The influence of corporate social responsibility on students' emotional appeal in the HEIs: The mediating effect of reputation and corporate image

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to study the influence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) over higher education institutions' (HEIs) students' emotional appeal and the effect of two mediating variables, corporate image, and reputation. A sample of 211 students surveyed was obtained, and the study was conducted using partial least squares path modeling (PLS‐SEM) technique. The results showed that emotional appeal is influenced by corporate reputation, corporate image, and CSR practices. These effects are not only direct and positive but significant indirect effects are also obtained, which allow the positive effects of CSR to be heightened. This paper contributes to the literature on CSR considering mediating effects of corporative image and reputation in the relationship between CSR and emotional appeal. The findings provide important implications for theory and practice, indicating consistent strategies for competitive advantage in HEIs by achieving stakeholder engagement and new lines of research in terms of emotional marketing.

Exploring the effect of professionalization, risk-taking and technological innovation on business performance

“…We have chosen PLS-SEM to run our model because the model is formed by four composity type A [76]. In addition, PLS-SEM is an ideal technique when the relationships analysed are very complex, especially if there are mediating effects [77,78], it does not require a very large sample size and the data does not have to be strictly standardised [79].…”

A conceptual framework for higher education student loyalty from the green marketing perspective

“…Empirically, reputation was recognised as one of the mediators in predicting student loyalty in higher education. According to Aledo-Ruiz et al. (2021), reputation mediates the relationship between the corporate social responsibility of a higher education institution and the emotional appeal of its students.…”

“…Empirically, reputation was recognised as one of the mediators in predicting student loyalty in higher education. According to Aledo-Ruiz et al (2021), reputation mediates the relationship between the corporate social responsibility of a higher education institution and the emotional appeal of its students. In addition, Rasoolimanesh et al (2021) also reported that brand reputation of a higher education institution acts as a mediator between corporate social responsibility and the institution's brand loyalty.…”

A Capability Framework for Analyzing Corporate Social Responsibility Performance

“…There are many ways that business operation has affected the environment, society, and shareholders (Matten et al, 2020). Corporate reputation can be measured as the main intangible asset of a company which is halting from the companies past positive communications with shareholders (Aledo-Ruiz et al, 2022;Argenti & Druckenmiller, 2004). Beside reputation, corporate image is also an imperative intangible asset that represent a respected component in increasing the reputation in the management of universities (Maduro et al, 2018).…”

“…Building a corporate image by communicating with various shareholders and stakeholders can be achieved through effective CSR activities. CSR activities are key devices to ensure proper shareholder communication, warrant better corporate transparency and a higher level of engagement with different shareholders (Aledo-Ruiz et al, 2022;Golob & Bartlett, 2007). Several researchers have discussed that positive image and satisfaction of customers are the results of CSR (Ali et al, 2020;Mulki & Jaramillo, 2011).…”