EuroMed Journal of Business
Consumer behavior on Facebook : Does consumer participation bring positive consumer
evaluation of the brand?
Ching-Wei Ho
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EMJB
9,3
Consumer behavior on Facebook
Does consumer participation bring positive
consumer evaluation of the brand?
252
Ching-Wei Ho
Department of Marketing, Feng Chia University, Taichung, Taiwan
Received 10 December 2013
Revised 24 January 2014
Abstract
28 March 2014
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate consumers’ voluntary behaviors on Facebook
Accepted 2 May 2014
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through exploring how members’ community participation affects consumer citizenship behaviors
toward the brand. The study also provided further insight into the mediating effect by considering
brand trust and community identification.
Design/methodology/approach – This research begins by developing a framework to describe
and examine the relationship among Facebook participants, brand trust, community identification,
and consumer citizenship behaviors. Furthermore, it tests the mediating effects of brand trust and
community identification on the relationship between Facebook participation and consumer
citizenship behaviors. The model and hypotheses in this study employ structural equation modeling
with survey data.
Findings – First, this study reveals consumers’ community participation on Facebook has directly
positive and significant effects on brand trust and community identification. Second, this research
confirms that brand trust has directly positive and significant effects on community identification.
Third, this study found that brand trust and community identification play a mediating role between
Facebook participation and consumer citizenship behaviors.
Research limitations/implications – The sample comprised primarily young adults, which may
not be completely generalizable to the population at large. This study examined a specific form of
virtual community, Facebook, so the results cannot be ascribed to other formats of brand community.
Originality/value – The issue of consumer’ voluntary behavior on social networking sites has
become more and more important. This study proposed an exclusive model of the process by which
the paper can consider consumers’ voluntary behaviors on Facebook from participation to consumer
citizenship behavior toward the brand. This finding can be viewed as pioneering, setting a benchmark
for further research.
Keywords Trust, Identification, Community participation, Citizenship behaviors,
Facebook community
Paper type Research paper
EuroMed Journal of Business
Vol. 9 No. 3, 2014
pp. 252-267
r Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1450-2194
DOI 10.1108/EMJB-12-2013-0057
1. Introduction
Currently, social networks have become extremely popular; they are defined as
networks of friends for social or professional interactions (Trusov et al., 2009). Social
networking is considered a tool that supports both electronic marketing and viral
marketing and enables the process of building connections to a network or social circle
(Zarella, 2010). Social networking enables connections with a network of people who
share common interests or goals (Hsu, 2012) and affords companies the possibility of
mapping social connections to expand relationships and spread information (Boyd and
Ellison, 2007; Cross and Parker, 2004). Of all the social networks, Facebook is the most
popular and claims to have attracted more than 751 million active monthly users
(as of March 2013) since starting in February 2004 (www.facebook.com); Facebook has
become the top social networking site based on number of users and volume of access
or use (Hsu, 2012).
Facebook has changed consumer behavior; for example, consumers dedicate almost
one-third of their time to social networking (Lang, 2010) and half of these active users
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log on every day. Thus, companies and brand players find it necessary to maintain
a brand presence somewhere on Facebook. Therefore, the Facebook fan page as a
brand community on Facebook was established, where fans and consumers can
communicate and interact with companies or brands using the “Like” or “Comment”
option. According to Hsu (2012), the Facebook community has the following
characteristics: shares company, product, or service information; communicates and
shares marketing messages; expands networks; and receives feedback updates, which
provide members with as many opportunities as possible to become involved and
participate in the community.
Community participation is an important issue that influences participants’
behaviors (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010; Ouwersloot and Odekerken-Schröder, 2008;
Royo-Vela and Casamassima, 2011). However, in previous studies, the consequence of
participation has usually been discussed in terms of loyalty (e.g. Casalo et al., 2007);
less mentioned is the specific behavioral form, such as voluntary consumer behaviors
that will benefit the brand (i.e. consumer citizenship behaviors). Actually, when
a member is willing to participate, regardless of passive or active mode, in a Facebook
community, it is a kind of voluntary consumer behavior. Thus, would voluntary
behavior in participation in a Facebook community affect a consumer’s citizenship
behavior and how? This question signals the gap that this study attempts to close.
