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Understanding Corporate Social Responsibility and Product Perceptions in Consumer Markets: A Cross-cultural Evaluation

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Abstract

The concept of corporate social responsibility is becoming integral to effective corporate brand management. This study adopts a multidimensional and cross-country perspective of the concept and analyses consumer perceptions of behaviour of four leading consumer products manufacturers. Data was collected from consumers in two countries – Spain and the UK. The study analyses consumers’ degree of interest in corporate responsibility and its impact on their perception about the company. The findings here suggest a weak impact of company-specific communication on consumers’ perception. The implications of this study are relevant to companies for strengthening their social responsibility associations with the consumers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kingston Business School, Kingston Unversity, Kingston, Survey, KT27LB, UK

    Jaywant Singh

  2. Business Administration and Economic Faculty, University of Cantabria, Avenida de los Castos s/n, 39005, Santander, Spain

    Maria del Mar Garcia de los Salmones Sanchez & Igancio Rodriguez del Bosque

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  1. Jaywant Singh
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  2. Maria del Mar Garcia de los Salmones Sanchez
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  3. Igancio Rodriguez del Bosque
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Correspondence to Jaywant Singh.

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Dr. Jaywant Singh is Senior Lecturer at Kingston University, London where he teaches consumer behaviour and international marketing. His research interests include customer loyalty, product variants, new brands, corporate social responsibility, and consumer panel data. He received his PhD in marketing in 2004.

Dr. Maria de Mar Garcia de los Salmones is Lecturer at University of Cantabria (Spain). Her current research interests include corporate social responsibility, brand image and consumer behaviour. She received her PhD in business administration in 2002.

Dr. Ignacio Rodriguez de Bosque is Professor of Marketing at the University of Cantabria (Spain). His current research interests include Business Communication, relationship marketing and distribution channels. He has published in several international journals such as Tourism, Management, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services and Industrial Marketing Management.

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Singh, J., de los Salmones Sanchez, M. & del Bosque, I. Understanding Corporate Social Responsibility and Product Perceptions in Consumer Markets: A Cross-cultural Evaluation. J Bus Ethics 80, 597–611 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-007-9457-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-007-9457-6

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