Consumers Of Higher Education Research Articles

Modelling Online Shopping Behaviour Patterns among Higher Education Consumers: A Structural Equation Modelling (SEM-AMOS) Approach

Online shopping is a phenomenon that is growing rapidly all over the world. Since 2020, Malaysian consumers have shifted their preference towards online shopping to fulfill their daily needs compared to shopping in a traditional store. Due to this reason, it is vital to identify the characteristics that affect consumers' online shopping behavior between various online websites for business owners to improve their online marketplace. However, only a few studies on online shopping behavior patterns among consumers across different online shopping platforms have been conducted in Malaysia. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify the factors influencing online shopping behavior patterns among Malaysian consumers. The factors involved were web characteristics, external stimulus, affection, and cognition. Data was collected using an online questionnaire, and a cross-sectional research design was used for this study. SPSS version 26.0 and AMOS version 21.0 were used to analyze the data gathered. A total of 371 students and staff were selected randomly from Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) in Malaysia. The results show that the best online shopping platform in Malaysia that is preferred by respondents is Shopee. Only two constructs were statistically significant for online shopping behavior, web characteristics, and cognition. However, the direct effect of external stimulus and affection is not statistically significant. In conclusion, e-businesses should enhance the functionality, usability, and appearance of their websites. Effectively enhancing consumers' perceptions of online shopping could potentially have a positive influence on both their purchase intent and behavior.

Exploring the Consequences of Right-to-Know in Teaching from the Undergraduate Chinese Student’s Perspectives

Student’s Right-to-Know (SRK) in teaching includes student’s rights to know about the learning objectives, processes, procedures, university facilities and services, and educational and ethical requirements of the higher education institutes. However, as far as the review of the associated studies, Chinese undergraduate students’ perceptions of the consequences of SRK in teaching and its importance have yet to be well explored. Therefore,this qualitative (phenomenological study) aimed to investigate the Chinese undergraduate ’students’perceptions of the educational, social, and individual consequences recognition of the SRK by the universities in China. The informants (25 undergraduate students) were selected through purposive sampling, and the data were collected through interviews with the informants. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using available, selective, and axial theme analyses. Findings revealed that the recognition of SRK in teaching is accompanied by four main themes: educational, social and political, administrative, and individual consequences, each consisting of several sub-themes. Findings have theoretical and practical implications on consumers of higher education, including university staff, teachers, and students.
 
 Received: 10 February 2023 / Accepted: 17 April 2023 / Published: 5 May 2023

Evaluating Demand for Full-Time Enrollment in Public Higher Education

There is distinct competition for full-time student enrollment in higher education. With the wide availability of online degrees and course offerings, students can consider multiple options as consumers of higher education. With increased competition in higher education, reaching prospective undergraduate students highlights the importance of market segmentation as a vital step toward increasing full-time enrollment. A critical step to attracting potential undergraduate students requires a deeper understanding of student segment populations. The purpose of this study is to investigate how distinct student segments and demand factors influence higher education enrollment within public higher education institutions. The study examined three types of undergraduate student segments: traditional, non-traditional, and transfer students to evaluate how online course modalities as well as major fields of study influence student demand for full-time enrollment. Historical and publicly available secondary data were examined for the academic years 2014-2015 through 2018-2019 to describe relationships between total full-time enrollment (dependent) with online course enrollment and major fields of study (independent) variables. Administrators in public higher education institutions will be able to use the findings from this study for the development of an enrollment framework focusing on student segmentation strategies.

Analysis of the Effects of Services, Prices, Trust towards Higher Education Consumers’ Loyalty

This study aims to determine the Effect of Service Quality, Price and Trust on Consumer Loyalty. The study was conducted on 336 active students in a vocational tertiary education. Data was obtained by using a questionnaire and interviews. Research data were analyzed by using Path Analysis and the calculation uses SPSS ver.25. The results of the research showed that there is 1) a direct effect of Service Quality on loyalty; 2) a direct effect of price on loyalty, 3) a direct influence of Trust on Loyalty; 4) a direct influence of Quality on Trust; 5) a direct influence of Price on Trust and 6) a simultaneous influence of quality, Price and Trust on Loyalty. The results of this study indicates that building consumer’s loyalty to higher education can be done by improving the quality of service, setting the right price and increasing trust both partially and simultaneously.