The objectives of the current empirical study are three: first, to enhance and
examine the knowledge and the relationships among Facebook participants, brand
trust, community identification, and consumer citizenship behaviors. It hypothesizes
that the more members participate in a Facebook brand community, the more likely
they are to trust this brand and/or identify as a community member, and then to
exhibit consumer citizenship behaviors that benefit the brand; second, to examine the
mediating effects of brand trust and community identification; third, to propose an
model of the process by which we can consider consumers’ voluntary behaviors on
Facebook from participation to consumer citizenship behaviors toward the brand.
This research begins by developing a framework to describe and examine the
relationship among Facebook participants, brand trust, community identification, and
consumer citizenship behaviors. Furthermore, it tests the mediating effects of brand
trust and community identification on the relationship between Facebook participation
and consumer citizenship behaviors. The model and hypotheses in this study employ
structural equation modeling (SEM) with survey data. Finally, this paper concludes
with a discussion of the marketing significance, theoretical and practical implications,
limitations, and suggestions for future research.
2. Literature and hypotheses development
2.1 Facebook participation and trust
Facebook community participation can be discussed in terms of interacting and
cooperating with community elements and participating in joint activities (Algesheimer
et al., 2005; Matzler et al., 2011). Regarding the community element, according to
McAlexander et al. (2002), “a community is made up of its entities and the relationships
among them” (p. 38). That is, a Facebook community comprises entities (i.e. the brand,
products, customers, and the company). Therefore, community participation can be
considered the interactions and communications among elements of a brand community.
Meanwhile, Facebook fans control their participation level because of the voluntary
nature of the brand community. Members participate for free and there are no clear
requirements for their contributions to ongoing communication. Some members in the
Consumer
behavior on
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254
Facebook community get involved with more active communication, while others focus
on watching the continuing communication around shared brand interests (Cothrel and
Williams, 1999; Ridings et al., 2002). When a customer logs on to a Facebook community
to become a member and comments, shares experiences, interacts with marketers,
asks questions about the brand or product, or answers comments, that member is
participating in the community’s activities. During these interactions, meaningful
experiences, useful information, and other valuable resources are being shared among
members so that ties are strengthened in such communities (Laroche et al., 2013) and
increase individual willingness to participate in the communities.
According to Chaudhuri and Holbrook (2001), brand trust is “the willingness of the
average consumer to rely on the ability of the brand to perform its stated function”
(p. 82). In a situation of uncertainty, brand trust plays an important role in reducing
uncertainty. A trusted brand makes consumers feel comfortable (Chiu et al., 2010;
Doney and Cannon, 1997; Gefen et al., 2003; Moorman et al., 1992; Pavlou et al., 2007).
Holmes (1991) argued that repeated interaction and maintaining long-term
relationships are key factors in building trust. Enhancing relationships with
customers and elements of the brand community can enhance relationships and
increase contacts between the brand and the customers so that brand trust is
influenced positively (Laroche et al., 2013). Kang et al. (2014) also approved that active
participation on Facebook fan pages has a positive influence on brand trust. Therefore,
in terms of the degree to which Facebook members frequently participate and interact
within the brand community, trust in the brand makes members feel more comfortable.
Based on the above discussion, the following hypothesis is put forward:
H1. The greater the level of participation in a Facebook brand community, the more
likely it is that members will trust the brand.
2.2 Facebook participation and identification
Facebook community participation can be discussed in terms of acting in ways that
endorse the community and enhance its value for members and others (Algesheimer
et al., 2005; Matzler et al., 2011). Community member participation is commonly
classified into two different modes: passive (participation) and active (interaction)
(Kozinets, 1999; Qu and Lee, 2011; Wang and Fesenmaier, 2004). Prior research has
suggested that even passive participation, which includes lurking, also relates to
members’ sense of identification (Arnett et al., 2003). Some academics have suggested
that active lurking, which means actively participating but without interacting,
enables members to better evaluate online communications and develop a sense of
identification (Bhattacharya and Sen, 2003; Carlson et al., 2008). Moreover, several
academics, such as Bergami and Bagozzi (2000), Gruen et al. (2000), and McWilliam
(2000), have suggested that if members become psychologically attached to the
community, they are more likely to behave in accordance with community values.
