RT Article
T1 How Sustainability Ratings Might Deter ‘Greenwashing’: A Closer Look at Ethical Corporate Communication
JF Journal of business ethics
VO 102
IS 1
SP 15
OP 15
A1 Parguel, Béatrice
A1 Benoît-Moreau, Florence
A1 Larceneux, Fabrice
A2 Benoît-Moreau, Florence
A2 Larceneux, Fabrice
LA English
YR 2011
UL https://ixtheo.de/Record/1785642472
AB Of the many ethical corporate marketing practices, many firms use corporate social responsibility (CSR) communication to enhance their corporate image. Yet, consumers, overwhelmed by these more or less well-founded CSR claims, often have trouble identifying truly responsible firms. This confusion encourages ‘greenwashing’ and may make CSR initiatives less effective. On the basis of attribution theory, this study investigates the role of independent sustainability ratings on consumers’ responses to companies’ CSR communication. Experimental results indicate the negative effect of a poor sustainability rating for corporate brand evaluations in the case of CSR communication, because consumers infer less intrinsic motives by the brand. Sustainability ratings thus could act to deter ‘greenwashing’ and encourage virtuous firms to persevere in their CSR practices.
K1 Sustainability ratings
K1 Attribution Theory
K1 CSR communication
K1 Ethical corporate marketing
DO 10.1007/s10551-011-0901-2