Exploring university students’ attitudes on Volkswagen

Abstract

The aim of this quantitative study is to explore if the recent Volkswagen scandal has altered the company’s trustworthiness through reputation and congruence. The research investigates if company reputation, with a focus on the social and environmental aspects and congruence with self and others who use the brand, has a positive effect on attitude toward the brand. This research would be useful when compared with previous similar data pertaining to the same brand. Using three different tried and tested instruments, a structured questionnaire was sent to all University students via the Registrar. The analysis was based on 130 valid questionnaires that were collected through Survey Monkey software application. The data was analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS Version 23 for Windows). The results indicate that University students pursue company reputation towards social and environmental responsibility and congruence of self with others who use the brand as strong predictors for attitude (trustworthiness) toward the brand. Both constructs show a significant effect on brand attitude. Companies focusing on external marketing communications are reported to positively influence trustworthiness toward the brand. This approach strengthens the consumers’ level of identification with the brand. Reputation however is influenced not only by a company’s direct communications with different groups of stakeholders. Sources of information outside the company may be more powerful and dominant in determining the perceived reputation of the brand. External information sources may decimate the reputation of a company, so it is recommended that business leaders be resolute in building and maintaining the goodwill of their stakeholders.