According to Lembke and Wilson (1998), community identification exists when
a member feels, thinks, and behaves like a member of the community, which means
that the member distinguishes a community identity from a self-identity. Some
researchers have proposed that community identification involves both cognitive
self-categorization and affective commitment (e.g. Algesheimer et al., 2005). Cognitive
self-categorization occurs through consumers’ comparison of their own defining
characteristics to those that define the community (Bergami and Bagozzi, 2000).
Affective commitment takes this process a step further into feelings of attachment and
belongingness (Algesheimer et al., 2005; McAlexander et al., 2002). Consumers who
engage in a variety of social activities have direct access to other members and can
mediate the flow of resources in the community. Thus, participation in brand
community activities makes them more like insiders (Tsai and Pai, 2012). Therefore,
once an individual participates in a Facebook community and becomes a fan of a brand
page, no matter whether in passive or active mode, he or she will be affected by the
community values and gradually develop identification with this brand community.
Consolidating the theoretical arguments reviewed so far, we hypothesize that:
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H2. The greater the level of participation in a Facebook brand community, the
greater the brand community identification.
Analysis of the relationship between trust and identification is not found in the extant
literature. However, based on the above discussions about brand trust and community
identification, we have proposed that a member who trusts and relies on
a brand will also be emotionally attached and identify as a part of the brand
community. That is, a positive relationship exists between brand trust and community
identification. Thus:
H3. The higher the level of trust toward a brand, the greater the brand community
identification.
2.3 Consumer citizenship behaviors
Customer citizenship behaviors comprise voluntary customer behaviors that benefit the
firm and go beyond customer role expectations (Gruen, 1995). Customers perform
citizenship behaviors at their sole discretion (Bettencourt, 1997; Groth, 2005) and
customer citizenship behaviors provide extraordinary value to the firm. The literature
suggests various forms of customer citizenship behaviors, such as positive
word-of-mouth (WOM) communication, constructive involvement in suggesting
service improvements, and other polite and courteous behaviors (Bettencourt, 1997;
Rosenbaum and Massiah, 2007). Based on the concept of organizational citizenship
behavior (Bateman and Organ, 1983), consumers are more likely to express their support
for an organization (e.g. participate in a brand community) by engaging in in-role
behaviors like purchasing products from the company (Ahearne et al., 2005) and
extra-role behaviors, such as making recommendations to others and engaging in
positive WOM (Anderson et al., 2004; Bettencourt, 1997). In most recent researches,
customer citizenship behaviors have been discussed and applied in the online behavior
context, e.g. Anaza and Zhao (2013) and Anaza (2014).
Social exchange theory (Blau, 1964) suggests that the association between the
consumer and organization can be seen as social exchanges in which consumers give
back a positive gain (e.g. identity or experience) from a sense of personal obligation or
gratitude by providing positive feedback to the organization (Lii and Lee, 2012). In the
context of the online community (e.g. a Facebook community), social exchange theory
can also be applied to demonstrate the relationships between members and other
parties. These relationships are seen as exchanges in which a receiver reciprocates
a positive personal effect by providing positive outcomes to the other party, such as
citizenship behaviors (Chen et al., 2010). When consumers participate and interact
within a Facebook community, they may gain more information by sharing or
psychologically supporting and gradually identify themselves as part of this
Consumer
behavior on
Facebook
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256
community; they will be more likely to respond with reciprocal behavior that may
benefit the community. Citizenship behaviors may be one type of benefit.
In addition, Blau (1964) pointed out that social exchange is based on the expectation
of trust and reciprocation, as the exact nature of the return is left unspecified. Morgan
and Hunt (1994) theorized that trust is the key mediating variable between the
antecedents and consequences of developing a long-term customer relationship.
Consumers’ willingness to exhibit citizenship behavior to a brand presents their intent to
maintain a relationship with the brand. Thus, when consumers participate in a Facebook
community, they may gain more information or become familiar with the brand and
gradually trust the brand; therefore, they are more likely to engage in reciprocal behavior
that may benefit the brand. Thus, the following hypotheses are proposed:
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H4. The greater the brand trust, the more likely it is that consumers will exhibit
in-role and extra-role behaviors that support the community.
