Much to tell to consumers about CSR, but who should talk or not talk about it?

Béatrice Parguel (1) , Florence Benoît-Moreau (2)

1 IRG - Institut de Recherche en Gestion
2 DRM - Dauphine Recherches en Management

This paper aims at understanding whether firms should engage in CSR communications towards consumers, or let independent third parties do so. A generalisable sample of 275 adults participated in an experiment, manipulating third-parties credible information (positive information, negative, or absence of information) and company communication (generic vs. CSR communication). Results show a systematic positive effect of CSR communication on corporate brand attitude, even when negative third-parties information is available. CSR communication appears as an efficient and un-risky strategy. Results are further developed and discussed.

Mots clés: CSR communication; corporate brand attitude; greenwahsing; third-parties; experiment

Domaines: Gestion et management

Béatrice Parguel, Florence Benoît-Moreau. Much to tell to consumers about CSR, but who should talk or not talk about it?. EMAC, 2011, Ljubljana, Slovenia. ⟨halshs-00636241⟩