An empirical study on drivers of customer-company identification: Evidence from China's retailing banking industry

Abstract

Identification research originally developed in the area of social psychology and organizational behavior, was here introduced into B2C service context. Using a sample of China's retailing bank consumers (N=439), the authors tested a model in which company-level and employee-level antecedents affect customer-company identification via customer value and customer satisfaction. Overall, each antecedent was important, albeit through different processes. Corporate identity was positively related to CCI directly. Corporate image was positively associated to CCI via customer satisfaction. Corporate communication was positively linked with CCI via customer value and customer satisfaction, as well as directly. COSE was positively related to CCI via customer value and customer satisfaction respectively.