270 Int. J. Internet Marketing and Advertising, Vol. 12, No.

3, 2018

The moderating role of technology anxiety on

brand service quality, brand image and their
relation to brand loyalty

Syahida Abd Aziz*, Muhammad Shahar Jusoh

and Mohammad Harith Amlus
School of Business Innovation and Technopreneurship,
Univesiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP),
01000 Kangar Perlis, Malaysia
Email: syahida.aziz@gmail.com
Email: shahar@unimap.edu.my
Email: harithamlus@unimap.edu.my
*Corresponding author
Abstract: The increasing importance of technology in our daily lives leads
companies to integrate the latest technology into their products before bringing
them to the market. Since technologically advanced cars have attracted a great
deal of attention, marketers use this as a means of increasing customers’ level
of loyalty by assuaging concerns that create a level of anxiety about the system
installed in their cars. This study investigates the direct effects of brand service
quality and brand image on brand loyalty as moderated by technology anxiety.
It analyses 206 samples in Malaysia. Since the moderator variables are rarely
tested in the context of the Partial Least Square (PLS) model, the authors
analysed the data using PLS by measuring the moderating effect of technology
anxiety in brand loyalty relationships. The results illustrate that technology
anxiety moderates the relationship between brand image and brand loyalty.

Keywords: customer relationship management; relationship marketing;

consumer psychology; technology anxiety; brand management; brand equity;
brand loyalty; brand service quality; brand image; partial least squares;
automotive.

Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Abd Aziz, S., Jusoh, M.S.
and Amlus, M.H. (2018) ‘The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand
service quality, brand image, and their relation to brand loyalty’, Int. J. Internet
Marketing and Advertising, Vol. 12, No. 3, pp.270–289.

Biographical notes: Syahida Abd Aziz is a Doctoral Candidate of School of

Business Innovation and Technopreneurship, Universiti Malaysia Perlis
(UniMAP). Her research interests are in the areas of customer relationship
management, brand management and brand loyalty. She is also interested in
emerging facets of consumer psychology in consumer decision making. She
received a full scholarship from the Public Service Department of Malaysia
(JPA) for the 2008–2011 and 2011–2013 academic years. She was on the
Dean’s list for the ten consecutive semesters in her diploma and bachelor
degree and received a First Class Honours Degree as well as the Vice
Chancellor’s Awards from Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM). She has
published in the Journal of Marketing Management.

Muhammad Shahar Jusoh is an Associate Professor of School of Business

Innovation and Technopreneurship, Universiti Malaysia Perlis. His duties

Copyright © 2018 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 271

include teaching, supervising, conducting research and administration. He is

also an instructor for Performance Measurement and Management using
the Rasch measurement model courses. Prior to joining UniMAP, he was
responsible for teaching and supervising such related subjects; such as Quality
Management, Strategic Management, Supply Chain Management and
Operational Management. He is a member of The Rasch Measurement Model
Malaysian Chapter and the assessment panel for Malaysian Qualifications
Agency (MQA) in the area of Management and Administration. He produced
quite a few copyrighted and won several medals at national and international
exhibition.

Mohammad Harith Amlus is a Senior Lecturer in School of Business

Innovation and Technopreneurship, Universiti Malaysia Perlis. He is from
Engineering background and undergone various training in manufacturing
industries. His research interests are in reengineering and innovate the process
in manufacturing industries. In 2016, he was awarded an Excellent Service
Award. He has 40 publications in peer reviewed journals and presented
30 papers at national and international scientific conferences. He was a
member of Global Academic Excellence TALK Organizational Programme
Training, International Journal of Accounting, Finance & Business (IJABF),
Board of Directors as Advisory Board of Global Academic Excellence (GAE).

1 Introduction

In this fast-growing era of technology, energy efficient vehicles have attracted a great
deal of attention with a rapidly increasing customer base in the automotive industry.
People look forward to products that offer advanced technological systems which can
improve the ways in which they do things (i.e. while driving). The rapid growth of
technology systems in the automotive industry has forced automakers to embed advanced
technological systems into their manufacturing of cars in order to gain competitive
advantages. This could increase the anxiety level among the automotive consumers
(i.e. drivers). In the context of this investigation, understanding customers’ feelings
(i.e. anxiety) towards the technology installed in their cars is an important part of
understanding their intention to repeat their purchase. Osswald et al. (2012) noted that
there is a high level of anxiety in the public towards technologically advanced cars that
manifests in poor customer behaviour. Several studies have criticised technology anxiety
from the context of mobile usage, yet few have addresses such concerns in the
automotive sector. As such, this study addresses this lacuna in the literature by examining
technology anxiety from the context of automotive consumers.
Industrialised countries like North America, Europe and Japan have slow population
growth, which means that customer loss can be disastrous to companies. This is due to a
smaller number of available new customers to replace those who leave (Blackwell et al.,
2012). From the context of this study, a slow growing population in a developing country
like Malaysia has made it difficult for automotive companies to gain new customers
(MIDA, 2012). Even though the population in Malaysia increased slightly by 4.1 million
between 2001 and 2009, the average annual population growth rate in Malaysia
decreased from 2.3% in 2001 to 1.8% in 2009 (Department of Statistics, 2014).
Therefore, retaining existing customers is the preferred and most efficient means to
increase market share and profitability.
272 S. Abd Aziz, M. Shahar Jusoh and M. Harith Amlus

