IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/corsem/v26y2019i1p141-151.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Corporate social responsibility information and involvement strategies in controversial industries

Author

Listed:
  • Agostino Vollero
  • Francesca Conte
  • Alfonso Siano
  • Claudia Covucci

Abstract

This paper assesses how companies belonging to controversial and non‐controversial industries differ in their adoption of corporate social responsibility (CSR) information and involvement strategies. Drawing on legitimacy and stakeholder theories, a thematic content analysis of the websites of companies listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Word Index is used to establish a set of measures for CSR communication strategies aimed at fostering stakeholder engagement. Companies in controversial industries are found to be more likely to adopt a CSR information strategy than those in non‐controversial industries but do not attempt to create stakeholder involvement. The results highlight the importance for communication managers in controversial organizations of considering information strategies as a meta‐level of engagement and of implementing an involvement strategy to mitigate the level of controversy. The study offers a wider conceptualization of the business activities of controversial industries and contributes to the debate on stakeholder engagement for organizational legitimacy.

Suggested Citation

  • Agostino Vollero & Francesca Conte & Alfonso Siano & Claudia Covucci, 2019. "Corporate social responsibility information and involvement strategies in controversial industries," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(1), pages 141-151, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:corsem:v:26:y:2019:i:1:p:141-151
    DOI: 10.1002/csr.1666
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1666
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/csr.1666?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Aerts, Walter & Cormier, Denis, 2009. "Media legitimacy and corporate environmental communication," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 1-27, January.
    2. Ye Cai & Hoje Jo & Carrie Pan, 2012. "Doing Well While Doing Bad? CSR in Controversial Industry Sectors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 108(4), pages 467-480, July.
    3. Susanne Arvidsson, 2010. "Communication of Corporate Social Responsibility: A Study of the Views of Management Teams in Large Companies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 96(3), pages 339-354, October.
    4. Vivien Beattie & Bill McInnes & Stella Fearnley, 2004. "A methodology for analysing and evaluating narratives in annual reports: a comprehensive descriptive profile and metrics for disclosure quality attributes," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(3), pages 205-236, September.
    5. Giacomo Manetti, 2011. "The quality of stakeholder engagement in sustainability reporting: empirical evidence and critical points," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(2), pages 110-122, March.
    6. Jon Reast & François Maon & Adam Lindgreen & Joëlle Vanhamme, 2013. "Legitimacy-Seeking Organizational Strategies in Controversial Industries: A Case Study Analysis and a Bidimensional Model," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 118(1), pages 139-153, November.
    7. Andreas Rasche & Daniel Esser, 2006. "From Stakeholder Management to Stakeholder Accountability," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 65(3), pages 251-267, May.
    8. Blake E. Ashforth & Barrie W. Gibbs, 1990. "The Double-Edge of Organizational Legitimation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 1(2), pages 177-194, May.
    9. Laura Illia & Stefania Romenti & Belén Rodríguez-Cánovas & Grazia Murtarelli & Craig E. Carroll, 2017. "Exploring Corporations’ Dialogue About CSR in the Digital Era," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 146(1), pages 39-58, November.
    10. Edmund Byrne, 2010. "The U.S. Military-Industrial Complex is Circumstantially Unethical," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(2), pages 153-165, August.
    11. Sarah Elena Windolph & Dorli Harms & Stefan Schaltegger, 2014. "Motivations for Corporate Sustainability Management: Contrasting Survey Results and Implementation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 21(5), pages 272-285, September.
    12. Margaret Lindorff & Elizabeth Prior Jonson & Linda McGuire, 2012. "Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility in Controversial Industry Sectors: The Social Value of Harm Minimisation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 110(4), pages 457-467, November.
    13. Monika Hartmann, 2011. "Corporate social responsibility in the food sector," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 38(3), pages 297-324, August.
    14. Shuili Du & Edward Vieira, 2012. "Striving for Legitimacy Through Corporate Social Responsibility: Insights from Oil Companies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 110(4), pages 413-427, November.
    15. Umit Alniacik & Esra Alniacik & Nurullah Genc, 2011. "How corporate social responsibility information influences stakeholders' intentions," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(4), pages 234-245, July.
    16. Lars Moratis & Satu Brandt, 2017. "Corporate stakeholder responsiveness? Exploring the state and quality of GRI‐based stakeholder engagement disclosures of European firms," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(4), pages 312-325, July.
    17. Michael Maloni & Michael Brown, 2006. "Corporate Social Responsibility in the Supply Chain: An Application in the Food Industry," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 68(1), pages 35-52, September.