H5. The greater the community identification, the more likely it is that consumers
will exhibit in-role and extra-role behaviors that support the company.
The integrated theoretical framework as represented by H1H5 is shown in Figure 1.
3. Research method
3.1 Sample
To date, social network users are more concentrated in Asia. Currently, almost
90 percent of Asian brands use social networks as a marketing platform, and
75 percent of these brands have developed social networking strategies that have been
in use for longer than a year (Pon and Wang, 2012). Therefore, the data used to examine
the hypotheses were collected in Taiwan from Facebook community members.
As Zhao (2011) suggested, Facebook communities include four forms: public celebrity
communities, individual sharing communities, online game or app software
communities, and company/brand communities. In the top 100 Taiwanese
Facebook communities in 2011, company/brand communities (e.g. seven-Eleven,
Starbucks, Rakuten Ichiba Taiwan) had a 33 percent share (Zhao and Yang, 2011). The
purpose of this research was to explore whether Facebook participation leads to
citizenship behaviors toward the brand; thus, only the community for companies/
brands was considered in this study. Moreover, the sample of respondents was
obtained based on the following qualification: Respondents should have been
registered and active in at least one Facebook brand community for longer than three
H4a
Trust
H1
In-role
behavior
H4b
Participation
H3
H5a
H2
Figure 1.
The conceptual model
Identification
Ex-role
behavior
H5b
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months. According to Chin and Newsted (1999), a sample size of 150-200 is required to
attain reliable coefficient values using partial least squares (PLS) analysis (Hur et al.,
2011). Hair et al. (2010) suggested that the ratio of observations to the independent
variable should not fall below 5 (5:1), although the preferred ratio is 10 respondents for
each independent variable (minimum ratio of observation to variables is 10:1) (Yap
et al., 2012). Hence, bearing in mind the 15 variables to be used in SEM, this study
required a minimum sample size of 150 respondents.
3.2 Data collection method
Data were collected by a structured questionnaire developed for the research and
adapted from those used in previous studies. As the target population in this study
was members of the Facebook brand community, the questionnaire was distributed
through several posts on Facebook and PTT. PTT is the local social networking
website in Taiwan with the largest scales and longest history. It provides a platform
for discussing Facebook (like the “Facebook forum”) and distributes virtual
questionnaires. Gathering data through this site can be more efficient than just
gathering data through Facebook. We asked participants to keep in mind a company/
brand Facebook community in which they were members and that they followed while
answering the questions. Participants were guaranteed confidentiality and anonymity
in relation to their returned questionnaires. Self-administered questionnaires with the
assistance of a support letter were used to ensure a good response rate and reduce
non-sampling bias in the survey process. An effort was made to randomize data
collection at different times of the day and week. At the end of the data collection
period, 232 questionnaires were collected with 26 missing values. That is, 206 fully
completed questionnaires were used for the data analysis.
3.3 Measurement of variables
The survey questionnaire was developed by adapting measures from a variety of
studies. Participation in Facebook was measured through three items adapted from
Qu and Lee (2011) and Tsai and Pai (2012). To measure brand trust, we used the threeitem scale proposed by Laroche et al. (2013), and to measure community identification,
we used the three-item scale proposed by Bergami and Bagozzi (2000) and Tsai and
Pai (2012). The construct of in-role behavior consisted of three items adapted from
Putrevu and Lord (1994). The measures for the extra-role behavior construct consisted
of three items adapted from de Matos et al. (2009). All items for assessing the
constructs employed a seven-point Likert scale indicating the extent of agreement or
disagreement with the item. The items for each construct and their measurement
scales are presented in Table I.
