Repositioning Technical and Vocational Education and Training in National Education Hierarchies: A Marketing Management Analysis of Reputational Equity in The Gambia
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This study examines the formation and constraints of reputational equity within the Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector in The Gambia, extending marketing theory by conceptualising TVET as a sector-level (macro-brand) system rather than a collection of individual institutions. A convergent mixed methods design was employed, combining large-scale survey data with in-depth stakeholder interviews across multiple regions. Quantitative and qualitative data were analysed concurrently and integrated to examine how institutional signalling, stakeholder perceptions, and symbolic legitimacy interact to shape reputational outcomes. The findings reveal a functional-symbolic reputational paradox, in which Technical and Vocational Education and Training is widely perceived as economically valuable for employability and entrepreneurship, yet remains constrained by low prestige and identity-based hesitation. While signalling infrastructure positively influences stakeholder perceptions, its impact is moderated by symbolic legitimacy structures that filter how value is interpreted. Reputational equity is shown to enhance trust and advocacy, but its conversion into enrolment preference remains conditional on overcoming stigma and status-based hierarchies. The study advances marketing management scholarship by (i) extending reputational equity to a sector-level market system, (ii) introducing the functional–symbolic paradox as a boundary condition in value–choice relationships, and (iii) developing a signal-dependent, multi-stakeholder model of reputational formation in education markets. The findings provide a transferable framework for analysing reputational dynamics in Technical and Vocational Education and Training and other public service sectors, particularly in emerging economies.
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