Malaysia has been overlooked due to its political instability but its markets have
started to gain more and more international attention. A highly competitive business
environment has urged companies to establish close and long-term relationships with
their customers. In Malaysia, enhancing and maintaining brand loyalty is not easily
achieved as the services offered to customers are unsatisfactory and the delivery slow,
irrespective of product quality (Es, 2012). Surprisingly, a survey on the automotive
consumers found that less than a third of consumers love their car’s brand while others
prefer to choose a different brand in their next purchase (Harris, 2016). To overcome this
problem, marketers need to focus on brand service quality to achieve sustainable
competitive advantage and customer brand loyalty (Yarimoglu, 2014). Nevertheless,
improving only the qualities of a service does not guarantee the loyalty of customers as
other factors such as brand image also play an important role in purchase behaviour
(Fianto et al., 2014). Companies nowadays are forced to create a strong brand image for
their products due to being fundamental to making a profit. Significant funds are spent on
marketing a strong brand image to capture the customers’ attention and loyalty. Thus,
companies need to understand the determinants of brand loyalty among existing and
potential customers.
This topic is a primary concern in building a brand, especially in fast growing and
emerging markets (Meyer, 2014). It is at least five times more cost efficient to retain
existing customers compared to attracting new customers (Oladele and Akeke, 2012).
Brand loyalty is, however, a much used and abused term. Although it is widely utilised,
many scholars investigate different determinants of customer brand loyalty, resulting in a
lack of consistency in their findings (Es, 2012; Thompson et al., 2010; Sugiati et al.,
2013; Kassim et al., 2014). The frequent assumption is that a satisfied customer will
repeat a purchase from the same supplier (Alex and Thomas, 2011; Chinomona and
Sandada, 2013; Goel, 2014). However, many other factors could influence a customer’s
repeat purchase. This investigation aims to bridge the research gap by examining key
factors that influence brand loyalty among the automotive consumers, as well as the
moderating role of technology anxiety in strengthening the relationship between brand
service quality and brand image towards brand loyalty.

2 Literature review

Marketing researchers have studied branding since the 1950s (Bastos and Levy, 2012).
They have established that it is a crucial component for increasing sales (Li and Green,
2011). Historically, brand loyalty was explained only in terms of customer behaviour (i.e.
repeat purchase) and since 1969, Day offered two dimensions to explain brand loyalty,
namely attitudinal and behavioural aspects. However, the insufficient findings regarding
the two dimensions of customer loyalty has led researchers to study brands and branding
through a composite of attitudinal and behavioural aspects (Kaur and Soch, 2013; Tabaku
and Kushi, 2013). Hence, the attitudinal and behavioural aspects and their composite are
necessary to understand and measure the level of brand loyalty (Chuah et al., 2014).
In an increasingly innovative and aggressive business environment, firms compete
fiercely to secure an advantage. One of the key success factors is how customers perceive
the quality of service (Auka et al., 2013), as it determines their level of satisfaction
(Ivanauskienė and Volungėnaitė, 2014). This is because a company’s profits and sales
depend on the behaviour of customers. Therefore, it is important for firms to not
only improve the quality of their products to create an intention to purchase, but also to
improve the quality of their services. In the past, little effort has been spent in
 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 273

