Shopper perception and loyalty: a stochastic approach to modelling shopping mall behaviour

Purpose – The study of shopping mall patronage behaviour includes concepts such as mall attributes and attractiveness, motivations and patronage choice. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of shopper loyalty and perception towards shopping malls. Design/methodology/approach – A survey using a systematic random sampling method was conducted on mall shoppers in major shopping malls in the most developed urban centres of Malaysia. Using a series of multivariate techniques, a stochastic model was developed to measure the impact of perception of malls on patronage loyalty. The model also estimated the mediating effects of brand trust and brand affect on patronage loyalty. Reliability and validity tests were conducted to measure the internal consistency and validity of the constructs. Findings – The results provided support for the hypothesised relationships between perception and loyalty. The results also suggested that malls generally have their own loyal patrons who not only perceive the malls positively but also stay loyal. Research limitations/implications – Some limitations of the study and future research directions were discussed subsequently. Practical implications – This stochastic model can be used by practitioners as a tool to predict possible outcomes via a series of market simulation and scenario planning. In short, marketers can optimise patronage loyalty by adjusting the parameters in the model in a predefined environment. Originality/value – This paper suggests that the survey instrument used in the study is reliable and valid. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to define the measurement models. Subsequently, structural equation modelling was used to develop the stochastic model. A series of mathematical equations were derived when constructing the model.