The role of brand trust, brand love and brand loyalty in brand defence in the context of higher education in Ho Chi Minh city

Abstract

Brand defence has recently been recognised as a distinct construct in consumer-brand relationship research; however, its application in higher education remains limited. This study examines how students respond to negative information about their university brand and investigates the roles of brand trust, brand love, and brand loyalty in shaping such behaviours. Using a quantitative approach, data were collected from 283 valid student responses from public universities in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam. The data were analysed using SmartPLS 3 with Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM), following a two-stage procedure consisting of measurement model assessment and structural path testing via bootstrapping. The results confirm that brand trust, brand love, and brand loyalty all have significant positive effects on brand defence behaviour. In addition, brand loyalty plays a mediating role in the relationships between brand trust, brand love, and brand defence, indicating that emotional attachment and trust translate into defensive behaviours primarily through long-term commitment. These findings extend consumer-brand relationship theory to the higher education context and provide practical insights for universities seeking to strengthen brand resilience in increasingly competitive and digitally driven environments.