when considering applying. Lastly, the study results open up interesting avenues for future research on applicant intentions
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the Jordanian accountant’s behavioral intention of using the Internet Banking services to focus on the perceptions of the users in terms of usefulness and ease of use of Internet Banking, besides the privacy of using this dynamic technology for meeting their banking requirements.
Design/methodology/approach
– The questionnaire on Internet Banking was specifically designed and used to survey a randomly selected sample of Jordanian accountants from the web site of the Jordan Association of Certified Public Accountants and 298 usable responses were obtained. The data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS (structural equation modeling).
Findings
– The results of this analysis support the extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as well as confirm its robustness for predicting the behavioral intention of the adoption of Internet Banking by the Jordanian chartered accountants.
Research limitations/implications
– During a period when quick changes are taking place, new technologies are entering the market every day, resulting in a cross-sectional study which cannot be generalized perfectly.
Practical implications
– The findings offered useful information for the bank management in order to formulate marketing strategies for Internet Banking.
Originality/value
– This study has contributed to the literature available as it formulated and validated an extended TAM for predicting the adoption of Internet Banking.
With the popularization of mobile Internet and smart terminals, mobile reading with diversity and mobility has become a hot issue in the industry and academia. This article comes up with a hypothetical model of mobile reading user acceptance behavior based on the technology acceptance model and unified theory of acceptance and use of technology and conducts an analysis of the reliability and validity of questionnaire data. Based on this, the model fitness is analyzed as well as the path hypotheses testing. We find that user-perceived ease of use greatly influences perceived usefulness (path coefficient=0.841), and user attitude (path coefficient=0.860) and behavioral intention (path coefficient=0.154) are significantly impacted by perceived usefulness. The impact of social influence on user attitude toward using mobile reading is significant (path coefficient=0.341), but the influence of perceived payment is not obvious. The moderating effect of living habit is not obvious because the absolute value of the critical ratio is under 2.58 with a significance level of 0.01.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to empirically test an integrated model incorporating the constructs of organisational commitment (OC), behavioural intentions (BI), actual turnover behaviour (ATB) and telecom work characteristics (WC) so as to examine the impact of commitment on employees’ BI, whereby they wish to dissolve their relationship with the employment provider.
Design/methodology/approach
– Structural equation modelling technique has been used to test the data collected through questionnaire from a sample of 139 employees including managers and executives across the hierarchy of an Indian telecom organisation named Aircel Dishnet Ltd from the Jammu and Kashmir circle head office in India.
Findings
– The theoretical constructs were validated before incorporating the hypothetical structural model. SEM results indicate a good fit to the empirical data. The findings confirmed that affective, continuance and normative commitments lay significant impact on employees’ OC. Also, commitment influence attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control, thereby affecting the BI of the employees. An indirect significant impact of OC on the ATB was also revealed. A partial mediation of WC was also found between BI and ATB.
Research limitations/implications
– The generalisability of the study is limited as the sample concentrates to one organisation of a single industry in India.
Practical implications
– The study provides insights for the policy makers to create and develop mechanisms and programmes leading to the enhancement of affective OC for employee retention.
Originality/value
– The model clearly explains telecom employees’ OC and its impact on the ATB through their BI. Though the findings do not reveal any component of commitment to lay more impact on OC, it exhibits higher career commitment than OC among the telecom employees.
This study aims to determine the beliefs about advertising of two controversial products, namely political parties and sexual diseases prevention. The theory of reasoned action was utilized as underlying premise to elicit beliefs about controversial advertising in order to understand the formation of attitude towards the advertising. A qualitative approach by means of personal interview was adopted to explore the relatively unknown phenomenon. Subsequently, 43 interviews were conducted in Sarawak and the transcripts were then content-analyzed by multiple coders. The findings show that there are 11 statements of belief for the advertising of political parties and 6 statements for the advertising of sexual diseases prevention. Although both types of advertising are primarily considered as a source of information, their descriptions are largely different. While the advertising of political parties is mainly believed to be giving misleading information and for personal interest, the advertising of sexual diseases prevention is regarded as a form of education when executed appropriately. Therefore, the former must be carried out with care to avoid negative responses, and the latter should be done fittingly. This articulates the underlying consideration that there are different beliefs by type of advertising, and about what might create controversy.
