Digital Mascot Design for Enhancing Educational Institution's Brand Identity on Digital Platforms

Abstract

This study aimed to 1) design and develop a digital mascot prototype for the Faculty of Informatics, Mahasarakham University, which comprises diverse departments and requires a shared identity for organizational communication, by integrating Baby Schema Theory, the Kawaii concept, and shape language principles, with stakeholders participating in prototype evaluation, selection, and refinement; and 2) evaluate the prototype’s quality and appropriateness in communicating institutional identity and supporting institutional image development in a digital context. A mixed methods design comprised four stages : 1) studying the institutional context and developing design principles, 2) developing three types of mascot prototypes, 3) stakeholder evaluation and selection, and 4) prototype refinement and expert evaluation. Participants included 56 internal stakeholders and three experts. Data were collected using rating scale questionnaires, open-ended questions, and a prototype quality evaluation form, and analyzed using mean, standard deviation, content analysis, and sentiment classification.

The research results showed that the robot mascot achieved the highest overall mean score (x̄ = 4.39) and was selected most frequently (55.4%), with a high score for reflecting the faculty’s image (x̄ = 4.41). Sentiment classification showed that the robot mascot received the highest net positive sentiment score (+26). After refinement based on stakeholder feedback, experts rated its overall quality as very good (x̄ = 4.59, SD = 0.58). The findings indicate that, in addition to cuteness, symbolic clarity and consistency with organizational identity are important in mascot design for educational institutions. Stakeholders perceived the robot mascot as associated with a technological image and representative of the faculty.