What do you see and what do you recall?: Using eye tracking to understand product placement

Since 1982, when one of the most successful product placements appeared in the movie ET, marketers have continued adopting this strategy in various media channels. Among those, research studies indicated that product placements in situation comedies (Sitcoms) are the most effective. This study aims to examine five forms of product placement: (1) product movement, (2) plot integration, (3) product tie-in, (4) sponsorship, and (5) graphics, which are the most effective, in terms of brand recognition and brand recall. The 3.18-minute sitcom with motorcycle placement was shown to a total of 65 participants; daily motorcycle riders and office workers. An eye tracking device was used while participants watched the sitcom. Following this, in-depth interviews were conducted with each participant. The results showed that product movement was the most effective form leading to brand recognition in lower-level education consumers, whereas plot integration is the most effective form leading to brand recognition in higher education consumers. In both groups, graphics were the least effective form leading to brand recognition. Furthermore, none of the five forms successfully led to brand recall. The key implication of this study showed that applying different forms of product placement for the different consumer education levels was the way forward. Plot integration may not always be the most effective for product placement as it is not believed, dependent on the group of consumers and media type. Plot integration in sitcom should be used with the awareness that it can irritate consumers and ultimately lead consumers to brand rejection.

The Healthy Eater’s Idea and Related Behavior of a Healthy Diet—A Case Study with Kombucha Drinkers

Consumers’ demand for ‘healthy’ food is growing at a fast pace. Beverages are one of the fastest-growing segments in the healthy food market. Kombucha is a product with a rapid market growth and is considered a ‘healthy beverage’. Kombucha drinkers (n = 296) in the contiguous United States (U.S.) were targeted to investigate differences in the various consumer segments regarding the healthy eater’s behavior, namely—(1) healthy diet stage-of-change attitudes, (2) healthy eating criteria, and (3) label information usage. An online survey questionnaire was used as a data collection tool. The data were analyzed via chi-square tests and multiple correspondence analysis (MCA). The majority of kombucha consumers were health-conscious and kombucha fitted into their view of a healthy diet. The female, older, western U.S. residents, and higher-educated consumers were more likely to take action and maintain a healthier diet. Healthy eaters’ idea of a healthy diet was very similar to that of the general population. Kombucha consumers focused mainly on sugar/calories and natural/organic ingredients. Additional investigations to expand the understanding of the healthy eater’s behavior with actual kombucha samples are needed in the future.

An investigation of the push–pull factors influencing student selection of higher education: The case of Arabian Gulf students in theUK

The internationalization of students in tertiary education has increased worldwide for the past 20 years. International students (IS) are considered consumers of Higher Education (HE) in host countries and are often a significant contributor to many countries' economies. This paper explores the push and pull factors that influence international Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) students to select Higher Education in the UK as a preferred destination of choice and the potential implications this may have for the wider international student body. The authors utilized face‐to‐face interviews and purposive sampling of 40 undergraduate students from a university in the UK North West. The sample was nationals from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. NVivo11 software was utilized by the researchers to facilitate data management and analysis. Analysis revealed six main push factors that led those sampled to depart their home country and pursue their university education in the UK. Alternatively, there were 10 pull factors that encouraged GCC students to pursue their university education in the UK. It is imperative that UK Higher Education institutions/universities are cognizant of the push/pull factors that boost GCC international students' intake at their institutions since there is an observable decline in international student numbers in recent years that can negatively impact the said universities and the wider UK economy.

Demographic factors affecting Regular Bottled Water Consumption: Adana Province/Turkey

In Turkey, bottled water market has shown a rapid development since the 1990s. This study is aim to reveal demographic and economic factors affecting on bottled water consumption in Adana. A logistic regression model was used to achieve research goal. The results of the study showed that women consumers, with undergraduate and higher education consumers and individuals with monthly income of 2500 TL are more likely to consume bottled water. However, there is no relationship between age, marital status and household size variables and bottled water consumption. Bottled water companies should take into account to gender, education level and income level in their marketing strategies.

