The effect of university ranking on learning satisfaction: Social identities and self-identity as the suppressor and mediators

The popularization of higher education has developed into a worldwide trend of ranking universities. In light of the lack of research from the student perspective and the non-individualism of East Asian society, the goal of the present study was to integrate social identity theory and characteristics of Chinese achievement goals in order to determine the relationships between university rankings and students' university identity, major identity, self-identity, and learning satisfaction (LS). The participants included 1052 undergraduates (49.4% male, 50.6% female) from 13 universities in Taiwan. A questionnaire was conducted. The results of hierarchical regression analyses show that university ranking positively correlates with students' university identity, major identity, and self-identity but negatively correlates with LS due to the effect of university identity acting as a suppressor. The results of structural equation modelling show that: (1) students' major identity and self-identity completely mediate the effect of university identity on LS; and (2) university ranking has a significantly negative effect on LS after adding multiple identities as the suppressor and mediators. Furthermore, as students progress further into their studies, both their university identity and major identity gradually decline, while their self-identity remains constant. Theoretical and practical implications for higher education are also discussed.