    18. Angela R. Dobele & Kate Westberg & Marion Steel & Kris Flowers, 2014. "An Examination of Corporate Social Responsibility Implementation and Stakeholder Engagement: A Case Study in the Australian Mining Industry," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(3), pages 145-159, March.
    19. Grougiou, Vassiliki & Dedoulis, Emmanouil & Leventis, Stergios, 2016. "Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting and Organizational Stigma: The Case of “Sin” Industries," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(2), pages 905-914.
    20. David Eberle & Guido Berens & Ting Li, 2013. "The Impact of Interactive Corporate Social Responsibility Communication on Corporate Reputation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 118(4), pages 731-746, December.
    21. Hasseldine, J. & Salama, A.I. & Toms, J.S., 2005. "Quantity versus quality: the impact of environmental disclosures on the reputations of UK Plcs," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 231-248.
    22. Hoje Jo & Haejung Na, 2012. "Does CSR Reduce Firm Risk? Evidence from Controversial Industry Sectors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 110(4), pages 441-456, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Cristina Maranesi & Pietro De Giovanni, 2020. "Modern Circular Economy: Corporate Strategy, Supply Chain, and Industrial Symbiosis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-25, November.
    2. Irina Lock & Theo Araujo, 2020. "Visualizing the triple bottom line: A large‐scale automated visual content analysis of European corporations' website and social media images," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(6), pages 2631-2641, November.
    3. Leopizzi, Rossella & Palmi, Pamela & Di Cagno, Pierluca, 2023. "Sustainability reporting and electric utilities: A bibliometric analysis," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    4. Megumi Suto & Hitoshi Takehara, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility intensity, management earnings forecast accuracy, and investor trust: Evidence from Japan," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(6), pages 3047-3059, November.
    5. Yingkai Tang & Aswad Akram & Lucian‐Ionel Cioca & Syed Ghulam Meran Shah & Muhammad Asim Ali Qureshi, 2021. "Whether an innovation act as a catalytic moderator between corporate social responsibility performance and stated owned and non‐state owned enterprises' performance or not? An evidence from Pakistani ," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(3), pages 1127-1141, May.
    6. Bortnowska Hanna & Seiler Bartosz, 2022. "CSR in mission statements of Polish chemical industry companies (content analysis results)," Management, Sciendo, vol. 26(2), pages 1-23, December.
    7. Baobao Song & Jing (Taylor) Wen, 2020. "Online corporate social responsibility communication strategies and stakeholder engagements: A comparison of controversial versus noncontroversial industries," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(2), pages 881-896, March.
    8. Concepción Garcés‐Ayerbe & Pilar Rivera‐Torres & Inés Suárez‐Perales, 2019. "Stakeholder engagement mechanisms and their contribution to eco‐innovation: Differentiated effects of communication and cooperation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(6), pages 1321-1332, November.
    9. Ibrahim Sameer, 2021. "Impact of corporate social responsibility on organization’s financial performance: evidence from Maldives public limited companies," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 7(1), pages 1-21, December.
    10. María Ángeles Alcaide & Elena De La Poza & Natividad Guadalajara, 2019. "Assessing the Sustainability of High-Value Brands in the IT Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-20, March.
    11. Kevin Koh & Heather Li & Yen H. Tong, 2023. "Corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance and stakeholder engagement: Evidence from the quantity and quality of CSR disclosures," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 504-517, March.
    12. Riccardo Santamaria & Francesco Paolone & Nicola Cucari & Luca Dezi, 2021. "Non‐financial strategy disclosure and environmental, social and governance score: Insight from a configurational approach," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 1993-2007, May.
    13. Domenico Sardanelli & Francesca Conte & Agostino Vollero & Alfonso Siano, 2021. "CSR signals: exploring their use in controversial industries," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2021(3), pages 249-266, September.
    14. Sara Amabile & Francesca Conte & Agostino Vollero & Alfonso Siano, 2022. "Measuring and evaluating CSR information and involvement strategies on corporate Facebook pages," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2022(3), pages 341-369, September.
    15. Laura Illia & Elena Alberti & Grazia Murtarelli & Elanor Colleoni, 2022. "Being best in the world or best for the world? Fostering CSR cooperative behaviors through communication," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2022(2), pages 173-202, June.
    16. Francesca Conte & Agostino Vollero & Claudia Covucci & Alfonso Siano, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility penetration, explicitness, and symbolic communication practices in Asia: A national business system exploration of leading firms in sustainability," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(3), pages 1425-1435, May.
    17. Jose Manuel Diaz‐Sarachaga, 2021. "Monetizing impacts of Spanish companies toward the Sustainable Development Goals," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(4), pages 1313-1323, July.