ЦЕННОСТЬ ВЫСШЕГО ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ КАК ФАКТОР СПРОСА

The article highlights the problem of quality of higher education in domestic universities that cannot be solved exclusively by educational institutions, because it requires to change the environment. Consumers of higher education are willing to pay for its value, depending on the career prospects and earnings of graduates. Success in career and earnings for consumers of higher education is determined by their productivity as employees or as entrepreneurs in private business. The effectiveness of University graduates depends on competition in the labor market among employers, competition for consumers and universities competition for the best teachers. Countries with a relatively high share of the public sector also presented low figures of labor productivity due to sluggish competition for skilled labor among firms and low motivation of consumers of higher education to acquire high qualifications. The ability of universities to realize their potential in creating value for consumers depends on the degree of their autonomy from government regulation. Russian universities, which are subject to a heavy burden of state regulation, for this reason may lose in global competition to foreign universities. The increase in the degree of economic freedom has a positive impact on wages in various countries of the world. Freedom from government regulation and control allows universities to make effective decisions that contribute to creating value for consumers at the lowest cost, which positively affects the efficiency of their graduates. The most important resource of universities in the process of production of utility for consumers are highly qualified scientists who are able to create innovations that bring the highest return among other investments. The growth of teachers' salaries is accompanied by the growth of the rating among universities on the quality of higher education. Attractive salary for scientists combined with high requirements for their qualifications in the best universities in the world, allows you to select the best staff for training students and produce the most effective specialists.

Brand Name and Customers' Intention

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of the brand dimension of perception of quality, brand image, and integrated marketing communications towards attitude and subsequent influence on consumer interest in university scope. The study aims to analyze the role of college brand from the perspective of high school students in Indonesia as a developing country. The survey was conducted on 397 students. Data analysis and testing of the integrated model proposed the use of Structural Equation Modeling. The results of the analysis show that there is a brand influence for the dimension of quality perception, brand image, integrated marketing communications towards the interest of the college. The three dimensions of the brand have a positive effect on interest to college. There is an insignificant influence from the perception dimension of quality to interest, while other dimensions have a significant effect on student interest to college. These results provide an overview for the college management to develop the institutional brand strategy because this study uses a sample of high school students as a true college consumer. Empirically, the results of this study indicate that consumers of higher education in Indonesia, i.e. high school students, assess the brand of college, that leads to a positive attitude based on the significance of the brand. Furthermore, there is a positive and significant influence on attitudes toward student interest for college election.

The Erosion of UK Higher Education: “Are Students Our Consumers?”

Given the rapid growth of the higher education sector in UK and the challenges it has faced in the past two decades, the government recognizes that a more concise, economical, and efficient management system for higher education should be established. This system requires all relevant institutions to locate students at the core of higher education services and treat them as consumers of higher education. The government has repeatedly stressed that students spend money to receive education and they must feel that they gain “value for money.” Students are involved in drawing up curriculum standards, quality assessment, and preparation of the syllabus. Such “student-centered” working philosophy, which is characterized by comprehensiveness, specialization and standardization, is deeply embedded in teaching, research, management, and student affairs. The current mainstream of world higher education development is market-based and student-centered. On one hand, the students’ willingness to consume and their actions determine the direction of higher education development. On the other hand, “students as consumers” are slowly eroding the traditional ethos of the higher education system. Module marks become a kind of good that can be bargained for, and the essence of education is slowly changing.

The precarious path of student migrants: education, debt, and transnational migration among Indian youth

ABSTRACTThe drive to internationalise campuses is an important dimension of the globalised neoliberal university, and it is leading to large numbers of students crossing national borders to pursue their education. As key global consumers of higher education, middle-class students from India migrating overseas to study are at the centre of this trend. Drawing from ethnographic research conducted at a public university in New York, this article considers how notions of obligation become critical to these students’ movements, their practices of place-making, and their futures. I use the term educational debts to capture the different forms of indebtedness that not only structure these young people’s educational migration, but also inform the sensibility shaping their negotiations of everyday life as overseas students. Attending specifically to their experiences with work, both the part-time labour they provide on campus and their search for work after they receive their degrees, I argue that educational debts position them precariously in the linkages between global education and labour markets. Elucidating how particular experiences of precarity are produced through the process of educational migration, this article offers insights into the differences that exist among the transnational class formations of Indian high-skilled migrant populations in the neoliberal era.

