We’re All in This Together: Legitimacy and Coronavirus-Oriented CSR Messaging

Nicholas Browning, Ejae Lee, Sung Hyun Lee and Sung-Un Yang
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Nicholas Browning: The Media School, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
Ejae Lee: The Media School, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
Sung Hyun Lee: The Media School, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
Sung-Un Yang: The Media School, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 5, 1-38

Abstract: This study investigates how legitimization strategies embedded in CSR messages related to the COVID-19 pandemic influenced multidimensional stakeholder assessments of reputation. The results of this 3 × 2 × 2 experimental survey, which manipulated pragmatic and moral legitimacy using three conditions (self- vs. other- vs. both-oriented messaging); substantive and symbolic management (informative vs. uninformative content); and popularization and standardization approaches (leadership vs. followership), indicate that popularization strategies communicated substantively and standardization strategies communicated symbolically generally yield the greatest reputational gains. More nuanced findings from three-way interaction effects are further discussed, with an emphasis on the role of double-sided messages seeking to simultaneously establish pragmatic and moral legitimacy.

Keywords: public relations; legitimacy; corporate social responsibility (CSR); reputation management; COVID-19 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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