Brand Engagement in Self-Concept Scale

What it measures

Measures the stable general tendency to include brands in one's self-concept — the degree to which brands are incorporated as part of how a person defines and expresses who they are. BESC is a personality-like trait capturing how central brands are to individual identity, independent of any specific brand. High BESC individuals define themselves partly through brand choices, are more responsive to brand personality appeals, show stronger self-brand connections, are more reactive to brand identity threats, and exhibit higher brand loyalty overall. Important for research on brand identity, luxury consumption, status signalling, and personalised brand communication.

Response format

Likert (1–7, strongly disagree to strongly agree)

Scale items

• I consider [brand] to be 'me' — it reflects who I am.
• I can identify with [brand].
• [Brand] is part of who I am.
• [Brand] says something about the kind of person I am or aspire to be.
• I consider [brand] to be my brand — one that I am personally connected to.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Score = mean. Higher = stronger brand engagement in self-concept. BESC moderates the effectiveness of brand identity-based appeals — high BESC consumers are more responsive to self-expressive brand advertising. Predicts brand loyalty and emotional brand attachment above and beyond quality evaluations.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Sprott, D., Czellar, S., & Spangenberg, E. (2009). The importance of a general measure of brand engagement on market behavior: Development and validation of a scale. Journal of Marketing Research, 46(1), 92–104.

Keywords