The paper proposes a model that helps to explain consumer behaviour towards Mobile Number Portability (MNP) policy and the influence of MNP adoption factors on consumer switching intention process in the telecommunication industry. The proposed model was tested using data from a cross-section of 736 subscribers of six global companies in Ghana’s mobile telecommunication industry, where MNP has been introduced. The findings indicate that MNP adoption can positively influence consumer switching. The effects of MNP adoption on switching intention is realised through three main channels; directly through MNP-induced self-efficacy (or switching efficacy) and indirectly through perceived switching costs and attitude towards switching. The proposed model helps explain about 50% of switching intention. The paper discusses implications of the findings to marketing theory and practice and provides directions for future research. The paper advances our knowledge in the impact of government/industrial policy on consumer behaviour in marketing.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to answer two research questions which are “What are key factors which influence Chinese to adopt mobile technology?” and “Do these key factors differ from factors which are identified from western context?”.
Design/methodology/approach
– The findings from a pilot study with 45 in-depth interviews are used to develop questionnaires and test across 800 residents from the three research cities. The data were analyzed by structural equation modeling together with multi-group analysis.
Findings
– The data suggest eight important concepts, i.e. utilitarian expectation, hedonic expectation, status gains, status loss avoidance, normative influence, external influence, cost, and quality concern, are influential factors affecting users’ intentions to adopt 3G mobile technology. Differences are found between the samples in the three research cities in the effect of hedonic expectation, status gains, status loss avoidance, and normative influence on mobile technology adoption intention.
Research limitations/implications
– As the stability of intentions may change over time, only measuring intentions might be inadequate in predicting actual adoption behaviors. However, the focus on potential users is thought to be appropriate, given that the development of 3G is still in its infancy in China.
Originality/value
– Previous research into information technology adoption among Chinese users has not paid attention to regional diversity. Some research considered China as a large single market and some was conducted in only one province or one city. Culturally, China is a heterogeneous country.
Research dealing with various aspects of* the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1985,
1987) is reviewed, and some unresolved issues are discussed. In broad terms, the theory is
found to be well supported by empirical evidence. Intentions to perform behaviors of different
kinds can be predicted with high accuracy from attitudes toward the behavior, subjective
norms, and perceived behavioral control; and these intentions, together with perceptions of
behavioral control, account for considerable variance in actual behavior. Attitudes, subjective
norms, and perceived behavioral control are shown to be related to appropriate sets of salient
behavioral, normative, and control beliefs about the behavior, but the exact nature of these
relations is still uncertain. Expectancy value formulations are found to be only partly
successful in dealing with these relations. Optimal rescaling of expectancy and value
measures is offered as a means of dealing with measurement limitations. Finally, inclusion of
past behavior in the prediction equation is shown to provide a means of testing the theory*s
sufficiency, another issue that remains unresolved. The limited available evidence concerning
this question shows that the theory is predicting behavior quite well in comparison to the
ceiling imposed by behavioral reliability.
This paper reviews the existing literature and studies on the impact of Information
Systems (IS) on the adoption of Internet Banking (IB). We reviewed the adoption
theories utilized in IB studies within different contexts and approaches. This explanatory
study was conducted to develop an understanding of the theoretical-based research of
IB. The findings indicate that there is a large body of literature regarding IB adoption.
Most IB research investigated the adoption of IB using the psychological approach,
where some used the social approach or a combined approach of both. Our research
recommends new approaches to investigate the adoption of IB and develop new
theories. Specifically, and among others, the User’s Informational-Based Readiness is a
new approach this study recommends for future research of innovation adoption.
Cosmopolitanism has been argued to be a crucial component of peacebuilding, both with regard to its aims as well as its staff. In a universalist-liberal understanding of the concept, cosmopolitanism is the optimal mind frame for peacebuilders to rebuild post-war societies, due to the tolerance, justice-orientation, and neutrality regarding local cleavages that the concept entails in theory. This article argues, however, that cosmopolitanism cannot be understood outside of its social context, therefore requiring sociological empirical analyses. Drawing on three such sociological concepts, namely elite, glocal, and localisable cosmopolitanism, the article analyses empirically through interviews with peacebuilders in Kosovo whether and in which form these international civil servants display cosmopolitan worldviews. The study concludes that while in theory the localisable variant would be best suited to contribute to locally sensitive, emancipatory peacebuilding, this form of cosmopolitanism is absent in practice. Given the novel, exploratory character of this analysis of hitherto uncharted terrain, the article also discusses in detail how the findings were obtained and in how far they are generalisable.
