The effects of information cues on perceived legitimacy of companies that promote corporate social responsibility initiatives on social networking sites

Yoon-Joo Lee, Hye Jin Yoon and Nicole H. O'Donnell

Journal of Business Research, 2018, vol. 83, issue C, 202-214

Abstract: Social networking sites are increasingly used to promote corporate social responsibility initiatives. Consumers can like, share, or comment on corporate social responsibility messages on social networking sites, signaling public approval or disapproval and affecting an individual's perceived legitimacy of the organization. Especially for controversial companies, such as alcohol brands, both perceived legitimacy of a cause and consumer purchase intention might be enhanced by expressions of public support on social networking sites. However, few studies have explored this relationship. The findings from Experiment 1 suggest that the number of followers (low vs. high) affected perceived legitimacy and purchase intention. Experiment 2 revealed that the effects of comment valence on attitudinal and behavioral intention interacted with the number of followers. These findings advance our current knowledge of factors associated with perceived legitimacy of companies that promote corporate social responsibility campaigns on social networking sites. Implications for advertising research and practice are discussed.

Keywords: Corporate social responsibility; Perceived legitimacy; Social networking sites; System-generated information; User-generated information (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (20)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:83:y:2018:i:c:p:202-214

DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2017.09.039

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