Business Ethics, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Brand Attitudes: An Exploratory Study
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-1-2019
Description
© 2018 Elsevier Inc. It is important to understand the relative importance of business ethics and social responsibility in determining brand attitudes. However, there has been a failure in prior research to differentiate between attitudes toward business ethics and CSR. This research reviews customer-brand research related to business ethics and social responsibility and conducts a study to evaluate customer attitudes. Four scenarios offer variations in company behaviors related to positive and negative conduct of customer social responsibility and business ethics. Study findings from a panel of 351 respondents provide new insights related to a customer's expectations and perceptions of company CSR and business ethics behavior. We conclude that although CSR attitudes remain important, customers value business ethics as a critical behavior in their perceptions of brand attitudes.
Citation Information
Ferrell, O. C.; Harrison, Dana E.; Ferrell, Linda; and Hair, Joe F.. 2019. Business Ethics, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Brand Attitudes: An Exploratory Study. Journal of Business Research. Vol.95 491-501. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.07.039 ISSN: 0148-2963