The impact of brand community social responsibility on brand community engagement: the role of brand community admiration and grateful disposition

Purpose With social responsibility receiving increasing global attention, this research examines the impact of brand community social responsibility (BCSR) on brand community engagement and its facilitating effect on brand engagement. Furthermore, we identify the mediating role of brand community admiration as well as the moderating role of a grateful disposition. Design/methodology/approach This study investigates automotive brand communities in China and collected 726 valid questionnaire responses through an online data collection platform, applying partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) as the analytical method. Findings This study reveals that BCSR directly enhances brand community engagement, which subsequently fosters brand engagement. Brand community admiration mediates the relationship between BCSR and brand community engagement. Additionally, a grateful disposition moderates both the impact of BCSR on brand community engagement and the impact of BCSR on brand community admiration. Originality/value We incorporated social identity theory to explore how BCSR shapes brand community members' emotional responses and behaviors, and it proposes an emotion-based mechanism for brand community engagement. The findings provide practical insights on how to enhance brand community engagement effectively.