Application of Relationship Investment Model in Predicting Student Engagement towards HEIs

ABSTRACT

Using the Relationship Investment Model, this study examines the effects of satisfaction, relationship investment dimensions, and alternative attractiveness on student commitment and, consequently, on student engagement towards higher education institutions (HEIs). This research adopts the positivism, quantitative, and deductive approaches. Data were gathered from a sample of 250 students through the street-intercept systematic sampling and were analyzed using structural equation modelling. The findings reveal that satisfaction and student direct investment significantly affect student commitment, which in turn influences student engagement towards HEIs. While the findings provide guidance to HEIs in designing an effective engagement program that will ensure their relevance in the competitive educational world, this research is limited by several factors, which will require refinement and replication in future research.

KEYWORDS:

• branding
• higher education
• relationship investment
• relationship marketing
• structural equation modelling (SEM)

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Research Management Innovation Centre (RMIC), UPSI, under University Research Grant (URG) [2016-0101-107-01].