Customer engagement as a bridge between social media trust and perceived value in the Iraqi insurance sector

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractThe role of trust in social media platforms has gained increasing importance in the Iraqi insurance sector, as digital transformation is still in its early stages and customers are striving to build trust in digital platforms. This study aims to investigate the impact of customer trust in social media on perceived value and whether customer engagement mediates between the impact of customer trust in social media and perceived value in the context of an Iraqi insurance company. The study employed a quantitative cross-sectional design, and data were collected from 420 customers of Iraqi insurance companies who had previously used social media platforms. A self-administered online questionnaire was designed and distributed to residents in various Iraqi governorates using purposive sampling between August and November 2025. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to test the proposed relationship. The results show that customer engagement (β = 0.503, p < 0.001) and perceived value (β = 0.450, p < 0.001) are positively and statistically significantly influenced by customer trust in social media platforms. Customer engagement (β = 0.244, p < 0.001) also positively influences their perceived value. Furthermore, customer engagement fully mediates the relationship between customer trust in social media platforms and perceived value (β = 0.120, p < 0.001). These findings offer an important lesson for insurance companies in Iraq seeking to better engage customers through their digital channels.