3.4 Data analysis
This study used PLS to test the hypotheses and analyze the data. The PLS algorithm
allows each indicator to vary in terms of how much it contributes to the composite
score of the latent variable, instead of assuming equal weight for all indicators of a
scale (Chin et al., 2003; Hur et al., 2011). According to Anderson and Swaminathan
(2011), PLS path modeling is commonly used in marketing (Henning-Thurau et al.,
2007), international business (Henseler et al., 2009), and information systems
(Al-Gahtani et al., 2007; Burton-Jones and Hubona, 2006) studies, necessitating
simultaneous estimation of the factor loadings of the measurement model and path
coefficients of the structural model. This study used PLS rather than other SEM
Consumer
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258
Construct
Measurement items
Participation in
Facebook (Par)
I often watch the FB page activities
I actively participate in the FB activities
I frequently interact with other FB members
My brand gives me everything that I expect
out of the product
I rely on my brand
My brand never disappoints me
I feel strong ties to this community
I see myself as a part of this community
I feel emotionally attached to this community
It is very possible that I will buy the brand
I will consider buying the brand the next time
I need this product
I will try this brand
I will recommend this brand to my relatives
and friends
I will tell my relatives and friends about the
good experience with this brand
I am willing to join the activity hold by the
brand in the future
Brand trust (Trust)
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Community
identification (CI)
In-role behavior (In)
Ex-role behavior (Ex)
Table I.
Constructs and their
measurement items
Loading
a
CR
AVE
0.829
0.838
0.810
0.77
0.87
0.68
0.928
0.927
0.884
0.902
0.921
0.908
0.759
0.90
0.94
0.83
0.90
0.94
0.83
0.72
0.84
0.64
0.68
0.82
0.61
0.832
0.801
0.799
0.871
0.660
methods (i.e. LISREL, AMOS) because the PLS approach places minimal restrictions
on sample size and residual distribution (Hur et al., 2011; Phang et al., 2006).
4. Results
4.1 Demographic profile of respondents
Of the 206 respondents, 46 percent was male while 54 percent was female. In terms of
age, 62 percent was 20-30 years old, and 29 percent was under 20; these two groups
accounted for the largest portion of the sample, followed by those aged 31-40 years
(6 percent). Most of the respondents (45 percent) had been members of the brand
community for one to two years, 28 percent for two years or longer, and 27 percent for
less than one year.
4.2 Measurement model
We used the two-step approach as described by Anderson and Gerbing (1988). We first
assessed reliability and convergent validity as shown in Table I and then discriminant
validity as illustrated in Table II. To examine reliability, Cronbach’s a revealed
that all constructs showed a value above 0.6 (the bar adopted by Bagozzi and Yi, 1988).
Par
Trust
CI
In
Ex
Table II.
Correlation matrix
Mean
SD
Par
Trust
CI
In
Ex
3.26
2.66
3.51
2.93
3.30
1.273
0.933
1.216
1.153
1.282
0.83
0.39
0.54
0.45
0.58
0.91
0.55
0.62
0.65
0.91
0.59
0.73
0.80
0.71
0.78
Note: Diagonals represent the square root of the average variance extracted while the other entries
represent the correlations
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To test for convergent validity, composite reliability (CR), factor loading, and average
variance extracted (AVE) were examined. The measures are acceptable if an individual
item loading is 40.7, CR exceeds 0.7, and AVE is 40.5 (Gefen et al., 2000).
To examine the discriminant validity of the constructs, this study used the Fornell
and Lacker (1981) criterion whereby the average variance shared between each
construct and its measures should be greater than the variance shared between
the construct and other constructs. As shown in Table II, the correlations for each
construct are less than the square root of AVE for the indicators measuring that
construct, indicating adequate discriminant validity.
Consumer
behavior on
Facebook
259
4.3 Structural model
The explanatory power of the structural model is evaluated by looking at the R2
values. From Figure 2, the R2 values range from 0.154 to 0.625, which suggests that
the modeled variables explain 15.4 to 62.5 percent of the variance of the respective
dependent variables.
From Figure 2, Facebook participation exerts a significant and positive influence on
both brand trust (H1, b ¼ 0.393, po0.001) and community identification (H2,
b ¼ 0.383, po0.001). Therefore, H1 and H2 are both supported. The model predicted
the path from brand trust to community identification (H3) and shows a significant
and positive relationship between them (b ¼ 0.402, po0.001). Thus, H3 gains
supported. In addition, the paths from brand trust have a significant and positive
influence on both in-role behavior (H4a, b ¼ 0.418, po0.001) and extra-role behavior
(H4b, b ¼ 0.361, po0.001). Meanwhile, the paths from community identification have
a significant and positive influence on both in-role behavior (H5a, b ¼ 0.358, po0.001)
and extra-role behavior (H5b, b ¼ 0.532, po0.001). Thus, both H4 and H5 are fully
supported.
