Dyadic Interactions within Professional Memberships

Membership relationship is one area of relationship marketing in service sector, which is increasingly gaining attention in view of the growing popularity of individuals acquiring and maintaining memberships in associations. However, research in membership relationship is modest, particularly for professional associations (PAs). The propose of this study is to investigate how dyadic interactions (communication and member networks) impact members’ commitment to PAs, and how this process in turn leads to behavioral outcomes of members (retention, advocacy, and knowledge acquisition). Data were collected through an online survey questionnaire. Participants were recruited from three Australian health care PAs, resulting in 158 usable surveys. Partial Least Square technique was employed to test the structural model and hypotheses. Results indicate that communication and strength of members’ internal networks are positively related to members’ commitment to PAs. Commitment, in turn, leads to member retention, advocacy for the PA, and member knowledge acquisition. The results suggest that the most valuable members are those being able to open communication and develop strong internal networks as they will benefit from their memberships while simultaneously promote the PA.