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The importance of the service encounter in influencing identity salience and volunteering behavior in the cultural sector

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Abstract

Increasing identity salience among volunteers is an approach that organizations can utilize to enhance volunteer numbers. While the importance of identity salience in influencing volunteering has been recognized in the literature, most previous studies of the antecedents of identity salience have focused on personal or brand related variables which can be difficult for non-profit organizations to influence. Drawing on marketing theory, we develop a new conceptual model that considers personal, brand and service encounter variables as antecedents of identity salience. Using in-depth interviews (n = 11) and a survey (n = 433), the research expands and tests seven antecedents of identity salience. These include: personal variables (interest in the domain (art), social responsibility), service encounter variables (participation frequency, social exclusion, visibility, and experience quality) and a brand variable (organizational prestige). In the context of art galleries, social responsibility, visibility, social exclusion and organizational prestige were found to be the key drivers of identity salience.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Management and Marketing, Charles Sturt University, Panorama Avenue, Bathurst, NSW 2795, Australia

    Jodie Kleinschafer & Mark Morrison

  2. School of Management, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland, KY16 9RJ, UK

    David Dowell

Authors
  1. Jodie Kleinschafer
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  2. Mark Morrison
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  3. David Dowell
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Correspondence to Jodie Kleinschafer.

Appendix

Appendix

 

Authors

Questions / Statements

Identity salience

Adapted from Callero 1985 cf. Arnett et al. (2003)

Being a Friends/BRAGS member of the Gallery is an important part of who I am

Being a Friends/ Brags member of the Gallery is something about which I have no clear feeling

Being a Friends/ BRAGS member reinforces who I am

Being a Friends/BRAGS member is something I rarely think about

It is considered prestigious in my community to be a member of the Gallery

Membership in the Art Gallery improves my credibility among social acquaintances

People in my community are proud to be a member of the Gallery

Domain involvement

Fisher and Wakefield 1998

Art is an essential part of my life

I love to see all types of art

I watch shows and read to learn about art whenever I can

Art is very important to me

I think about art all the time

Quality of contact

From Interviews

Visiting the Gallery is a rewarding experience

Visiting the Gallery is stimulating

I can remember particularly good experiences I have had at the Gallery

I enjoy the fact that I learn new things when I am at the Gallery

Visibility

Staff at the Gallery would recognize me as a BRAGS/Friends member

Other Gallery members would recognize me as a BRAGS/Friends member

It is good for my image to be seen as a member of the Gallery

I feel good about myself when I am recognized as a BRAGS/Friends member

Social responsibility

I am a BRAGS/ Friends member because it gives me an opportunity to support the Arts in regional NSW

Membership in the Gallery makes me feel socially responsible

Having an Art Gallery is important to our community

It is important to protect our cultural assets

I believe the Gallery is a very worthwhile cause to support

Social exclusion

Members of the Gallery seem cliquish

There is a level of arrogance among some Gallery members

Some members are elitist

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Kleinschafer, J., Morrison, M. & Dowell, D. The importance of the service encounter in influencing identity salience and volunteering behavior in the cultural sector. Int Rev Public Nonprofit Mark 15, 455–474 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-018-0209-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-018-0209-3

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