Membership Benefits Matter

• Author: Yuan Wang,Eyun‐Jung Ki
• Date: 01 December 2016
• Published date: 01 December 2016
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/nml.21230

199

N M  L, vol. 27, no. 2, Winter 2016 © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/nml.21230

Journal sponsored by the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University.

Membership Benefi ts Matter

EXPLORING THE FACTORS INFLUENCING MEMBERS’

BEHAVIORAL INTENTIONS IN PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

Eyun-Jung Ki , Yuan Wang

 e University of Alabama

Professional associations have provided various benefits to their members to bolster mem-

ber retention and recruitment. This study explored factors that could influence members’

behavioral intentions in professional membership associations by surveying 13,229 mem-

bers from eighteen associations. More specifically, this analysis focused on the effects of mem-

bers’ perceptions of the personal and professional benefits offered by associations with which

they are affiliated and their satisfaction with those benefits. Our results suggested that

members’ perceptions of personal and professional benefits positively correlated with their

intentions to renew and recommend membership. If a member perceived a higher level of

benefits, he or she would demonstrate a greater likelihood of satisfaction with the benefits

and therefore be more likely to renew membership or recommend it to others. This study

could advance understanding of the factors that influence members’ behavioral intentions

while also providing professional associations with strategies for retaining existing members.

Keywords: professional association , behavioral intention , membership benefit , satisfaction

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS PLAY a signifi cant role in modern society and in indi-

viduals’ lives, providing their members with access to desired products and services, a sense

of belonging and identity, and the opportunity to network with others who share similar

interests (Gruen 2000 ).  e number of associations in the United States has increased from

10,000 in 1970 and 222,500 in 2000 to 333,600 in 2014 (Community Association Institute

2014 ). About one-fi fth of the US population was involved in community associations in

2014.

Membership is defined as a sense of belonging to a group along with feelings of personal con-

nectedness with others in the group (McMillan and Chavis 1986 ). Professional association

managers have paid attention to the collective behaviors of their members, such as member-

ship retention rates and the degree to which members engage in and utilize membership ben-

efits (Gruen, Summers, and Acito 2000 ). Though a handful of studies have explored various

Correspondence to: Eyun-Jung Ki, the University of Alabama, Advertising and Public Relations, Box 870172, Tuscaloosa,

AL 35487–0172. E-mail: ki@apr.ua.edu.

 is study was supported by a fund that Dr. Eyun-Jung Ki received from the Institute for Nonprofi t Research, Education, and Engagement

at the North Carolina State University.

Nonprofi t Management & Leadership DOI: 10.1002/nml

200 KI, WANG

member behaviors, few have focused on the factors that influence specific member behaviors

(Markova et al. 2013 ).

Professional associations can provide their members with a variety of benefits. First, those

associations can certify that their members have appropriate knowledge related to their pro-

fessions (Greggs-McQuilkin 2005 ; Schein 1968 ). Second, associations provide direction for

the use of this knowledge to serve the public good, establish a code of ethics (Bruhn 2001 ),

and shape reasonable practices for their members (Greenwood, Suddaby, and Hinnings

2002 ). Third, professional associations fulfill a valuable social function for members who are

like-minded and similarly employed (Markova et al. 2013 ).

A few scholars have investigated the motivations and factors contributing to members’ behav-

iors. For instance, Knoke ( 1988 ) indicated that members’ interests in incentives provided by

collective-action organizations were predictors of member involvement based on a national

survey of American associations. Gruen ( 1994 ) suggested five motivations for joining profes-

sional associations: social identification, exchange for benefits, desire for information, need

for protection, and simplification of choice process. However, few studies have examined the

effects of personal and professional benefits and members’ satisfaction with those benefits on

various behaviors, such as retaining membership and recommending it to others.

The purpose of this study was to explore the factors that could influence members’ behav-

ioral intentions in professional membership associations. We used a survey of 13,229 mem-

bers from eighteen associations with the sponsorship of the American Society of Association

Executives (ASAE) to examine the effects of members’ perceptions of the personal and

professional benefits provided by their associations and their satisfaction with benefits on

members’ behavioral intentions. This study could advance the understanding of the factors

influencing members’ behavioral intentions by empirically examining the impacts of mem-

bers’ perceptions of benefits and satisfaction with benefits. Finally, this study could make sev-

eral practical contributions by providing professional associations with strategies for retaining

existing members and attracting potential members.

Literature Review

Professional associations are defined as “identification and organizing bodies for fields of pro-

fessional practice” (Hager 2014 ). Since their inception, professional associations have played

a significant role in the development of any profession (Abbott 1988 ; Pemberton 1994 ). The

establishment of an association fosters social recognition of an occupation as a profession in

the public and legal realms (Abbott 1988 ). A professional association can assert the auton-

omy of a job (Alexander 1980 ) while also offering a support network for members engaged

in their work (Hovekamp 1997 ).

Previous studies have focused on a variety of professional associations, such as public admin-

istration (Pugh 1989 ), information science (Fisher 1997 ), nursing (Greggs-McQuilkin

2005 ), and social movement associations (Cohn, Barkan, and Halteman 2003 ). For example,

Inglis et al. ( 2011 ) indicated that professional accounting associations were perceived essen-

tially to be collectives of professionals that provide common attributes to potential and exist-

ing members. Fisher ( 1997 ) suggested that librarians would feel isolated without the social

aspect that association meetings offer. Grounded in previous research (Hager 2014 ; Markova