The study details why and how product reviews from consumer opinion platforms affect individual users’ brand buying behavior. Drawing on social theories, the authors predict that consumers’ perceptions of other consumers’ product reviews affect brand buying intentions through two intervening variables: product- and brand-related attitudes. Moreover, the authors investigate whether these relationships are contingent on user type (i.e., active posters or passive lurkers). The empirical results support a multiple mediation framework in which product- and brand attitudes mediate the effects of consumer product reviews on individual brand buying intentions. In addition, consumer product reviews appear to more strongly affect the brand-related attitudes of posters than lurkers. Lurkers, who make up the majority of opinion platform users, are much less influenced by the opinions of others than posters. Encouraging variations in poster- and lurker rates may be an effective means for companies to manage and control consumer-to-consumer communication.
Purpose
This study aims to investigate and explain the influence of cultural differences on foreign customers' perceptions of the local service marketplace through their consumption experience.
Design/methodology/approach
Exploratory research was conducted by conducting semi-structured interviews and using critical incidents technique to identify foreign customers' perception of each service. A purposive sampling method was used to collect 70 participants to recall their experience in the five most used services, including transportation, convenience stores, restaurants, healthcare, and banking.
Findings
The results found 286 critical incidents in four main categories of the physical environment, employee behavior, value, and functionality. The participants were likely to mention positive arguments. The results also provide evidence that Western customers were more likely than their Asian counterparts to have a negative perception of local services.
Research limitations/implications
The study combines all the participants' perceptions of all the most used services together for measurement; therefore, it may imply some various results for individual services. This paper has several limitations that need to be recognized in interpreting its findings.
Practical implications
These results have cross-cultural implications, especially that foreign consumers really see services in a very simplistic manner. International service providers can take advantage of economies of scale and experience curve effects, while local service providers can also make efforts to attract foreign customers.
Originality/value
The findings provide an initial step towards developing a comprehensive understanding of foreign consumers' perceptions of local services and make a theoretical contribution to the applicability of cross-cultural marketing
Research suggests that only a small percentage of sexual harassment targets report their experiences to a superior or file a formal complaint. This conceptual paper integrates organizational factors gleaned from the sexual harassment literature, with the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1991) to predict the decision to report workplace sexual harassment. I propose that climate of tolerance of sexual harassment, organizational justice, leader trust, and coworker support influence the target's attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control regarding reporting, which in turn determines the formation of the intention to report. Intention and actual behavioral control then predict actual reporting behavior.
Clarke, H. M. (2014). Predicting the decision to report sexual harassment: Organizational influences and the theory of planned behavior. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 14(2), 52-65.
When does increased service quality competition lead to customer deffection? And, which customers are most likely to deffect? Our empirical analysis of 82,235 customers exploits the varying competitive dynamics in 644 geographically isolated markets in which a nationwide retail bank conducted business over a five-year period. We find that customers deffect at a higher rate from the incumbent following increased service quality (price) competition only when the incumbent offers high (low) quality service relative to existing competitors in a local market. We provide evidence that these results are due to a sorting effect, whereby firms trade off service quality and price, and, in turn, the incumbent attracts service (price) sensitive customers in markets where it has supplied relatively high (low) levels of service quality in the past. Furthermore, we show that it is the high quality incumbent's most profitable customers who are the most attracted by superior quality alternatives. Our results appear to have long-run implications whereby sustaining a high level of service quality is associated with the incumbent attracting and retaining more profitable customers over time.
Especially in the highest band of production systems, merger and acquisition (M&A) operations are the main means of growth, and are usually intended to expand the corporate structure through policies of both production integration and strategic diversification.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to explore the adoption of a mobile insurance claim system (M-insurance) and develops a framework for the adoption of M-insurance by consumers.
Design/methodology/approach
– This study assesses mobile technology for claim management through the lens of the technology acceptance model (TAM) and diffusion of innovation (DOI) models as a major guideline, using exploratory research through in-depth interviews with four executive experts who are first movers in mobile claim motor insurance in Thailand. Semi-structured interviews and open-ended questions were used to conduct group interviews of insurance consumers who mostly use smartphones. The data were collected in a qualitative research approach from Thai insurance consumers (n=177), and contents were classified and analysed to gain strong insights into respondent opinions, comments, attitudes, behaviour, and experiences.
