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Playing with fire: aggravating and buffering effects of ex ante CSR communication campaigns for companies facing allegations of social irresponsibility

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  • Joëlle Vanhamme
  • Valérie Swaen
  • Guido Berens
  • Catherine Janssen

Abstract

This study seeks to determine when communicating about corporate social responsibility (CSR) is likely to buffer against subsequent allegations of irresponsible behavior (in a different domain) or instead aggravate the effect of such allegations. In contrast with prior investigations of pre- or post-allegation effects in isolation, this study focuses on the interaction between CSR communication and allegations to discern conditions in which a buffering or aggravating effect is most likely. The authors identify an important contingency factor: the independence of the source in which the CSR communication appears. Aggravating effects tend to emerge when the CSR communication comes from a third-party source, whereas a buffering effect occurs when the CSR communication appears in a company-controlled source. Persuasion knowledge mediates these aggravating and buffering effects. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Joëlle Vanhamme & Valérie Swaen & Guido Berens & Catherine Janssen, 2015. "Playing with fire: aggravating and buffering effects of ex ante CSR communication campaigns for companies facing allegations of social irresponsibility," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 26(4), pages 565-578, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:mktlet:v:26:y:2015:i:4:p:565-578
    DOI: 10.1007/s11002-014-9290-5
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    3. Marcinkowska Elzbieta & Sawicka Joanna, 2023. "Corporate Social Responsibility as a Factor Influencing Purchasing Decisions of Consumers in Central and Eastern Europe," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(4), pages 281-299.
    4. Price, Joseph M. & Sun, Wenbin, 2017. "Doing good and doing bad: The impact of corporate social responsibility and irresponsibility on firm performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 82-97.
    5. Su, Lujun & Gong, Qi & Huang, Yinghua, 2020. "How do destination social responsibility strategies affect tourists’ intention to visit? An attribution theory perspective," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    6. Kim T. Baumgartner & Carolin A. Ernst & Thomas M. Fischer, 2022. "How Corporate Reputation Disclosures Affect Stakeholders’ Behavioral Intentions: Mediating Mechanisms of Perceived Organizational Performance and Corporate Reputation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 175(2), pages 361-389, January.
    7. Ilaria Baghi & Paolo Antonetti, 2021. "The higher they climb, the harder they fall: The role of self‐brand connectedness in consumer responses to corporate social responsibility hypocrisy," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(4), pages 1216-1230, July.
    8. Sojung Kim & Sejung Marina Choi, 2018. "Congruence Effects in Post-crisis CSR Communication: The Mediating Role of Attribution of Corporate Motives," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(2), pages 447-463, December.
    9. María Iborra & Marta Riera, 2023. "Corporate social irresponsibility: What we know and what we need to know," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(3), pages 1421-1439, May.
    10. Valor, Carmen & Antonetti, Paolo & Zasuwa, Grzegorz, 2022. "Corporate social irresponsibility and consumer punishment: A systematic review and research agenda," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 1218-1233.
    11. Zhe Zhang & Mijia Gong & Shanshan Zhang & Ming Jia, 2023. "Buffering or Aggravating Effect? Examining the Effects of Prior Corporate Social Responsibility on Corporate Social Irresponsibility," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 183(1), pages 147-163, February.
    12. Janssen, Catherine & Swaen, Valérie & Du, Shuili, 2022. "Is a specific claim always better? The double-edged effects of claim specificity in green advertising," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 435-447.
    13. Marta Pizzetti & Lucia Gatti & Peter Seele, 2021. "Firms Talk, Suppliers Walk: Analyzing the Locus of Greenwashing in the Blame Game and Introducing ‘Vicarious Greenwashing’," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 170(1), pages 21-38, April.
    14. Toms Kreicbergs & Modrite Pelse, 2019. "The Ways Of Promoting Corporate Social Responsibility Efforts For Today’S Consumer: The Opinions Of Consumers And Experts," Economy & Business Journal, International Scientific Publications, Bulgaria, vol. 13(1), pages 399-406.
    15. Nick Lin-Hi & Igor Blumberg, 2018. "The Link Between (Not) Practicing CSR and Corporate Reputation: Psychological Foundations and Managerial Implications," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 150(1), pages 185-198, June.
    16. Kim, Junghyun & Park, Taehoon, 2020. "How corporate social responsibility (CSR) saves a company: The role of gratitude in buffering vindictive consumer behavior from product failures," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 461-472.
    17. 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.
    18. Paolo Antonetti & Ilaria Baghi, 2021. "How the sender’s positioning and the target’s CSR record influence the effectiveness of scapegoating crisis communications," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 32(4), pages 411-423, December.
    19. Gatti, Lucia & Pizzetti, Marta & Seele, Peter, 2021. "Green lies and their effect on intention to invest," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 228-240.
    20. Paolo Antonetti & Benedetta Crisafulli & Aybars Tuncdogan, 2021. "“Just Look the Other Way”: Job Seekers’ Reactions to the Irresponsibility of Market-Dominant Employers," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 174(2), pages 403-422, November.

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