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The role of message specificity in corporate social responsibility communication

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  • Robinson, Stefanie
  • Eilert, Meike

Abstract

Companies vary in how they communicate their corporate social responsibility (CSR) endeavors, either reporting the specific causes supported (e.g., “We support the American Lung Association, Kidney Foundation, and Multiple Sclerosis Society”) or mentioning the issue in general (e.g., “We support advancing health”). This study investigates which message strategy (general or specific) is more effective and shows that when companies donate to a single issue (e.g., health), a specific rather than a general message strategy produces more positive evaluations. This is because consumers trust companies more when they communicate their cause support with more specificity. However, when a company donates to a diverse set of issues (e.g., health, environment, and education), a boundary condition to the effect occurs. This research has important implications for managers' decisions on how best to advertise their CSR efforts.

Suggested Citation

  • Robinson, Stefanie & Eilert, Meike, 2018. "The role of message specificity in corporate social responsibility communication," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 260-268.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:90:y:2018:i:c:p:260-268
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.05.028
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    3. Rachel Esther Lim & Wei‐Na Lee, 2023. "Communicating corporate social responsibility: How fit, specificity, and cognitive fluency drive consumer skepticism and response," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 955-967, March.
    4. Lan Li & Gang Li & Fu-Sheng Tsai & Hsiu-Yu Lee & Chien-Hsing Lee, 2019. "The Effects of Corporate Social Responsibility on Service Innovation Performance: The Role of Dynamic Capability for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-20, May.
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    7. Ghi-Feng Yen & Hui-Chun Tsao, 2020. "Reexamining Consumers’ Cognition and Evaluation of Corporate Social Responsibility via a DANP and IPA Method," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-26, January.
    8. Ginder, Whitney & Byun, Sang-Eun, 2022. "To trust or not to trust? The interplay between labor-related CSR claim type and prior CSR reputation of apparel retailers," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    9. Rocco Mazza & Emma Zavarrone & Mirko Olivieri & Daniela Corsaro, 2022. "A text mining approach for CSR communication: an explorative analysis of energy firms on Twitter in the post-pandemic era," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2022(3), pages 317-340, September.
    10. (Anna) Kim, Eunjin & Shoenberger, Heather & (Penny) Kwon, Eunseon & Ratneshwar, S., 2022. "A narrative approach for overcoming the message credibility problem in green advertising," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 449-461.
    11. Dae-Young Kim & Sung-Bum Kim & Kathleen Jeehyae Kim, 2019. "Building corporate reputation, overcoming consumer skepticism, and establishing trust: choosing the right message types and social causes in the restaurant industry," Service Business, Springer;Pan-Pacific Business Association, vol. 13(2), pages 363-388, June.
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    13. Xiaoyang Xu & Muhammad Imran & Muhammad Ayaz & Sonia Lohana, 2022. "The Mediating Role of Green Technology Innovation with Corporate Social Responsibility, Firm Financial, and Environmental Performance: The Case of Chinese Manufacturing Industries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-20, December.
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