Findings
– The results indicate that the external (social) factors influence attitude and behaviour of consumers which link to their intention to adopt M-insurance. These external factors include: preference for face-to-face service; confidence of insurers in accepting claim; and risk of claim knowledge that might cause legal issues among others. In application, the findings shall meaningfully enhance insurer firms’ improvement of adoption rate and development of future features and functions of M-insurance.
Research limitations/implications
– This study is based on insurance consumers in each region of Thailand but focuses only on mobile claim management for motor insurance. Although the findings bring new insight and understanding of consumer preferences and behaviours, they were not tested statistically.
Practical implications
– The study has practical implications for motor insurance claimants who are concerned over the complicated policy conditions, the perspective risk of claim knowledge and fault admission, and the on-site investigation by surveyor for another party. These are the guidance impediments to overcome M-insurance adoption improvement.
Originality/value
– Previously, TAM and DOI approaches have been employed to study general adoption of M-banking by quantitative research which confirmed descriptive data and tested the hypothesis, but neglected crucial data. However, M-insurance is different from M-banking in term of features and functions, purpose and process of usage, and legal liability. Therefore, this study is one of a few empirical studies that attempt to identify insightful factors to consumer uptake of M-insurance which is in its early stage and lacks an underpinning TAM model. This study contributes by identifying insights of “pull” factors to successfully develop M-insurance in Thailand.
Despite the fact that qualitative interviews are reputed to be an effective method of obtaining data from organizational elites, studies are concurrent on a number of obstacles which surround the interviewing of senior management. Problem areas flagged by the literature include issues of access and suspicion towards the interviewer as an outsider. This paper presents experiences with interviewing senior-level HR managers in German organizations. The author attempted to overcome some of the established barriers to interviewing internationals and organizational elites. However, as the paper argues, unique working experience collected in Germany gave the researcher insights into how to interact with senior German managers. In particular, the researcher drew on a previous role as a language trainer to create a method of engaging managers. The semi-structured interviews that followed were free from barriers and resulted in the gathering of rich data which enabled the researcher to better understand processes, networks and relationships.
The aim of this study is to establish and examine the significance of a consumer acceptance and continuance model for online group buying through the integration of entertainment gratification and perceived risk with the Technology Acceptance Model. A quantitative study was conducted and data were obtained through a mall-intercept systematic sampling distribution of questionnaires. The results indicate that perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and perceived risk all have a significant relationship with consumer attitudes, which subsequently has a significant effect on intention to use online group buying sites. While entertainment gratification was found to be insignificant, we reveal some possible reasons for this finding. The implications of the findings and future research directions are also discussed.
The effectiveness of investment in information system (IS) can be partly explained by the continuous usage of installed systems. Therefore, the research on IS user retention is important from both practical and academic perspectives. In order to develop an integrative model for IS users ' continued usage, this paper explores the main antecedents that cause the retention of IS users. In addition to attitude, the integrative model links previous behavior like habit and behavioral control belief like switching cost, to IS continuance intention. For an empirical exploration, 345 samples were collected from the users of a web portal site. Data analysis using Structural Equation Modeling shows that IS quality in terms of desire congruency and expectation congruency has a direct effect on attribute satisfaction. The attribute satisfaction shows a significant effect on continuance intention mediated by the attitude toward use-continuance. Lastly, it is found that switching cost has a significant direct effect on continuance intention while habit has an indirect effect via switching cost.
This paper describes and reviews the theory of planned behavior (TPB). The focus is on evidence supporting the further extension of the TPB in various ways. Empirical and theoretical evidence to support the addition of 6 variables to the TPB is reviewed: belief salience measures, past behaviodhabit, perceived behavioral control (PBC) vs. self-efficacy, moral norms, self-identity, and affective beliefs. In each case there appears to be growing empirical evidence to support their addition to the TPB and some understanding of the processes by which they may be related to other TPB variables, intentions , and behavior. Two avenues for expansion of the TPB are presented. First, the possibility of incorporating the TPB into a dual-process model of attitude-behavior relationships is reviewed. Second, the expansion of the TPB to include consideration of the volitional processes determining how goal intentions may lead to goal achievement is discussed. The theory of planned behavior (TPB) is a widely applied expectancy-value model of attitude-behavior relationships which has met with some degree of success in predicting a variety of behaviors present paper examines avenues for development of this theory as a way of furthering our understanding of the relationship between attitudes and behavior. This is achieved in two ways: a review of the evidence supporting the addition of six different variables to the TPB, and a review of two avenues for expanding this theory. Six additional variables are reviewed: belief salience, past behaviodhabit, perceived behavioral control versus self-efficacy, moral norms, self-identity, and affective beliefs. Two avenues for model expansion are considered: multiple processes by which attitudes influence 'Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Mark Conner, School of Psychology , University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT. United Kingdom.
