Crisis Communication and Consumer Trust in Higher Education: A Case Study of Administrative Response to a Student Conflict

Résumé

This study investigates the role of Crisis Communication in determining Student Trust within the context of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) following an internal conflict. Focusing on the case of a student conflict at Sulaimani Polytechnic University in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, the research addresses a significant gap by examining the generalizability of crisis communication theories in a non-Western setting characterized by distinct power dynamics and cultural expectations. Utilizing a quantitative, cross-sectional survey methodology, data were collected from 131 students via proportional quota sampling to assess their perceptions of the university's communication response and their subsequent level of trust. Simple linear regression analysis revealed a statistically robust and highly significant positive relationship between Crisis Communication and Student Trust (β = 0.778, p < 0.001). The model explained 60.5% of the variance in student trust (R² = 0.605), demonstrating that the quality of the administrative communication response was the most powerful predictor of student confidence following the crisis. The findings confirm that timely, transparent, and accommodative communication strategies are instrumental in trust repair across diverse institutional and cultural settings. The study concludes by providing practical recommendations for HEI administrators to prioritize proactive and responsible communication to preserve institutional trust and maintain a resilient educational environment.