How nostalgic advertising fosters generation z's citizenship behavior: evidence from the Vietnamese FMCG industry based on the S-O-R paradigm

Abstract

This study investigates the mechanism by which nostalgic advertising drives customer citizenship behavior in the Vietnamese fast-moving consumer goods sector. Grounded in the Stimulus-Organism-Response framework, in which stimulus refers to marketing cues, organism stands for consumers’ psychological states, and response for behavioral outcomes. Additionally, this research incorporates Social Identity Theory and Self-Congruity Theory to examine the sequential mediating roles of self-continuity, value congruity, self-brand connection, and consumer-brand identification. Based on data collected from 389 urban Generation Z consumers and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling with SmartPLS 4, the findings show that nostalgic advertising significantly enhances self-continuity, value congruity, and self-brand connection. These psychological states subsequently strengthen consumer-brand identification, which in turn increases customer citizenship behavior. The results confirm a significant mediating mechanism, with value congruity emerging as the strongest pathway. The study offers implications for marketers to design nostalgia cues that emphasize value alignment and identity-based connection, moving beyond short-term transactions to build resilient, advocacy-driven brand communities.