Global deregulation of the banking industry that began in the early 1980s has contributed to increased customer switching. This situation is also evident in the New Zealand banking industry. However, limited research has been published in academic marketing journals focusing on switching behavior in the banking industry. This study identifies and examines the factors that contribute to bank switching in New Zealand from the customer's perspective. Data for this study were obtained through a mail survey sent to 1,960 households in Christchurch, New Zealand. Logistic regression is used to analyze the data and determine the impact the factors have on customer switching behavior in New Zealand. The logistic regression results confirm that customer commitment, service quality, reputation, customer satisfaction, young-age, and low educational level are the most likely factors that contribute to customers' switching banks.
This Article investigates an increasingly important yet under-developed body of law: regulation of virtual currency. At its peak in March of 2014, the daily volume of Bitcoin transactions in United States dollars exceeded $575,000,000. The growing mainstream acceptance of Bitcoin, however, is best illustrated by the growing number of leading merchants that have decided to accept Bitcoin payments. While Bitcoin’s rise as an alternative payment method is well-chronicled, Bitcoin’s impact extends further due to its use as an investment vehicle and its ability to spur the growth of an industry of Bitcoin-based businesses. Despite increasingly widespread use, Bitcoin (and other virtual currencies) have largely operated without the burden of regulation. Why? Like the potentially transformative innovations that preceded Bitcoin, virtual currency raises unique challenges for which existing legal models may be unprepared. As policymakers struggle to catch-up, the effort to develop an appropriate regulatory regime for virtual currency is at a critical juncture. The response in the United States has thus far involved regulatory bodies acting independently to clarify the treatment of virtual currency under a variety of different laws designed to regulate traditional payment systems, financial services, and investments. This Article argues, contrary to this approach, that a narrow focus on the technical application and extension of existing law creates a deficient regulatory regime. Instead, we suggest that policymakers should: (1) engage the various agency stakeholders to promote cross-communication; (2) think more globally about the wide spectrum of issues arising from virtual currency; and (3) embrace the unique and distinct characteristics of virtual currency. In support of this proposition, we show that refocusing on the collection of policy goals advanced by existing law offers policymakers an additional tool to aid in the development of a comprehensive, cohesive, and appropriately-scaled virtual currency regulatory model.
The adoption of new technology represents a critical issue that firms need to confront when an improved product version is introduced to customers. Although prior research has established the benefits of technological improvements, it is still unclear why customers are typically slow to accepting new technology despite extensive marketing efforts. The main purpose of this paper is to examine how specific components of switching barrier, namely, lack of service facilities, switching costs, and adoption difficulty, moderate the effects of technological advancement and perceived value on switching intentions. A survey was conducted among highway commuters with alternative technological improvements, particularly an upgraded mobile devise in electronic toll collection (ETC) services. Results indicate that both technological advancement and its perceived value have a positive impact on customers’ intention to switch products. Nevertheless, high levels of perceived switching barriers mitigate the technological advancement–and perceived value–switching intention relationships. Based on the study findings, practical implications are discussed.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to delineate the impact of social context and savings attitudes on consumers’ self-reported long-term savings and discuss how these drivers can be influenced to increase an individual’s savings rate.
Design/methodology/approach
– An online survey was conducted among 993 German savers. A structural equation model quantified the influence of the social context and an individual’s attitudes on long-term savings behavior, as stated by consumers.
Findings
– Both social context constructs – subjective norms and relationship quality – exert a significant influence on the savings attitudes of perceived anxiety and perceived importance, which in turn significantly affect long-term savings. Furthermore, the results of a mediation analysis indicated that the social context only has an indirect effect on long-term savings.
Research limitations/implications
– The study was conducted in Germany only. Therefore, the results may not apply across cultures. In addition, the salient belief structures, access channels used, and savings product categories were not part of this study.