maintaining a relationship with customers after they purchased goods in the retail
business even though the brand service quality was found to encourage customers to
perform repeat purchases and remain loyal to the brand (Auka et al., 2013). In evaluating
the quality of the service provider, customers compare their expectations with what they
received (Gilbert and Wong, 2003). However, offering high-quality service is not the
only approach to increasing the level of brand loyalty among customers; anxiety towards
the technology in cars also plays a vital role in influencing buyers’ brand loyalty.
In today’s business world, every company tries to catch their potential customers’
eye by displaying a strong brand image. Marketers need to focus on their customer’s
feeling and emotion and how to increase their willingness to pay more. It is essential for
marketers to concentrate on customers’ feelings as the customers would want to buy
something that allows them to identify their identity, signal their status and manifest a
sense of belonging (Marazza and Saviolo, 2012). If customers are only interested in
design and price, luxury cars that offer intriguing high-tech features such as Mercedes,
Lexus, Audi, BMW, etc. would record poor sales. Fortunately for those car manufacturers,
millions of people feel happy and proud when driving Audi and BMW cars. The need to
build a brand image that creates a relationship with their customers can be done via
several communication strategies (Yilmaz and Enginkaya, 2015). This allows firms to
maintain a long-term relationship with customers as a trusted brand and product
(Thaichon et al., 2013) which will ultimately result in increased brand loyalty (Sivarajah
and Sritharan, 2014).
This study aims to add to the scant body of knowledge by including technology
anxiety as a variable to test the level of brand loyalty among automotive consumers.
Similar to other industries, the use of electronic components in the automotive industry
has rapidly increased as multiple aspects of driving a modern automobile is controlled by
advanced technological electronics such as acceleration, braking, security and navigation
(Osswald et al., 2012). Furthermore, the automotive industry is highly competitive.
Malaysian automotive marketers could benefit from the awareness on how relational
variables influence the brand loyalty among customers. This study measured the levels of
anxiety among automotive consumers towards the technological system installed in a car.
This undertaking is motivated by Chen and Chen’s (2009) study of navigation systems
whereby drivers reported facing problems managing two tasks simultaneously (i.e.
following the route guidance system and driving), and that multitasking distracts drivers
and creates anxiety (Rakotonirainy and Steinhardt, 2009). Meanwhile, a survey of
customers who use the self-service technology revealed that customers consider the
human interaction, convenience, speed of transaction, perceived accuracy, satisfaction
and trust when using the technology. The researchers, however, found stark contrasts in
three areas, namely a customer’s need for employee interaction, convenience of the self-
service technology and desire for speed in the transaction (Kimes and Collier, 2015).
This means that there is a high level of anxiety due to a poorly implemented self-service
technology that frustrates customers. This reduces a brand’s trustworthiness and causes
customers to be reluctant to repeat purchase.
Additionally, with the latest technology, auto manufacturers produce numerous fuel-
efficient cars believed to be able to protect the environment. This initiative is partly in
response to reports that transportation is responsible for about 20% of the global
greenhouse gas emissions released into the air (Benthem and Reynaert, 2015).
Furthermore, technology can be used as a preventive tool by providing greater safety and
avoiding theft (Laguador et al., 2013). Consumers prefer to own a safer car which
includes additional safety features such as airbags, antilock brake systems and anti-theft
274 S. Abd Aziz, M. Shahar Jusoh and M. Harith Amlus

alarm systems. More recently, researchers demonstrated the benefits of technology in the
automotive industry, especially in providing safety in terms of information, safety
environment and driving tasks assistance (Osswald et al., 2012). The message here is
clear: lower anxiety of technology increases trust in a brand, while high anxiety reduces
trust in a brand. Once the customers place their trust in a brand, they intend to remain
loyal to that brand. In relation to customer behaviour in technology related industries,
the relationship between the infrastructure of technology and customer intention is
strengthened by technology anxiety (Yang and Forney, 2013). Hence, this investigation
aims to measure the moderating role of technology anxiety on the relationship between
brand service quality and brand image towards brand loyalty among automotive consumers.
Previous studies employed the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Car
Technology Acceptance Model (CTAM) to measure the level of anxiety among users
towards technology (Osswald et al., 2012; Gelbrich and Sattler, 2014). CTAM acts as the
foundation of technology anxiety with an extension of Unified Theory of Acceptance and
Use of Technology (UTAUT). The theory of UTAUT was primarily developed to explain
and predict users’ acceptance towards technology from the context of the organisation.
Since the UTAUT model has only been used to measure anxiety in the context of
computers (Yang and Forney, 2013) and not from the context of other technological
system such as technology usage in car (Osswald et al., 2012), Venkatesh et al. (2012)
introduced CTAM to improve the explanatory power of the model. Hence, to predict
technology anxiety in the context of customers regarding the technology system installed
in the cars, this investigation revisits the predicting factors postulated by CTAM by
introducing brand service quality and brand image to measure and analyse the level of
technology anxiety among drivers.

3 Conceptual framework

In accordance with the literature review and the purpose of this investigation, a proposed
model was constructed to investigate the direct effects of brand service quality and brand
image on brand loyalty, with the moderating role of technology anxiety. The proposed
model is depicted in Figure 1.

Figure 1 Conceptual model

Brand 
Service  H1
Quality 
+ 

‐ H3a

Brand 
Technolog
Loyalt
y Anxiety
y

‐ H3b

H2 
Brand 
Image  + 
 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 275

3.1 Relationship between brand service quality and brand loyalty

Es (2012) unveiled the positive relationship between service quality and brand loyalty in
the automotive parts industry (e.g. car materials and accessories). The author confirmed
that service quality dimensions (i.e. tangibles, assurance, empathy, responsiveness and
reliability) has a positive relationship with brand loyalty. Service quality was found to
have no direct relationship with brand loyalty due to the influence of customer
satisfaction onto the relationship. The author concluded that the reliability of service
quality holds the highest value in measuring brand loyalty. In addition, Zehir
et al. (2011) examined the relationship between service quality and brand loyalty in the
context of global automotive brands in Turkey. The study focused on the influence of
service quality and brand communication on brand loyalty influenced by brand trust. The
authors concluded that brand service quality correlates positively with brand loyalty. In
the past, studies of brand loyalty did not pay enough attention to brand service quality
(Ahmed et al., 2013; Chinomona et al., 2013). Therefore, to create brand loyalty among
customers, marketing managers need to improve the quality of service provided to their
customers. These arguments showed that brand service quality influences brand loyalty,
which can be proposed as:
H1: There is a positive relationship between brand service quality and brand loyalty.