Book Review The End of College: Creating the Future of Learning and the University of Everywhere, Carey, K. New York, Riverhead Books, 2015

In The End of College, Carey (2015) presents the notion that new modes and cultures of learning couched in social justice will allow many people to, for the first time in their lives, attain higher learning. The author's insights are informed by over twenty-five years of artificial intelligence data. In what Carey refers to as the 'university of everywhere', the future of higher education will be unbridled from formal degree programs. Hints of what the edX movement at Harvard and MIT are doing to revolutionize higher education include public portfolios that present an individual's learning credentials in the new higher education economy. A professor of Education at John's Hopkins University, Carey has served as an education policy analyst at both the state and federal levels. Carey's views on the future of higher education will engage the LIS educator in thought about the future, if not ignite the impetus of radical change.Keywords: Higher Education, Social Justice, MOOCS, LIS education, Online learningThe End of College: Creating the Future of Learning and the University of Everywhere, Carey, K. New York, Riverhead Books, 2015, 269 pages, Nook book $14.99, ISBN 978-101-63459-2.IntroductionIn The End of College, Carey offers readers an engaging account of a proposed paradigm-shift in higher education. To set the stage for his thesis, he provides a brief history of the beginnings of higher education in Europe, and the subsequent establishment of the American university. The author then quickly enters into what we understand about higher education as it has been for the past half century. Carey chronicles what has evolved in the application of artificial intelligence to learning that unwittingly sets the stage for a new type of university; the university of everywhere. The content presents as if it were a biography of higher education woven with predictive views of the future informed by current trends in online education. Written in a style as equally provocative to higher education consumers as it is to higher education professionals, Carey voices what many may fear; driving change fueled by disruptive technologies. Those technologies are the toys and tools engaged by today's youth who are the post-secondary students of the near future.Library and information science (LIS) scholars and educators, although not the first to offer courses online, were among the first in their respective institutions to offer graduate degree programs entirely online (Haigh, 2007). These pioneering actions offered new economic models to institutions of higher education impacted by the decline in the economy in the late twentieth century (Bush & Hunt, 2011; The Economist, 2012). Since then, only an elite few LIS scholars have delved into the world of Massive Open Online Classes (MOOCS) (Stephens & Jones, 2014). Meanwhile, the discipline has been caught up in an identity revolution, better known as the iSchool movement, battling for modernization (Bonnici et al., 2009). Typical of revolutions, entrenched library advocates have planted their heels pushing possible bifurcation of the profession. Meanwhile, the threat imposed by further economic pressures, declining enrollments, and new skills and knowledge have demanded our attention, perhaps stalling our interests in the future of higher education on a long-term scale. Carey's book, The End of College, will reintroduce, if not reinforce the importance of the mode and mechanism for educating the next generation of library and information professionals.As the son of two academics, one a Ph.D. computer scientist at a large public university, and the other holding a doctorate in education, Carey was immersed in traditional academic life throughout his formal years of learning. With an undergraduate degree in political science and a master's degree in public administration, Carey has become one of the most renowned higher education experts in the country (Blue Engine, 2015). …

Four Rights of the Pharmacy Educational Consumer

Professional students and their families invest a significant amount of time and finances to obtain a degree. While education is not a typical consumer good and should not be treated as such, there are certain expectations that colleges and schools should be prepared to meet. This article contrasts academic entitlement issues with 4 fundamental rights underpinning colleges' and schools' fiduciary responsibilities to students. The authors submit that students, in their roles as higher education consumers, have the following rights: (1) to have the opportunity to learn, (2) to learn from faculty members dedicated to best teaching practices, (3) to learn within a curriculum designed to prepare them for the profession, and (4) to have access to resources necessary to succeed.

Improving consumer information for higher education planning

AbstractThis chapter examines the development and implementation of a one‐stop career and college planning tool that leverages existing data sets with newly created data to facilitate good decisions by consumers of higher education on career choice, major and college choice, and finance options. Early indicators point to improved access to information that supports decision making.

International student complaint behaviour: how do East Asian students complain to their university?

