The relationship between risk aversion, brand trust, brand affect and loyalty

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship among risk aversion, brand trust, brand affect, attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty for low involvement day-to-day use of personal care products. Design/methodology/approach To achieve the above-stated objective, a theoretical model was tested using structural equation modeling. Before undertaking the analysis, preliminary analysis techniques such as the common method bias social desirability bias reliability and validity analysis were also assessed. Findings The results indicate that, for low involvement products, risk adverse consumers do not purchase a brand based only on trust. Risk aversion is also positively associated with attitudinal loyalty. When it comes to the relationship between brand trust and brand affect, it has been concluded that brand trust has had an important impact on brand affect. In this study, it has been found that attitudinal loyalty has a positive and strong impact on behavioral loyalty. This paper explains that due to the lack of trust, certain risk adverse customers are sticking with a particular brand. Originality/value Most of the brand loyalty research has been performed on high involvement products, whereas very limited research is available on low involvement day-to-day use products (i.e. personal care products), in particular where the consumption period of the product is less than a month. This kind of research is very rare, and this study has been done to fill this gap using rigorous data analysis.