3.2 Relationship between brand image and brand loyalty

Greve (2014) found that brand image (e.g. functional, symbolic and experiential) has a
positive and significant role in increasing brand loyalty. This is because a strong brand
image increases the tendency of customers to stay loyal to that brand. However, some
researchers dispute that the indirect effect of brand image on brand loyalty could be
explained by customer satisfaction (Ishaq et al., 2014; Saeed et al., 2013) while other
researchers claimed that brand image can be explained by brand trust (Fianto et al., 2014;
Thaichon et al., 2013). The irregularity in these findings is a reason for concern as some
researchers concluded that brand image has a direct influence on brand loyalty (Saeed
et al., 2013; Upamannyu et al., 2014).
On the other hand, Tu et al. (2013) investigated the influence of brand image on
brand loyalty through customer commitment in the automotive industry. The authors
found that brand image has a direct effect on brand loyalty, and customer commitment
explains the relationship between brand image and brand loyalty. Supporting this,
Hameed (2013) pointed out that store image has a direct influence on brand loyalty.
However, research in this area has given little attention to differentiating the influences
of store image and brand image towards brand loyalty. Therefore, it is important to
investigate further the direct relationship between brand image and brand loyalty. Hence,
we formulate:
H2: There is a positive relationship between brand image and brand loyalty.

3.3 The moderator role of technology anxiety

The literature has established that technology anxiety can lead to different patterns of
customer behaviour (Khan and Khawaja, 2013; Nsairi and Khadraoui, 2013; Yang and
Forney, 2013; Gelbrich and Sattler, 2014). Some researchers concede that technology
276 S. Abd Aziz, M. Shahar Jusoh and M. Harith Amlus

anxiety strengthens the brand loyalty relationships (Khan and Khawaja, 2013), while
others provide evidence on the effect of both perceived value and anxiety towards brand
loyalty (Nsairi and Khadraoui, 2013). Yang and Forney (2013) acknowledge that
technology anxiety plays a moderating role in the shopping adoption relationship, while
other researchers claim that technology anxiety is a crucial factor in a customer’s
purchase decision (Osswald et al., 2012). Mouakket and Al-Hawari (2012) called for an
extension to the existing brand loyalty models by integrating technology anxiety as a
moderating variable in measuring brand loyalty. Regarding the study of technology
anxiety, previous studies argue that there is a direct linkage between technology anxiety
and customer intention (Gelbrich and Sattler, 2014) and this plays a moderating role in
strengthening the linkage between trust and customer behaviour (Hsu, 2014), service
quality and repeat purchase (Lee et al., 2009). Empirical support for the moderating
effect of technology anxiety on brand loyalty includes the study conducted by Khan and
Khawaja (2013) who found that technology anxiety strengthens the relationship between
customer relationship marketing and brand loyalty.
Despite calls for to better understand of customer brand loyalty by considering brand
image and technology anxiety, the concept of a customer’s brand loyalty may not be fully
understood. The biggest shortfalls are in understand and including technology anxiety in
measuring customer brand loyalty. Many anxiety measurements are considered to be
incapable of measuring customer brand loyalty especially in the automotive sectors, as
previous studies have examined anxiety from the context of technological gadgets such
as computer and mobile phone (Vlachos et al., 2010; Nsairi and Khadraoui, 2013; Yang
and Forney, 2013; Gelbrich and Sattler, 2014). These arguments show the direct effects
of brand service quality and brand image on brand loyalty, which are moderated by
technology anxiety. Hence, we proposed:
H3a: The lower the level of technology anxiety, the greater the impact of brand service
quality on brand loyalty.
H3b: The lower the level of technology anxiety, the greater the impact of brand image on
brand loyalty.

4 Research methodology

4.1 Measures
The variables of this study comprise exogenous (independent) variables, including Brand
Service Quality (BSQ) and Brand Image (BI), moderating variable that consisting of
Technology Anxiety (TA) and endogenous (dependent) variables consisting of Brand
Loyalty (BL). Each variable is an unobserved latent variable measured by comparing the
numbers of indicators. Each indicator consists of items which have been constructed into
statements. The data are in Likert’s scale that was anchored by 1 (strongly disagree) to 5
(strongly agree) indicating the extent of agreement and disagreement towards the
statement. The measurement instrument included seven items on brand service quality
(Hinson et al., 2010; Chinomona et al., 2013); seven items on brand image (Yoo et al.,
2000; Ramos and Franco, 2005); and eight items on brand loyalty (Chaudhuri and
Holbrook, 2001; Bobâlcă et al., 2012). All scale items were first modified before testing
on the car users.
 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 277

