IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i11p5800-d559557.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

WhatsApp! Does Culture Matter to Persuasive System Design and Brand Loyalty?

Author

Listed:
  • Serri Faisal

    (Department of Business Information Technology, Emirates College of Technology, Abu Dhabi 51133, United Arab Emirates)

  • Kamaal Allil

    (Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship, College of Commerce and Business Administration, Dhofar University, Salalah P.O. Box 2509, Oman)

  • Nor Aziati Abdul Hamid

    (Faculty of Technology Management and Business, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Batu Pahat 86400, Malaysia)

  • Nor Hazana Abdullah

    (Faculty of Technology Management and Business, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Batu Pahat 86400, Malaysia)

Abstract

The traditional paradigm prioritizes local culture in application design; however, popular applications with persuasive systems design (PSD) like WhatsApp appeal to a global audience beyond local cultural attributes. The purpose of this study is to test the moderating role of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions on PSD and the relationship to loyalty in the context of WhatsApp. By employing an online survey, data were collected from the Netherlands, Germany, KSA, and Malaysia (N = 488). Using regression moderation analyses, the hypotheses were tested. Findings suggest that only two cultural dimensions, namely power distance and individualism, have a moderating role: power distance in Germany, and individualism in both KSA and Malaysia. This implies that managers must consider the possible influence of some cultural dimensions on loyalty. The study contributes to the literature by focusing on smartphone apps in countries with varying cross-cultural dimensions scores and utilizing the user’s perspective instead of the designer’s perspective.

Suggested Citation

  • Serri Faisal & Kamaal Allil & Nor Aziati Abdul Hamid & Nor Hazana Abdullah, 2021. "WhatsApp! Does Culture Matter to Persuasive System Design and Brand Loyalty?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-20, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:11:p:5800-:d:559557
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/11/5800/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/11/5800/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lai, Fujun & Griffin, Mitch & Babin, Barry J., 2009. "How quality, value, image, and satisfaction create loyalty at a Chinese telecom," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 62(10), pages 980-986, October.
    2. Geert Hofstede, 2010. "The GLOBE debate: Back to relevance," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 41(8), pages 1339-1346, October.
    3. Jengchung Victor Chen & David C. Yen & Wannasri Pornpriphet & Andree E. Widjaja, 2015. "E-commerce web site loyalty: A cross cultural comparison," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 17(6), pages 1283-1299, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sherif El-Halaby & Hosam Abdelrasheed & Khaled Hussainey, 2021. "Corporate Cash Holdings and National Culture: Evidence from the Middle East and North Africa Region," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-22, October.
    2. Angulo-Ruiz, Fernando & Pergelova, Albena & Cheben, Juraj & Angulo-Altamirano, Eladio, 2016. "A cross-country study of marketing effectiveness in high-credence services," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(9), pages 3636-3644.
    3. Stathopoulou, Anastasia & Balabanis, George, 2019. "The effect of cultural value orientation on consumers' perceptions of luxury value and proclivity for luxury consumption," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 298-312.
    4. Adis Puska & Admir Beganovic & Allen Popovic Beganovic, 2019. "Consumers' Loyalty Toward Dark Chocolate," Economic Thought and Practice, Department of Economics and Business, University of Dubrovnik, vol. 28(1), pages 245-266, june.
    5. Brenda Mak & Paul Beckman & Nicole Bohn, 2016. "Perceived Usefulness and Satisfaction of Mobile Phone for Users with Disabilities," International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management (IJITM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 13(02), pages 1-16, April.
    6. Liu, Yulong & Yu, Yang, 2018. "Institutions, firm resources and the foreign establishment mode choices of Chinese firms: The moderating role of home regional institutional development," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 111-121.
    7. Pereira, Hélia Gonçalves & Salgueiro, Maria de Fátima & Rita, Paulo, 2016. "Online purchase determinants of loyalty: The mediating effect of satisfaction in tourism," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 279-291.
    8. Mvele, Sigismond Hervey & Mengue, Larissa Ango & Ekome Ekane, Guy Christol, 2019. "Multiple subscriptions to mobile networks and consumer satisfaction," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 375-381.
    9. Muhammad Irfan & Mohammad Farid Shamsudin & Noor Hadi, 2016. "How Important Is Customer Satisfaction? Quantitative Evidence from Mobile Telecommunication Market," International Journal of Business and Management, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 11(6), pages 1-57, May.
    10. de Wit, Juliette & Beugelsdijk, Sjoerd, 2024. "Reconciling the individual and societal level in comparative cultural analysis: An archetypal analysis of values and norms across 76 countries," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1483, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    11. Vikas Gautam, 2011. "Investigating the Moderating Role of Corporate Image in the Relationship between Perceived Justice and Recovery Satisfaction: Evidence from Indian Aviation Industry," International Review of Management and Marketing, Econjournals, vol. 1(4), pages 74-85.
    12. Ki-Hoon Lee & Minwoo Lee & Nuwan Gunarathne, 2019. "Do green awards and certifications matter? Consumers’ perceptions, green behavioral intentions, and economic implications for the hotel industry: A Sri Lankan perspective," Tourism Economics, , vol. 25(4), pages 593-612, June.
    13. Hélia Gonçalves Pereira & Maria Fátima Salgueiro & Paulo Rita, 2017. "Online determinants of e-customer satisfaction: application to website purchases in tourism," Service Business, Springer;Pan-Pacific Business Association, vol. 11(2), pages 375-403, June.
    14. José Alberto Martínez-González & Carmen D. Álvarez-Albelo, 2021. "Influence of Site Personalization and First Impression on Young Consumers’ Loyalty to Tourism Websites," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-17, January.
    15. Zohreh Alizadehrad & Ekaterine Maglakelidze, 2020. "Conceptual Model Explaining the Impact of Corporate CSR Awareness (Involvement) on Consumer Behavior," Proceedings of International Academic Conferences 10612988, International Institute of Social and Economic Sciences.
    16. Ali Abumalloh, Rabab & Ibrahim, Othman & Nilashi, Mehrbakhsh, 2020. "Loyalty of young female Arabic customers towards recommendation agents: A new model for B2C E-commerce," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    17. Purani, Keyoor & Kumar, Deepak S. & Sahadev, Sunil, 2019. "e-Loyalty among millennials: Personal characteristics and social influences," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 215-223.
    18. Jin-Woo Park & Young Kyung Ryu, 2019. "Investigating the Effects of Airport Servicescape on Airport Users’ Behavioral Intentions: A Case Study of Incheon International Airport Terminal 2 (T2)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(15), pages 1-17, August.
    19. Juneman Abraham & Indhira Salsabilla & Harco Leslie Hendric Spits Warnars & Rudi Hartono Manurung & Yustinus Suhardi Ruman, 2021. "Sustainability Psychology of Disruption: Attitude towards Water Purification Technology Can Be Predicted by Cultural Value Orientation and Personality Traits," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-27, November.
    20. Mthanti, Thanti & Ojah, Kalu, 2017. "Institutions, Human Capital and Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO): Implications for Growth Strategy," MPRA Paper 89551, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:11:p:5800-:d:559557. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.