The COVID-19 pandemic undesirably affected the hospitality industry, and therefore, preventive measures have been advocated as crucial when revitalizing or rejuvenating the industry. This study investigated the interplay of predicting role of COVID-19 preventive measures, perceived brand ethicality, and brand legitimacy in the hospitality industry in Tanzania during the period of reviving the industry. Furthermore, the study examines the mediating role of perceived brand ethicality in the relationship between COVID-19 preventive measures and brand legitimacy. Data were collected from a total of 405 customers of hospitality organizations recruited via an on-site survey. Data analyses were done using structural equation modeling. Overall, the results have shown that COVID-19 preventive measures had a direct positive effect on brand legitimacy. Additionally, COVID-19 preventive measures could enhance brand legitimacy indirectly via perceived brand ethicality. The study has significant implications for different hospitality organizations and operators in Tanzania and other countries during post the COVID-19 period.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) towards university brand legitimacy (UBRL) with the mediation effect of university brand perceived ethicality in the higher education sector in Tanzania.
Design/methodology/approach
The study collected data from 399 employees of two universities through a cross-sectional survey research design. The data were analyzed using structural equation modelling.
Findings
The findings of this study suggest that internal CSR influences UBRL when mediated with university brand perceived ethicality.
Research limitations/implications
A cross-sectional survey research involving self-administered questionnaire was used. Therefore, the generalization of the findings should be made with caution.
Practical implications
Higher education institutions should invest in ethical management practices that consider internal CSR to ensure employees as legitimacy-granting constituents motivated to grant legitimacy to the university brand.
Originality/value
This study is among initial endeavors to examine internal CSR as a driver of UBRL in the higher education domain context.
Empirical evidence confirms that brand loyalty is broadly understood in the context of positive side i.e. supportive loyalty compared to negative side i.e. oppositional loyalty. However, theoretically positive (supportive) loyalty cannot be explained exclusively without considering negative (oppositional) loyalty. This study, therefore, examines brand loyalty using a triadic approach combining both negative and positive loyalty in the cycle of love and hate relationship. Specifically, the study examined the influence of fan and brand community identification on oppositional brand loyalty towards sponsors of a rival team in sports industry. A survey cross-sectional research design was adopted, through collecting data using semi-structured questionnaire from 228 highly identified fans of two giant sports teams in Tanzania namely Simba Sports Club and Young Africans Sports Club. The collected data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), and findings revealed that fan and brand community identification have a strong positive significant influence on oppositional brand loyalty towards sponsors of a rival team when mediated with schadenfreude. Therefore, business firms should take precautions when embarking on sponsorship of highly competing sports teams. Finally, this study adopted a quantitative approach, hence further studies that adopt a qualitative approach is recommended to get a naturalistic picture of subject under the study. Additionally, a comparative study is recommended to compare level of resistance loyalty exhibited by fans of each team.
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