Besides that, this study employed CTAM as the theoretical foundation of technology
anxiety to measure the level of brand loyalty among car users. It adapted the technology
anxiety measurement scales from Yang and Forney (2013), Osswald et al. (2012) and
Meuter et al. (2003). The respondents were asked to indicate the degree to measure the
anxiety when using the technological systems installed in their cars which includes
eleven items: (1) Technology and safety features lead to anxiety; (2) Accidents could
arise due to these technology and safety features; (3) These features are somewhat
frightening; (4) These features cause difficulty to reach desired destination; (5) These
technology and safety features are difficult to operate; (6) These features affect the
driving process; (7) These features are unfamiliar to me; (8) These features give
an uncomfortable feeling; (9) The use of these features give a sinking feeling; (10) These
technology and safety features give an uneasy feelings and (11) Overall, these technology
and safety features installed in the car make meme an feel anxious. Since the
measurement items for examining computer anxiety and technology anxiety differ
significantly, this study first designed and adapted the measurement scales suggested by
previous researchers (Meuter et al., 2003; Osswald et al., 2012; Yang and Forney, 2013)
to be compatible with the context of the study before examining the influence of
technology anxiety on brand loyalty among the car users in Malaysia.
Partial Least Squares (PLS) is a technique adopted by previous studies frequently
(Chinomona et al., 2013; Sugiati et al., 2013; Wang et al., 2013) and was employed in
this research to analyse the proposed model. A two-step procedure for data analysis was
used to validate the measure and test the hypotheses which includes the measurement
model and structural model (Hair et al., 2013). First, this investigation measured the
internal consistency, indicator reliability, convergent and discriminant validity to assess
the measurement model. Second, it evaluated the structural model by measuring the
coefficient of determination, predictive relevance and the effect sizes. It then applied the
bootstrapping procedure to test the hypotheses with structural equation modelling.

4.2 Sample
Sample sizes of 150 or more are adequate to achieve small standard errors of the
parameter estimates (Gerbing and Anderson, 1988), and at least 200 observations
are required to fulfil the appropriate minimum for a structural equation modelling
(Kelloway, 1998). The sample size of this study is N  205 following the suggestion by
Kline (2016) who declares that the sample size of less than 100 samples are regarded as
having a small size of sample, between 100 and 200 samples are regarded as having a
medium size of sample while more than 200 samples were regarded as large enough to
explain the variables studied. The sample of car users was selected through a cluster
sampling technique and they participated in a face-to-face survey questionnaire. Area
sampling has been chosen as one of the types of cluster sampling, in which several cities
in Perlis, Kedah and Penang are selected. The assigned population members of a unique
cluster intercept buyers from the car outlets once they leave the outlets. The samples of
respondents comprised women (58%) more than men; and most were between the ages of
31 and 35 (75%). The data were obtained by administering a questionnaire which was
distributed to the selected respondents. The selected respondents are the automotive
consumers in the Northern Peninsula of Malaysia. After initial screening, from 260
278 S. Abd Aziz, M. Shahar Jusoh and M. Harith Amlus

questionnaires distributed, 206 were completed and properly filled. Hence, the useable
response for this investigation was 79%. The data obtained is then confirmed for its
validity and reliability through analysis.

5 Result

5.1 Measurement model evaluation

The measurement models in this study are implemented to examine the indicator validity
(Hair et al., 2014) in which the factor loading of each indicator was carefully examined
and indicators with a loading greater than 0.7 were accepted (Hair et al., 2013). This
investigation achieved high levels of reliability as the value of the composite reliability
exceeding the 0.7 threshold (Nunnaly and Bernstein, 1994) which range from 0.915 to
0.957, whereas the coefficient values of Cronbach’s alpha range from 0.883 to 0.944 for
the three constructs shown in Table 1. This indicates that the scales used to measure the
dimensions for each construct in this study are reliable. In addition, the maximum value
of the squared path coefficient is 0.5 (Hair et al., 2013). All constructs of this
investigation exceeded the squared path coefficient. The AVEs for brand service quality,
brand image and brand loyalty are 0.713, 0.817 and 0.684, respectively. Meanwhile,
discriminant validity (Table 2) was confirmed since the diagonal elements (in bold),
which represent the square root of AVE, are greater than the other non-diagonal elements
which represent the latent variable correlations.
Table 1 Measurement model result

Research construct Factor loadings αa AVEb

Reason for purchasing this car brand is due to
0.816
likeable towards the brand
This car brand is more interesting than other brands 0.828
This car brand will be recommended to those who
0.848
BL ask for an advice 0.899 0.713
There is an intention to speak positively about this
0.884
car brand
This car brand is considered to be the first choice
0.844
when purchasing a car
This car brand provides superior service 0.921
This car brand offers excellent service 0.908
Using this car brand gives excellent experience 0.887
BSQ This car brand understands my needs and 0.944 0.817
0.895
requirement
I feel good about what this car brand offers to its
0.907
customers
 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 279

Table 1 Measurement model result (continued)

Research construct Factor loadings αa AVEb

Some characteristics of this car brand come to
0.757
mind
This car brand has a strong image 0.882
This car brand has a strong personality 0.899
BI 0.883 0.684
A clear impression of the type of people who use
0.792
this car brand
The intangible attributes of this car brand are
0.794
enough reason to buy it
Note: All loadings are significant at 0.05 level (2-tailed);
a
Cronbach’s α.
b
AVE= Average Variance Extracted; BL= Brand loyalty; BSQ= Brand service
quality; BI= Brand image.