Practical implications
– The results showed that financial institutions can influence an individual’s attitudes toward long-term savings by providing a satisfying and trusted relationship. The positive effect on savings attitudes will translate to an increased long-term savings rate. According to the analysis, financial service providers can only have an indirect effect on long-term savings behavior.
Originality/value
– This paper delineates the impact of the social environment on long-term savings. This relationship has not been investigated in previous research. In addition, the influence of the social context within the attitudes-behavior framework for long-term savings is expounded.
This paper aims to examine the differences in consumers' attitudes towards domestic and foreign retailers in Croatia. It segments the consumers based on their attitudes, and examines the differences among the attitude segments relative to their retail patronage behaviour, consumer spending and consumer attitudes towards buying Croatian-made products. The empirical analysis is based on data obtained from consumer survey. The data were analyzed using t-test, chi-square test and ANOVA. The results show that consumers perceive domestic retailers as being similar to foreign retailers on three out of four store attribute factors. Cluster analysis produced three consumer segments: (1) consumers who prefer domestic retailers (28%); (2) consumers who prefer foreign retailers (17%); and (3) indifferent consumers (55%). The significant differences across segments exist in retail patronage, but not in consumer spending behaviour and the attitudes towards buying Croatian-made products. It may be concluded that consumers' attitudes towards domestic and foreign retailers might predict retail patronage behaviour. When designing retail strategy, managers should take into consideration both consumer attitudes and consumer segments.
This article analyzes the relationship between consumer bankruptcy patterns and the destruction of soft information caused
by mergers. Using a major Canadian bank merger as a source of exogenous variation in local banking conditions, we show that
local markets affected by the merger exhibit an increase in consumer bankruptcy rates post-merger. The evidence is consistent
with the most plausible mechanism being the disruption of consumer–bank relationships. Markets affected by the merger show
a decrease in the merging institutions’ branch presence and market share, including those stemming from higher switching rates.
We rule out alternative mechanisms such as changes in quantity of credit, loan rates, or observable borrower characteristics.
This study investigates the linear and nonlinear relationships among the concerned variables in electronic repository adoption. We apply the polynomial regression and response surface analysis to explain the nonlinear relationships. The results show the perceived behavioral control which is a critical part of the planned behavior theory is not a significant predictor to electronic library adoption, while the subjective norms and attitude are the two significant predictors. Furthermore, the nonlinear relationship between subjective norms and attitude is identified. It is a negative synergy between subjective norms and attitude in E-repository adoption where users have volitional control over their use of the system. Increasing in subjective norms has a decreasing marginal impact on usage intention when the attitude is high; while increasing in attitude has a decreasing marginal impact on usage intention when the subjective norms are high.
This study proposes a theoretical model from a collectivism perspective to examine the factors affecting buyers' motivation to engage in auctions through online group-buying websites. The model was tested using the data collected from 218 buyers participating in a Taiwan online group-buying website. The results show that the intention to participate in online group-buying auctions significantly affected group-buying behavior, while conformity, attitude, and collective efficacy had significant influences on the intention to participate in online group-buying auctions. The results also indicate that trust in websites, trust in auction initiators, and trust in buyers are the antecedents of attitudes toward online group-buying auctions. Implications for theory and practice and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Purpose
– This paper aims to present an integrative model in predicting corporate tax fraud.
Design/methodology/approach
– This paper is grounded on three theories, namely, the theory of reasoned action, theory of planned behaviour and the “Fraud Diamond Theory”.
Findings
– By integrating these three theories, this paper proposes that individual cognitive factors, fraud diamond factors and organizational factors such as normative and control factors influence managers to commit corporate tax fraud.
Practical implications
– Practically, the proposed integrative model enables the government and tax authority to understand on why corporate managers engage in corporate tax fraud. It will also allow them to devise practical methods and strategies to prevent the corporate managers to engage in tax fraud.
Originality/value
– This study has merit that proposed an integrative model in predicting corporate tax fraud. Research on corporate tax fraud has been the subject of limited investigation; hence, this study contributes to the tax compliance literature by proposing an integrative model to study corporate tax fraud in a Malaysian tax setting. Future studies can be conducted to test the proposed integrative model in examining the circumstances of managers’ intention to commit corporate tax fraud.
