The Effect of Brand Experience on Brand Advocacy: Examining the Mediating Role of Service Captivity in the Airline Industry

Abstract

Purpose– This study contributes to the airline and services marketing literature in three distinct ways. First, it conceptualizes brand advocacy as a proactive relational outcome, clearly differentiating it from satisfaction, word-of-mouth (WOM), and repeat patronage. Second, it examines whether brand experience diminishes perceived service captivity within a context where structural switching constraints are highly salient. Third, it evaluates whether service captivity functions as a mediating mechanism between brand experience and brand advocacy, thereby theoretically distinguishing between remaining with a provider out of necessity and advocating for a brand out of genuine willingness.

Design/methodology/approach– Utilizing survey data collected from airline passengers in Türkiye (N = 427), brand experience was modeled as a multidimensional construct to assess its direct and indirect associations with brand advocacy. Data were gathered via an online survey administered between December 20, 2025, and January 14, 2026. To evaluate construct validity and test the hypothesized structural relationships, the quantitative data were analyzed employing the Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling (CB-SEM) module in SmartPLS 4.

Results– The structural model estimations reveal that brand experience positively predicts brand advocacy (β = 0.341, p < .001) and negatively predicts service captivity (β = -0.341, p < .001). Conversely, service captivity does not significantly predict brand advocacy (β = -0.025, p = .497), and the hypothesized indirect (mediating) effect is not supported (β = 0.009, p = .513).

Discussion– The findings indicate that while positive brand experiences are associated with stronger brand advocacy and reduced perceptions of service captivity, advocacy primarily emerges from voluntary psychological engagement rather than constraint-based relationship mechanisms. This research advances service marketing literature by empirically separating the passive retention driven by necessity from the proactive endorsement driven by genuine consumer willingness.