The seven paths examined in the structural model are summarized in Table III.
The mediating effects of brand trust and community identification were tested.
As seen in Figure 3, the direct path between Facebook participation and in-role and
extra-role behavior are both significant. After introducing brand trust as a mediator,
the indirect path for the effect of participation on in-role behavior is significant and
stronger than the direct path (b ¼ 0.3904b ¼ 0.255). Moreover, the indirect path for
the effect of participation on extra-role behavior is also significant and stronger than
Trust
R 2 =0.154
0.418***
In-role
R 2 =0.468
0.393***
0.358***
Facebook
Participation
0.402***
0.361***
0.383***
Identification
R 2 =0.429
Significance
Note: ***p<0.001
0.532***
Ex-role
R 2 =0.625
Figure 2.
Results of the structural
model analysis
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Table III.
Results of testing
Hypothesized relationship
H1
H2
H3
H4a
H4b
H5a
H5b
Participation-Trust
Participation-Identification
Trust-Identification
Trust-In-role
Trust-Ex-role
Identification-In-role
Identification-Ex-role
Coefficient
T-value
0.393***
0.383***
0.402***
0.418***
0.361***
0.358***
0.532***
3.969
4.319
5.009
5.122
5.083
3.796
7.467
Supported
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Note: *** po0.001
In-role
behavior
0.255***
0.516***
Facebook
Participation
0.390***
0.375***
Figure 3.
The mediating effect
of brand trust
Significance
Brand
Trust
R 2 = 0.434
R 2 = 0.152
0.517***
R 2 = 0.559
Ex-role
behavior
Note: ***p<0.001
the direct path (b ¼ 0.3904b ¼ 0.375). Therefore, in this test, brand trust indicates
a partial mediating effect on Facebook participation and both citizenship behaviors.
The same procedure was repeated to test the mediating effect of community
identification in the relationship between Facebook participation and both in-role and
extra-role behavior. The results differ slightly. As seen in Figure 4, the direct path
between Facebook participation and in-role behavior is insignificant. After introducing
community identification as a mediator, the indirect path for the effect of participation
on in-role behavior is significant. This result suggests that community identification
has a fully mediating effect on participation and in-role behavior. Nevertheless,
regarding the relationship between participation and extra-role behavior, the indirect
path for the effect of participation on extra-role behavior is significant and stronger
than the direct path (b ¼ 0.5414b ¼ 0.269). Thus, community identification indicates
a partial mediating effect on Facebook participation and extra-role behavior.
5. Discussions and conclusions
The purpose of this study was to demonstrate consumers’ voluntary behaviors on
Facebook through exploring how members’ community participation affects consumer
citizenship behaviors toward the brand. The study also provided further insight
into the mediating effect by considering brand trust and community identification.
The study showed that members’ voluntary participation on Facebook can enhance
In-role
behavior
0.192
0.485***
Facebook
Participation
0.541***
Community
Identification
0.592***
R 2 = 0.373
R 2 = 0.293
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Insignificance
261
R 2 = 0.596
0.269***
Significance
Consumer
behavior on
Facebook
Ex-role
behavior
Note: ***p<0.001
brand trust, community identification, and citizenship behaviors. The results offer
important contributions and implications for both marketing academics and
practitioners.
5.1 Theoretical implications
First, this study reveals that consumers’ community participation on Facebook has
directly positive and significant effects on brand trust and community identification.
These findings demonstrate that the crucial purpose of Facebook brand communities
is to bring people with certain similar characteristics together and to facilitate
communication among them. This is consistent with Laroche et al.’s (2013) research on
the social media-based brand community-trust relationship and the research on
community participation-identification relationship from Qu and Lee (2011) and Tsai
and Pai (2012).
Second, this research confirms that brand trust has directly positive and significant
effects on community identification. This relationship has not been described in
previous literature and this finding can be viewed as pioneering, setting a benchmark
for further research. In addition, almost all the previous literature has examined the
relationship between community participation and identification only in a direct path
(e.g. Qu and Lee, 2011; Tsai and Pai, 2012); however, this study considered brand trust
as a mediator between Facebook community participation and community
identification and verified its mediation effects. The results showed that when a
participant in a brand community trusts the brand, the trust facilitates the participant
in identifying himself or herself as part of this brand community. This is also seen as
pioneering and can provide further paths of inquiry for future researchers. Above two
discussions achieved the first objective of this research.