Purpose: The aim of this study is to analyze the influence of perceived value on customer loyalty, going into depth in the special case of social value. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 200 personal surveys have been conducted on customers of financial institutions, and structural equation modelling has been used to compare the relationships arising. Findings: The importance of perceived value for consumer loyalty is confirmed, and the core performance of the service received is the main determinant of satisfaction. The effect of social value on customer loyalty is also examined in two ways: as a determinant of the attitude of the individual and as a normative component directly influencing behavioral intentions. Research limitations/implications: This research was carried out in financial services. Further research of the proposed conceptual model across different industries and countries is needed to determine the generalizability and consistency of this study's findings. Practical implications: It highlights the interest of social marketing programs and corporate social responsibility to maintain the customer's loyalty. Originality/value: The contribution of this work is that it makes it possible to study the effect of social value along with other relational variables in consumer loyalty. The authors compared the effect of the core service performance with the social component as an element influencing the individual's attitude and as a normative element.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to investigate factors affecting knowledge sharing among academic staff in universities. Utilizing the theory of reasoned action (TRA) as the underlying research framework, the main objective of this study was threefold. First, was to examine the relationship between attitude, subjective norm, and trust with knowledge sharing intention. Second, was to examine the relationship among factors, i.e., self-efficacy, social networks and extrinsic rewards with attitude toward knowledge sharing intention and the third objective was to find out the relationship between organizational support and subjective norm.
Design/methodology/approach
– A total of 200 questionnaires were distributed among academic staff at three social science faculties in one public university in Malaysia. Collectively, 117 usable responses were returned. Partial Least Square analysis was utilized to analyze the data.
Findings
– The results indicated that of the two components of the TRA, only attitude was positively and significantly related to knowledge sharing intention. The findings also show that social network and self-efficacy significantly affect attitude and organizational support showed a strong influence on subjective norms toward knowledge sharing intention.
Research limitations/implications
– Future research should consider type of knowledge that is being shared. Besides, it would also be interesting to investigate potential differences of the knowledge sharing intention between academic staff in the private and public universities.
Practical implications
– This study offers a more clear vision of the factors that affect knowledge sharing intention among academic staff. Therefore, managers can implement practical plan to support those factors.
Originality/value
– Factors affecting knowledge sharing among academic staff in universities were reviewed to suggest a framework to explain this behavior in a specific context.
Purpose
– This study was designed with the aim to examine the formation of golfers’ intentions to play golf on traditional golf courses by considering the moderating impact of their outcome beliefs regarding the playing of screen golf. Other goals in this research were to test the mediating impact of desires and to identify the relative importance of study variables in generating intention within the proposed conceptual framework. The Model of Goal-directed Behavior (MGB) was utilized to make a precise prediction of golfers’ intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
– The dataset was developed by distributing surveys in person at screen-golf cafés. A structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to evaluate the fit of the proposed model and assess the hypothesized relationships. Tests for metric invariance were used to examine the moderating impact of outcome beliefs.
Findings
– Results from the SEM revealed that the proposed model predicted golfers’ intentions well, explaining significant amounts of variance. Desire acted as a significant mediator in the proposed conceptual framework. Compared to other study variables, both positive anticipated emotions and subjective norms had superior ability in generating golfers’ intentions to play real golf. Moreover, results from the test for metric invariance indicated that the intensity of golfers’ perceived benefits of playing screen golf affected their decision formation as a moderator, decreasing their intention to play real golf.
Originality/value
– Research considering the impact of screen golf on golfers’ decision-making processes is rare in the golf industry. Filling this gap, the present study successfully demonstrated that golfers’ decision formation is sufficiently explained by the MGB, and their perceived outcomes from playing screen golf represent a possible threat to the traditional golf industry.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to understand the consumer’s intention toward internet banking adoption in Indian context by combining two theories; theory of planned behavior (TPB), technology acceptance model (TAM) and an additional construct, i.e. perceived risk.
Design/methodology/approach
– A questionnaire based survey was conducted to collect responses from young consumers (210 usable responses). Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling to evaluate the strength of relationship.
Findings
– The result shows that perceived usefulness, attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioral control significantly influences the consumer’s intention to adopt internet banking whereas perceived risk failed to show any significant influence over intention to adopt internet banking.
Research limitations/implications
– The study is limited to young consumers (i.e. professional students) only. Further, the study concerns itself with consumer’s intention not actual behavior.
Practical implications
– The finding will be useful for bank officials for devising strategies and policies related to internet banking in the Indian scenario.
