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How corporate social responsibility initiatives affect the choice of a bank: Empirical evidence of Italian context

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  • Valentina Lagasio
  • Nicola Cucari
  • Carl Åberg

Abstract

For all firms, it is imperative to identify and understand the factors that influence consumers purchasing behaviors and, specifically, identify how customer demographics relate to corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. However, limited research exists on banking consumer's preferences and responses towards different CSR initiatives. Therefore, using an exploratory survey consisting of 250 received responses of attitudes and perceptions from customers of Italian savings banks, we investigate the interactions between three types of CSR initiatives (ethical behavior towards the environment, social inclusion initiatives, and financing eco‐sustainable projects) and respondents' demographic characteristics. We predict that different types of CSR initiatives influence the choice of banking institution among customers with diverse demographic characteristics (age, geographic origin, and type of employment). This research helps in making several important contributions to CSR research which can assist banks in developing effective CSR strategies.

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  • Valentina Lagasio & Nicola Cucari & Carl Åberg, 2021. "How corporate social responsibility initiatives affect the choice of a bank: Empirical evidence of Italian context," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(4), pages 1348-1359, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:corsem:v:28:y:2021:i:4:p:1348-1359
    DOI: 10.1002/csr.2162
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    2. Luigi Leclercq-Machado & Aldo Alvarez-Risco & Sharon Esquerre-Botton & Camila Almanza-Cruz & Maria de las Mercedes Anderson-Seminario & Shyla Del-Aguila-Arcentales & Jaime A. Yáñez, 2022. "Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility on Consumer Satisfaction and Consumer Loyalty of Private Banking Companies in Peru," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-17, July.
    3. Herrador-Alcaide, Teresa & Topa, Gabriela & Fernández-Muñoz, Juan José, 2024. "CSR of stock markets companies and customers purchase intentions: An empirical analysis in Spain," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    4. Tze Kiat Lui & Mohd Haniff Zainuldin, 2022. "Do foreign banks disclose corporate social responsibility practices more than their local counterparts? Empirical evidence of an emerging market context," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(5), pages 1855-1870, September.
    5. Rosalia Castellano & Gennaro Punzo & Giuseppe Scandurra & Antonio Thomas, 2022. "Exploring antecedents of innovations for small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises' environmental sustainability: An interpretative framework," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 1730-1748, May.
    6. Erum Shaikh & Mohsen Brahmi & Pham Chien Thang & Waqas Ahmad Watto & Ta Thi Nguyet Trang & Nguyen Thi Loan, 2022. "Should I Stay or Should I Go? Explaining the Turnover Intentions with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Organizational Identification and Organizational Commitment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-16, May.

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