Corporate social responsibility authenticity: Investigating its antecedents and outcomes

Authenticity is examined in various marketing literature, but an understanding of its role in the context of corporate social responsibility (CSR) is lacking. Although it is known that consumers reward companies that engage in CSR, there is still a notable level of skepticism that hinders the success of CSR campaigns. This paper describes two studies. The first employs content analysis to understand the factors that influence the perceived authenticity of CSR initiatives. The second empirical study develops and validates a CSR authenticity scale and offers evidence that CSR authenticity is influenced by fit, impact, and reparation. Further, the findings indicate that CSR authenticity has a mediating influence on important consumer outcomes. The results indicate that it is not enough for a firm to simply engage in CSR. A firm's CSR strategy must also take into account the extent to which consumers perceive the CSR initiative to be authentic.