Originality/value
– The paper is one of the initial attempts in Indian context to understand the consumer’s intention to adopt internet banking by combining TPB and TAM theories.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to understand what drives customers’ behavioral loyalty and explore the relationship between intentional and behavioral loyalty in the context of e-tailing.
Design/methodology/approach
– Based on the theory of reasoned action and the recency-frequency-monetary value model, this study proposes a research model to explore the relationships among satisfaction, switching cost, intentional loyalty (i.e. word of mouth (WOM) and repurchase intention), and behavioral loyalty (i.e. purchase frequency and monetary value). Data collected from 266 respondents in the context of e-tailing are tested against the research model using a partial least squares (PLS) approach.
Findings
– The results indicate that both satisfaction and switching cost are positively related to intentional loyalty (i.e. WOM and repurchase intention), and that the relationship of satisfaction with intentional loyalty outweighs that of switching cost. Additionally, while repurchase intention significantly associates with purchase frequency and monetary value, a relatively small portion of the variance in both purchase frequency and monetary value are explained. More importantly, WOM is unrelated to both purchase frequency and monetary value. The insignificance of WOM and the low predictability of repurchase intention indicate that the relationship between intentional and behavioral loyalty is weak in e-tailing context.
Originality/value
– This study provided empirical evidence to support the weak relationship between intentional and behavioral customer loyalty in the context of e-tailing. The findings provide several important theoretical and practical implications for e-tailing customer relationship management.
Purpose
– This paper aims to analyze thoroughly all of the sources of research used to develop the money laundering (ML) and terrorist financing (TF) low-risk rating, a rating attained by Norway according to the Basel Institute of Governance, and determine the reasons why Norway is one of only two countries in the world according to the 2012 report, with the other being Estonia, to gain an overall low-risk ML and TF rating.
Design/methodology/approach
– The differences between the USA and Norway which has obtained a low-risk ranking, were compared and contrasted.
Findings
– Beginning with the Basel Institute Rating index as a legitimate source for use in assessing anti-money-laundering (AML)/TF risk, and the amount of documentation used in the index’s methodology, it has been proven that the low-risk rating Norway has received is well deserved, and that the US rating of medium risk is also deserved for the time the report was published. Achieving a low-risk rating is not as ambiguous as recently thought and neither is its application on a global scale.
Originality/value
– The paper identifies practical areas of improvement and concerns in addressing the overall issue of ML and terrorist financing.
Purpose – The purpose of this paper was to examine the influence of religiously motivated boycotts,
such as the one conducted in Saudi Arabia against Danish companies, on corporate brand image,
customer loyalty and product judgment. Despite a growing research interest in understanding the
effects of different types of consumer animosities on companies’ performance, there appears to be a
scarcity of studies addressing the specific effects of religious animosity. Religious animosity is
considered as an additional type which may have more stable and longer-term impacts than other
animosities on behavior.
Design/methodology/approach – The study was based on a two-stage design: an exploratory
qualitative stage involving 11 in-depth interviews, followed by a more comprehensive quantitative
stage designed to test a proposed theoretical model. Data was collected from Saudi customers of the
Danish company Arla Foods in Saudi Arabia. Data was analyzed using structural equation model
(LISREL 8).
Findings – The model confirms that boycotting have strong negative impact on brand image and
consumer loyalty but does not influence consumers’ product judgment.
Practical implications – Religious boycotts have significant consequences on both corporate profits
and brand image. The study provides clear steps for companies to combat the influence of religious
boycotts especially in relation to brand image and customer loyalty.
Originality/value – The study tested the influence of consumer religious boycotts on brand image
and customer loyalty. Religious animosity was found to cause a more persistent boycott that negatively
impacts brand image and weakens customer loyalty. However, by and large, boycotting was found not
to have any significant impact on product judgment
We tested an interactive model of attitudes and perceived social support in a panel survey of substance use among Irish postprimary students. We hypothesized that contingent consistency interactions would be more likely 1) for perceived social support from friends than from parents; 2) for perceived substance use by others than for verbal support; 3) in predicting change than in predicting current substance use; 4) for younger than for older adolescents; and 5) for drug use than for drinking and smoking. Contrary to predictions, we found significant contingent consistency interactions for all three behaviors and regardless of the age of the students. These interactions were more likely when predicting current behavior rather than behavior change. The significant interactions primarily involved perceived substance use by friends. Increased accessibility, selective friendship choices, and rationalization processes are possible explanations for the findings.