Table 2 Fornell-Larcker criterion

Research Constructs BI BL BSQ

Brand Image (BI) 0.827
Brand Loyalty (BL) 0.671 0.844
Brand Service Quality (BSQ) 0.711 0.731 0.904
Note: The diagonal elements (in bold) are the square root of average variance
extracted that indicate the significance level of p value (p < 0.05). Other
non-diagonal elements are latent variable correlations.

5.2 Hypotheses testing

5.2.1 Structural model evaluation
Structural equation modelling tested the hypothesised paths of the structural model. The
findings of hypothesis testing were obtained using Smart PLS software. All coefficient
estimates were significant (p < 0.05) in accordance with the hypothesised directions. The
results obtained support for the first two (2) hypotheses. H1 and H2 hypothesised that
brand service quality and brand image have direct effects on brand loyalty. In testing the
proposed hypotheses, the standardised path coefficient is expected to be at least 0.2 and
preferably greater than 0.3 (Chin and Newsted, 1999). A path weight of 0.512 and 0.307
shows that brand service quality and brand image have positive effects on brand loyalty.
The predictive accuracy of a model can be measured by analysing the coefficient of
determination (R2). A rule of thumb on the acceptable R2 is 0.75, 0.50 and 0.25,
explaining substantial, moderate or weak level of predictive accuracy respectively
(Hair et al., 2014). The R2 value for the endogenous variable is 0.581 indicating that
brand service quality and brand image accounts for 58.1% of the variance in brand
loyalty. Hence, the exogenous variables have moderate predictive power to brand loyalty,
as confirmed by the value of R2 greater than the 0.50 threshold suggested by Hair et al.
(2014). The reliability of the coefficients in this investigation is obtained through a
bootstrapping procedure (500 resamples). All t values were found to be higher than the
theoretical t value of 2.57 for a 5% probability of error. Meanwhile, the p values of 0.000
280 S. Abd Aziz, M. Shahar Jusoh and M. Harith Amlus

indicate that all path relationship from brand service quality to brand loyalty and from
brand image to brand loyalty with a value of 0.512 and 0.307, respectively, are
significant at a 5% probability of error. Table 3 shows the path coefficient and the
bootstrapping results, where the hypothesised relationships below were tested:
H1: Result revealed that the proposed relationship between brand service quality and
brand loyalty was significant (   0.512, t  6.959) and hence the hypothesis was
supported.
H2: The relationship between brand image and brand loyalty was significant
(   0.307, t  4.313) and hence the hypothesis was supported.
Table 3 Results of structural equation model analysis

Hypothesised path Path coefficient (t value) Standard error (p value) 0.05% Decision
H1: BSQ  BL 0.512 (6.959) 0.074 0.000 Supported
H2: BI  BL 0.307 (4.313) 0.071 0.000 Supported

5.2.2 Test of the moderating effects

This study examined the moderating effect of technology anxiety with six items of
anxiety scale after removing the five items with low factor loading (i.e. less than 0.7)
which are ‘Accidents could arise due to these technology and safety features’; ‘These
features are difficult to operate’; ‘These features affect the driving process’; ‘These
features are unfamiliar to me’; ‘The use of these features gives a sinking feeling’ and
‘These features give an uneasy feeling’. The moderating effect of technology anxiety
among customers on the two hypothesised paths was examined through the two
steps proposed by Henseler and Fassott (2010): (1) determining the significance of the
moderating effect and (2) determining the strength of the moderating effect. In the first
step, it is recommended to conduct bootstrapping to estimate the standard error of the
model parameters (Chin et al., 2003). The PLS model can also be tested using the Chow
test to measure whether specific path coefficients differ across groups (Chow, 1978).
‘Moderator variables are of high relevance as complex relationships are normally subject
to contingencies’ (Vinci et al., 2010). However, moderator variables are rarely tested
within the context of structural equation modelling (Henseler and Fassott, 2010). The
moderator hypothesis in a study confirms whether the interaction effect (i.e. path c) is
significant, independent of the magnitude of path coefficients a and b, in accordance to
the idea proposed by Baron and Kenny (1986). The effect of the exogenous variable
towards the endogenous variable with the assistance of the moderator and the interaction
variable towards the endogenous variable is estimated in this investigation in order to test
the moderating effect. Figure 2 illustrates the path coefficient where the hypothesised
relationships below were tested:
H3a: The results provided no support for H3a    0.233, t  2.534  and hence the
hypothesis was not supported.
H3b: The results provided support for H3b (   –0.207, t  1.889) . This indicates that
the level of technology anxiety has a moderating effect on the relationship between brand
image and brand loyalty. In other words, a low level of technology anxiety strengthens
the relationship between brand image and brand loyalty.
 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 281

Figure 2 PLS algorithm for the study model (with interaction effect)

Note: BSQ = Brand service quality; BI = Brand image; BL = Brand loyalty;

TA = Technology anxiety.