The growing acceptance that students can also be viewed as consumers of higher education (HE) has acted as a catalyst for universities to place greater emphasis on issues such as student satisfaction and retention. Indeed, the UK National Student Survey covered 152 institutions in 2009. However, far less attention has been paid to the concept of student complaint behaviour – that is, how students react when they become dissatisfied with their HE institution. Dissatisfied students have a variety of potential responses at their disposal, all of which can prove potentially damaging to the university. The current study considers the attitudes of East Asian students towards the act of complaining about their university. East Asian consumers are traditionally less prepared to voice dissatisfaction than their Western counterparts, and this may be exacerbated when dealing with high‐ranked academic staff. In‐depth interviews, utilising the laddering technique, were conducted with East Asian students at a university in the North East UK with the aim of exploring these attitudes. The findings suggest that whilst East Asian students are generally hesitant to class themselves as consumers of the educational product, this attitude can change rapidly in cases of dissatisfaction when they expect immediate redress. Respondents reported a high level of proactive behaviour in approaching relevant staff with their problems; however this was often done via informal conversations as opposed to formal complaint channels. This study adds to the growing body of literature that considers complaint behaviour in the context of HE, and is of practical value to anyone responsible for international student retention.

PRIVATE UNIVERSITY AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE STRATEGIC ALLIANCES: THE CASE FOR COOPERATION

The competitive environment for educational institutions is changing. In this environment, community colleges and private universities may be ill equipped to achieve their respective missions. This article introduces a concept from for-profit business strategy to higher education planners. The changing competitive environment of higher education has created an opportunity for the development of strategic alliances among organizations that have previously been competitors. Strategic alliances based on cooperation between individual institutions of higher education can allow these institutions to be more successful in a highly profitable market in which neither institution could compete separately. This article reviews the relevant literature on community colleges and private universities, and applies principles of strategic management to the current college and university environment. The student body in higher education institutions is markedly different today than 30 years ago. Students today are as likely to have a career, a home, and a family as a fraternity and a dorm room. The expanding number of nontraditional students has created a demand for higher education that is geared toward nontraditional needs. A competition response alliance between a community college and a nearby private university can solve the problems of the incomplete education that is currently available to the nontraditional student. Private universities have the flexibility to offer a specialized program of study at a premium price, while community colleges are better able to offer low-cost services to a large group of students. Pursuing such an alliance is highly beneficial for both the community college and the private university. Competition response alliances can allow community colleges and private universities to attract higher education consumers that would otherwise be forced to choose between adversely altering their lives and forgoing the pursuit of a bachelor s degree. This cooperation would allow both types of institution to achieve many of their goals and better serve society.

An Analysis of Academic Reputation as Perceived by Consumers of Higher Education

ABSTRACT A college's academic reputation (AR) plays a significant role in positioning the institution. Survey responses of college-bound high school seniors suggest that a majority of respondents view successful postgraduate careers as very important to the perception of AR and very likely to be attributed to a college with very good AR. A principle components factor analysis revealed three factors that describe the perception of AR (i.e., Academic Concerns, Campus Ethos, Practical Value). In a similar analysis three factors were found likely to be associated with very good AR (i.e., Curricular Concerns, Exclusivity, Career Preparation).

Determinants of seafood consumption in Norway: lifestyle, revealed preferences, and barriers to consumption

Little research attention has previously been paid to understand the complementary relationship between the consumption of seafood and variation in lifestyle factors. The present paper seeks to address this question by hypothesizing that the consumption of seafood is strongly influenced both by the variation in lifestyle factors and consumer's experience with available products in the market. Understanding the main lifestyle factors influencing consumption behaviour and seafood demand is important for marketers who want to increase the product values both for the consumers and themselves. A recursive sequential model of the decision-making process is used to evaluate the effect of socio-demographic variables, consumption of other dinner dishes, other lifestyle variables, and attitudes towards seafood on consumption amongst women of three major seafood categories at-home. The most important finding which can be influenced through the marketing process is that product attributes more than beliefs concerning price are important perceived barriers for consumption. The presence of school-aged kids in the household and regional residence influences what kind of seafood is consumed, while total consumption increases with increasing size of the household, increasing age and higher education. This indicates that there is a potential for suppliers to increase the sales value through marketing of high quality products which satisfy experienced and higher educated consumers, while families with kids should be satisfied through marketing of value-added product forms.

Boards of trustees, agency problems, and university output

The analysis and empirical evidence in this paper indicate that the structure of the boards of trustees of state universities influences the provision of higher education. The structure of the boards is important because it helps to define the constraints on the board members and on the internal agents of the universities. An implication of this study is that public universities can be made to function more like private ones by placing them under separate governing boards. These results are especially interesting when examining the trends regarding board structures. The trend over this century across the states has been toward increasing the number of universities under the jurisdiction of a single board. This analysis suggests that the trend is a response to political pressure from educators, not from taxpayers and consumers of higher education.