Students’ experiences of university social responsibility and perceptions of satisfaction and quality of service

The principal aim of this paper is to identify the factors that define students’ perceptions of university social responsibility (USR) in a Spanish university, and analyse the impact of that view on their perceptions of satisfaction and quality of service. Particularly, it is hypothesized that the overall perception of university social responsibility has a positive effect on students’ experiences of satisfaction, partially mediated by the assessment regarding the quality of university services. In doing that, a self-report study was conducted with a total sample of 400 undergraduate students of the University of León, in Spain. Structural equation modeling with PLS was used to test the students’ overall perception of USR in order to achieve higher standards of quality of service and satisfaction. Results supported a structure of six factors explaining students’ views regarding university social responsibility, of which only internal management affects the overall perception. Likewise, quality of service and satisfaction are strongly correlated among them. Implications of these findings for marketing in university settings are discussed.Keywords: University social responsibility, public marketing, higher education, satisfaction, quality of service, Spain</p

Citizens’ Perceptions on Social Responsibility in Public Administration Organizations: A Case Study on Spain

<p>This paper analyzes citizens’ expectations on social responsibility of public administration organizations in comparison to other public and private organizations, and argues that the mission attributed to different institutions in society might guide citizens’ perceptions and thresholds of satisfaction with sustainability standards. Three different survey studies were carried out to analyze citizens’ expectations of social responsibility of public administration organizations, private companies and a public university in the same Spanish region. A list of indicators defining internal and external social responsibility practices was developed to compare expectations in the three institutional contexts, and MANOVA was used to test differences between participants in the three surveys. Results support the notion that citizens’ expectations of social responsibility are related to perceived organizational goals in private and public contexts and the specific dimension of responsibility considered. Particularly, participants displayed higher expectations of external social responsibility in public administration organizations than in private companies and the public university analyzed, whereas citizens’ expectations of internal social responsibility were more homogeneous in public and private contexts. Implications of the study and suggestions for further research are discussed.</p

La Responsabilidad Social Universitaria como estrategia de marketing en la universidad

This study aims to analyze the effects of students’ perception on university social responsibility (USR) on their experiences of perceived quality of service and satisfaction, as well as to know if the USR could be an antecedent that harmonizes the university marketing strategy with the student’s expectations. Using as a reference the four impacts-based model, it was hypothesized that assessment of those university impacts would have a positive effect on students’ global perception of USR, which in turn would affect positively the dimensions of perceived quality and satisfaction. The empirical research consisted in a survey to a sample of students within Sciences and Techniques at the University of León. Data was analyzed with exploratory factor analysis and structural equations modelling with the partial least squares (PLS) technique. Results identified six factors in the student perception of the university impacts, although only three of these (environmental-educational impact, organizational impact and social impact) affected the student’s global perception on URS. Similarly, a positive effect of students’ USR global perception on their experiences of quality of service and satisfaction was found. The results of the study support the competitive advantage that USR represents as an instrument to improve the university experience, and have important implications for the design of marketing strategies to attract and retain students in higher education contexts.Este estudio persigue el objetivo de analizar los efectos de la percepción de los estudiantes en materia de responsabilidad social universitaria (RSU) sobre sus experiencias de calidad percibida y satisfacción, así como conocer si la RSU puede ser un antecedente que armonice la estrategia de marketing de la organización con las expectativas de sus estudiantes. Tomando como referencia el modelo de los cuatro impactos universitarios, se hipotetizó un efecto directo de la valoración de los mismos sobre la percepción global de la RSU mantenida por el alumnado, que a su vez influiría positivamente sobre las dimensiones de calidad percibida y satisfacción. La investigación empírica consistió en una encuesta realizada a estudiantes de Ciencias e Ingenierías en la Universidad de León. Los datos fueron analizados a través de análisis factorial exploratorio y modelado de ecuaciones estructurales con la técnica de mínimos cuadrados parciales (partial least squares, PLS). Los resultados permitieron identificar seis factores en la percepción estudiantil de los impactos universitarios, si bien sólo tres de ellos (impacto educativo-medioambiental, impacto organizacional e impacto social) afectaron la percepción global de los estudiantes sobre RSU. Asimismo, se encontró un efecto positivo de la percepción estudiantil en materia de RSU sobre la calidad percibida y la satisfacción, las cuales también estuvieron positivamente asociadas entre sí. Los resultados del estudio apoyan la RSU como instrumento de marketing de mejora de la experiencia universitaria, y tienen importantes implicaciones para el diseño de las estrategias de marketing que permitan la mejor atracción y retención de estudiantes en entornos de educación superior