This study found the path coefficient between the interaction term (i.e. BSQ * TA) and
the endogenous variable (i.e. brand loyalty) which is 0.233. For this level of technology
anxiety, the relationship between brand service quality and brand loyalty has a value of
0.484. If the technology anxiety becomes higher (i.e. technology anxiety is increased by
one standard deviation point), this would imply that the relationship between brand
service quality and brand loyalty would increase by the size of the interaction term and
obtain the value of 0.484  0.233  0.717 . When technology anxiety increases, brand
service quality becomes less important for the explanation of brand loyalty. Even though
it shows that a high level of technological anxiety is highly significant in enhancing the
relationship between brand service quality and brand loyalty, this finding seems to
contradict the proposed hypothesis. Thus, H3a was not supported. On the contrary, the
interaction term (i.e. BI * TA) has a negative effect on brand loyalty (–0.207). For this
level of technology anxiety, the relationship between brand image and brand loyalty has
a value of 0.288. If the technology anxiety becomes lower (i.e. technology anxiety
decreases by one standard deviation point), this would imply that the relationship
between brand image and brand loyalty would increase by the size of the interaction term
and obtain the value of 0.288 – 0.207  0.081 . Hence, when technology anxiety reduces,
brand image increases in its importance for explaining brand loyalty. Since it shows a
low level of technology anxiety is highly significant to strengthen the relationship
between brand image and brand loyalty which is in line with the proposed hypothesis,
H3b was supported.
The second step in interpreting a moderating effect is by determining the strength of
the moderating effect. This can be measured by comparing the proportion of variance
explained in the main model (i.e. the model including the moderating effect). This idea
282 S. Abd Aziz, M. Shahar Jusoh and M. Harith Amlus

also explains the parameter estimates for the effect size. As stated by Cohen et al. (2013),
researchers can measure effect size ( f 2 ) using the following formula:

f 2  R 2 model with moderator – R 2 model without moderator / 1  R 2 model

with moderator
f 2  0.615 – 0.581/ 1 – 0.615

f 2  0.09

The moderating effects with the effect size, f 2 of 0.02 may be regarded as weak, effect
sizes from 0.15 and above as moderate, and effect sizes above 0.35 as strong. Therefore,
the effect sizes of the parameter estimates in this investigation are regarded as weak when
its f 2 value is less than 0.15 but more than 0.02 (i.e., 0.09). As proposed by Chin (2010),
‘a low effect size ( f 2 ) does not necessarily imply that the underlying moderator effect
is negligible’. This is because ‘even small interaction effect can be meaningful under
extreme moderating conditions. If the resulting beta changes are meaningful, it is
important to take these conditions into account’ (Chin et al., 2003).

6 Discussion and Conclusion

Based on previous studies in brand loyalty (Khan and Khawaja, 2013; Nsairi and
Khadraoui, 2013; Tabaku and Kushi, 2013), a theoretical model of brand relationship
between customers and firms was developed to show proposed relationships among the
study constructs in the context of consumers in the automotive market. Since the
researchers found brand service quality and brand image have significant effects on brand
loyalty, these effects are of paramount importance to be examined. Prior studies also
noted that the two dimensions of brand loyalty namely attitudinal and behavioural loyalty
and the composition of both attitudinal and behavioural loyalty, influence customer
purchase behaviour (Anwar et al., 2011; Chinomona and Sandada, 2013; Hanzaee and
Andervazh, 2012; Zetu and Miller, 2010). Even though the elements of brand service
quality and brand image are particularly important in the context of consumer industries,
Zehir et al. (2011) hold the view that these elements are applicable in the automotive
industry. Hence, this investigation set out with the aim of assessing the importance of
these elements in influencing customers to remain loyal to a brand.
On the question of the direct effects of brand service quality and brand image have on
brand loyalty, this investigation found that both of these elements are significantly related
to brand loyalty. The present findings seem to be consistent with other research which
found the direct relationship of brand service quality and brand image on brand loyalty
albeit in different contexts (Ahmed et al., 2013; Ishaq et al., 2014; Jan et al., 2013). It is
by no means clear that consumers are repeating their purchases once they have
experienced a high service provided by the product brand together with a great image
reputation. Indeed, in many cases customers are reluctant to try a new and unfamiliar
product as they are unwilling to bear any risk that might happen to them. On the basis of
this, the time spent in making purchase decision can be reduced.
Additionally, based on the present result, brand service quality has a direct positive
effect on brand loyalty, which occurs above the direct effect, with an enhancement from
 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 283