    18. Hu, May & Xiong, Wanfang & Xu, Cheng, 2021. "Analyst coverage, corporate social responsibility, and firm value: Evidence from China," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    19. Obiamaka Adaeze Nwobu & Collins Ngwakwe & Akintola Owolabi & Kingsley Adeyemo, 2021. "An Assessment of Sustainability Disclosures in Oil and Gas Listed Companies in Nigeria," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 11(4), pages 352-361.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Domenico Sardanelli & Francesca Conte & Agostino Vollero & Alfonso Siano, 2021. "CSR signals: exploring their use in controversial industries," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2021(3), pages 249-266, September.
    2. Heather Markham Kim & Kyuha Cho & Younggin Choi & Junghoon (Jay) Lee & Jinsoo Hwang, 2021. "Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting in the Casino Industry: A Content Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-16, October.
    3. Sara Amabile & Francesca Conte & Agostino Vollero & Alfonso Siano, 2022. "Measuring and evaluating CSR information and involvement strategies on corporate Facebook pages," Italian Journal of Marketing, Springer, vol. 2022(3), pages 341-369, September.
    4. Abubakr Saeed & Muhammad Saad Baloch & Hammad Riaz, 2022. "Global Insights on TMT Gender Diversity in Controversial Industries: A Legitimacy Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(3), pages 711-731, September.
    5. Tiffany Cheng Han Leung & Robin Stanley Snell, 2017. "Attraction or Distraction? Corporate Social Responsibility in Macao’s Gambling Industry," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 145(3), pages 637-658, October.
    6. Francesca Conte & Pierluigi Vitale & Agostino Vollero & Alfonso Siano, 2018. "Designing a Data Visualization Dashboard for Managing the Sustainability Communication of Healthcare Organizations on Facebook," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-14, November.
    7. Baobao Song & Jing (Taylor) Wen, 2020. "Online corporate social responsibility communication strategies and stakeholder engagements: A comparison of controversial versus noncontroversial industries," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(2), pages 881-896, March.
    8. Asriansyah Siran Mawung & Bambang Mantikei Jaya Budi & Lelo Sintani & Agus Satrya Wibowo, 2019. "Effects of Employee Commitment on Collectivism in the Workplace: Further Evidence," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(4), pages 504-513.
    9. Saif Ullah & Ravi S. Mateti, 2021. "Do appearances deceive? The curious case of CSR activities and shunned companies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 11-29, January.
    10. Van Ha Nguyen & Frank W. Agbola & Bobae Choi, 2022. "Does Corporate Social Responsibility Enhance Financial Performance? Evidence from Australia," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 32(1), pages 5-18, March.
    11. Tahniyath Fatima & Said Elbanna, 2023. "Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Implementation: A Review and a Research Agenda Towards an Integrative Framework," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 183(1), pages 105-121, February.
    12. María Ángeles Alcaide & Elena De La Poza & Natividad Guadalajara, 2019. "Assessing the Sustainability of High-Value Brands in the IT Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-20, March.
    13. Jaime-Andres Correa-Garcia & Maria-Antonia Garcia-Benau & Emma Garcia-Meca, 2018. "CSR Communication Strategies of Colombian Business Groups: An Analysis of Corporate Reports," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-19, May.
    14. Kirsti Iivonen, 2018. "Defensive Responses to Strategic Sustainability Paradoxes: Have Your Coke and Drink It Too!," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(2), pages 309-327, March.
    15. Hans B. Christensen & Luzi Hail & Christian Leuz, 2021. "Mandatory CSR and sustainability reporting: economic analysis and literature review," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 26(3), pages 1176-1248, September.
    16. Tiffany Cheng-Han Leung & Robin Stanley Snell, 2021. "Strategies for Social and Environmental Disclosure: The Case of Multinational Gambling Companies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 168(3), pages 447-467, January.
    17. Simona Cosma & Rossella Leopizzi & Simone Pizzi & Mario Turco, 2021. "The stakeholder engagement in the European banks: Regulation versus governance. What changes after the NF directive?," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(3), pages 1091-1103, May.
    18. José María Agudo-Valiente & Concepción Garcés-Ayerbe & Manuel Salvador-Figueras, 2017. "Corporate Social Responsibility Drivers and Barriers According to Managers’ Perception; Evidence from Spanish Firms," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-24, October.
    19. Tsalis, Thomas A. & Nikolaou, Ioannis E. & Konstantakopoulou, Fotini & Zhang, Ying & Evangelinos, Konstantinos I., 2020. "Evaluating the corporate environmental profile by analyzing corporate social responsibility reports," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 63-75.
    20. Menno D. T. Jong & Mark Meer, 2017. "How Does It Fit? Exploring the Congruence Between Organizations and Their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Activities," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 143(1), pages 71-83, June.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:corsem:v:26:y:2019:i:1:p:141-151. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://doi.org/10.1002/(ISSN)1535-3966 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.