HOW DO PUBLIC SERVICE USERS SEE PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS? DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF THE PUBLIC BRAND PERSONALITY SCALE

Abstract

Objective: to develop the Public Brand Personality Scale (PBP Scale), presenting evidence of validity and reliability of a scientific instrument to measure public brand personality. Method: A qualitative study was carried out with 142 usuários dos serviços públicos do Na Hora do Distrito Federal to identify the attributes linked to the public brand, generating a pilot version of the scale based on content analysis, which was submitted to judge and semantic analysis, and pre-test. The final version was applied in a survey with 548 public service users do Distrito Federal . Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were used for data analysis. Originality/Relevance: presents an unprecedented measurement model to operationalize and assess brand personality in the context of the public sector, in order to allow it to be used as a diagnostic tool for public managers to build a more transparent and effective relationship with public service users. Results: The PBP Scale has 15 traits of public brand personality grouped into three dimensions - Efficiency, Relevance, and Credibility. All the items reached excellent psychometric indices. The scale has evidence of exploratory, confirmatory, internal, construct (convergent, divergent and nomological), and content validity, as well as reliability, engendering a reliable scientific instrument to measure public brand personality. Theoretical/methodological contributions: We present the dimensions of brand personality attributed to public institutions' brands, contributing to branding and marketing research on the public sector, opening opportunities for relational studies of marketing and public organizations. The use of robust statistics contributes to the credibility of the use of scale.