the technological anxiety. Referring to the result, H3a    0.233, t  2.534  was not
supported in investigating the direct effect of brand service quality have on brand loyalty
with the moderating role of technology anxiety since it is found contradict to the
proposed hypothesis. This investigation proposed that the lower the level of technology
anxiety, the greater the impact of brand service quality on brand loyalty. However, after
conducting the survey, this investigation found that the higher the technology anxiety, the
greater the impact of brand service quality on brand loyalty which is in contrast to the
proposed hypothesis. In other word, it means that the refusal in using a technological
system installed in the car is mainly due to the emotional reaction of the drivers as they
are fearful of technology but not as a result of cognitive reflections on brand service
quality.
Furthermore, this finding is inconsistent with other studies. For example, in Lee
et al.’s (2009) study, the researcher found that service quality has a significant
relationship with the intention of customers to repeat purchase which is moderated by
anxiety. Nevertheless, Lee’s study measured the influence of computer anxiety on repeat
purchase which differs from technological anxiety. This is due to a low anxiety level
towards computers could enhance the relationship between the quality of service and
repurchase intention, but it is not applicable in the case of the technological systems
being installed in cars. That is why from the context of this investigation, the authors
found that technology anxiety does little to enhance the relationship between brand
service quality and brand loyalty. The reason for this irregular finding is due to the
perception of customers who have experience and assess to the product brand. It means
that customers with good experience with a particular brand might be eager to buy the
same product brand, and the feeling to the customers (i.e. anxiety) also plays a big role to
help them decide which brand they want to purchase.
The findings demonstrate that a low level of technology anxiety enhances the
relationship between brand image and brand loyalty among customers to a much greater
extent than the high level of anxiety. The reason behind this result is due to the
relationship built between brand image and their loyalty to a brand is more likely to be
based on their reputation gained after experiencing using a product with a strong brand.
In other words, a low level of anxious feeling towards the system installed in vehicles
can increase the image of the brand, and hence establish brand loyalty among the
customers. Hence, there is a need for marketers in the automotive industry who is
wishing to enter the Malaysian market must exert more effort to provide customers with
information on the system installed in the car through a simple and easy-to-understand
booklet in order to reduce the level of anxiety among the drivers. Besides, even though
brand service quality and brand image are not the only vital elements in the company to
establish a long lasting relationship with the customers, these elements hold an important
role in improving the performance of companies (Oladele and Akeke, 2012). This is
because companies are able to reduce the percentage of brand switching among their
customers. Good customer perception on the service quality offered and image displayed
by a product brand will satisfy and retain customers within the companies, as they tend to
stay loyal to their trusted and familiar brands. Thus, due to the increment of customer
brand loyalty, companies are likely to gain higher profits by attempting to increase their
market share.
284 S. Abd Aziz, M. Shahar Jusoh and M. Harith Amlus

7 Managerial implication

In terms of managerial implications, the finding benefits the marketing practitioners the
most, especially those involved in planning strategies in brand management in the
automobile sector. Effectively, generating and establishing brand loyalty is fundamental
to securing a competitive edge. Hence, the findings expose valuable insights for
marketers to identify significant dimensions of each element of brand service quality and
brand image that affect the attachment level towards a brand in the next purchase. The
findings imply that developing a great image and providing better services will enhance
the intention of customers to stay loyal to a brand. Further, knowing that brand service
quality plays a significant role in establishing a brand, a company needs to serve the
customers in a friendly manner and with full knowledge of the product. When customers
feel taken care of by a company, they are more inclined to buy from the company again.
This is critical for the car industry as cars are a long-term investment so buyers should
not rush their decisions and need to take a longer time to complete the purchase process.
Apart from that, marketers need to understand the customer perception of the image
of the brand. Customers are willing to give up a former favourite brand in order to have a
better image as high prestige and status are priorities in life. Broadly speaking, marketers
in the car sector face a tough competitive battle to capture and retain such customers.
Hence, if a company continues to provide an image that is below expectations,
the company might have to bear the consequences of losing customers. Further, if
the anxious feeling towards the technological system installed in a car is low, it will
strengthen the brand loyalty relationships among the car users. Therefore, marketers must
provide ways for customers to have enough knowledge about cars to reduce their feelings
of anxiety. For example, the function of the systems installed in the car need to be
revealed to the users during their first time driving the car. By doing so, they become
aware of the installed systems and are not scared to use them while driving.

8 Limitation and future research

As with most research, this study is subject to limitations despite its interesting findings.
The limitations are caused by demographic characteristics of respondents, the data
collection method and the nature of the service. The model proposed in this paper is well
known in the marketing area and has been tested on products and services only in
developed countries. However, this study bridges the research gap in investigating the
moderating effect of technology anxiety in brand loyalty relationships in the context of
the automotive industry in a developing country such as Malaysia. At the same time, this
study is able to verify the proposed conceptual model and test the model in the Northern
States of Peninsular Malaysia. The sample used in this study was conveniently selected
from states within the chosen cluster, which may result in selection bias. Besides, due to
the time and cost constraints, this study was confined only to several cities in three states
in Northern Malaysia which is Perlis, Kedah and Penang, with a sample size of 206
respondents. This may limit the generalizability of the findings as the brand decisions of
the respondents may differ from those other states in the country. The respondent of this
study is the car user in Malaysia while the number of the car users is much greater.
Hence, the findings cannot be generalised to other groups or countries.
 The moderating role of technology anxiety on brand loyalty relationships 285

The limitations of this study also suggest possible avenues for further research. This
study investigated the relationship between brand service quality, brand image and brand
loyalty with the moderating role of by technology anxiety whereas there is another aspect
that can be observed such as brand communication, brand identity, brand value and
commitment. It is highly recommended that future research uses a larger sample size.
Moreover, future research should be conducted in a quantitative study to build and
validate the loyalty scale in the Malaysian market and a survey research for measuring
the level of loyalty. The aspect of the research can be expanded by observing other
industry sectors besides the car industry. The scope of future studies could be focused on
generation Y, as this generation represents the majority of the population in both
developed and developing countries.

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