Third, this study found that brand trust and community identification play a
mediating role between Facebook participation and consumer citizenship behaviors.
This reached the second objective of this research. The role of brand trust and
community identification as an antecedent of citizenship behavior has seldom been
addressed (e.g. Lii et al., 2013; Lii and Lee, 2012). This study suggested that the
mediation effect of brand trust is similar to both citizenship behaviors, but differs
depending on the type of citizenship behavior. Specifically, community identification
mediates fully between community participation and in-role behavior, whereas it
Figure 4.
The mediating
effect of community
identification
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262
partially mediates between participation and extra-role behavior. One possible reason
for this is that, in this study, in-role behavior was represented by buying products or
brands, which is related to economic behavior. Normally, consumers’ behaviors will be
considered more when they involve “money.” Therefore, after community participation,
having community identification is like double-checking for consumers to present their
appropriate in-role behaviors.
Fourth, current researches (e.g. Chen et al., 2012; Gironda and Korgaonkar, 2014;
Hoadley et al., 2010; Ko, 2013; Pate and Adams, 2013; Velleghem et al., 2012) have
indicated that the issue of consumer’ voluntary behavior on social networking sites has
become more and more important. This study proposed an exclusive model of the
process by which we can consider consumers’ voluntary behaviors on Facebook from
participation to consumer citizenship behaviors toward the brand. We tested and
validated this model and found support for the hypotheses in the context of a social
media-based brand community. Thus, the greater the brand trust, the more likely it is
that consumers exhibit both in-role and extra-role behaviors that support the
community. In addition, the greater the community identification, the more likely it is
that consumers exhibit both in-role and extra-role behaviors that support the company.
This finding satisfied the third objective of this research and can be viewed as
pioneering, setting a benchmark for further research.
5.2 Managerial implications
The findings in this study have practical implications for marketing and consumer
behavior practices. First, it is clear that consumer participation in a Facebook brand
community has the potential to exert a significant positive influence on brand trust
and community identification. Accordingly, managers and e-marketers who recognize
the essential role of Facebook should make every effort to engage in active
management of their brand community on Facebook.
Second, the study suggests new insights for practitioners to enhance their customerbrand relationship and related consumer voluntary behaviors. This helps marketing
managers identify brand trust as influential on both in-role and extra-role behaviors.
Managers should focus on maintaining brand commitment and undertake careful
communication management to ensure that all available information is trustworthy.
In addition, community identification is another powerful influence on consumer
citizenship behavior, particularly in that the behavior is related to economic intention
(e.g. purchasing products or brands). Brand community managers should help
members develop an emotional bond with the brand community. Sustained efforts
to give these members pleasure and enjoyment and to ensure that they have
a close attachment to the fan page will increase their identification with the brand
community.
Third, this study helps practitioners in their involvement with the Facebook
community. The popularity of Facebook and its vast potential reach, being in no fixed
location and carrying a low cost, motivates marketers to try to use it in different ways.
The model and findings in this study confirm that by building a Facebook community,
and by strengthening brand trust and community identification, marketers can
increase consumers’ in-role and extra-role behaviors.
5.3 Limitations and future research
The following limitations of this study should be considered. When addressing these
limitations, we also suggest directions for future research. First, this study adopted
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brand trust and community identification as antecedents of consumer citizenship
behaviors. Other relational variables, such as consumer commitment, could also
be considered and examined as antecedents. Second, our sample comprised
primarily young adults (under 30 years old); hence, their responses may not be
completely generalizable to the population at large. Finally, this study examined
a specific form of virtual community, Facebook, so the results cannot be ascribed to
other formats of brand community. Future researchers can explore consumer
behaviors and brand community with regard to different types of social media with
specific brand settings.
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About the author
Dr Ching-Wei Ho, PhD is an Assistant Professor at the Feng Chia University. His research
interests focus on branding, retailing marketing, and service marketing. His research has
contributed to academic journals and conference proceedings. Dr Ching-Wei Ho can be contacted
at: chingwei1121@yahoo.com.tw
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