Consumer perceptions of CSR: (how) is China different?

Abstract

Purpose -Most studies on consumers and CSR have focused on Western contexts. Consequently, good insight is lacking into non-Western markets where consumers may respond differently. China is a case in point, despite the popularity of the CSR concept and high societal expectations of firms. This article examines how Chinese consumers perceive the underlying components of CSR found in Western countries; whether their CSR expectations differ for local Chinese compared to foreign firms; and whether results differ across regions within China.Design/methodology/approach -A country-wide study was done using a questionnaire to collect data in seven distinctive regional markets across China.Findings -Findings show that the originally Western CSR construct seems generalizable to China, but consumers across all regions perceive two rather than four components: one combining economic and legal responsibilities (labelled 'required CSR') and another combining ethical and philanthropic responsibilities ('expected CSR'). Consumers expect local Chinese firms to take more responsibility than foreign firms, particularly for required CSR.Research limitations/implications -This study focused on consumer perceptions, not on actual buying behaviour, which is a potential area for further research. Follow-up investigation to see whether our findings regarding the CSR concept also hold in other emerging and developing countries would be worthwhile. This also applies to an extension of the different expectations vis-à-vis foreign and local firms.Practical implications -Our study gives more insight into notions of standardization and adaptation with regard to CSR, considering China compared to other countries, and China's different internal markets. This is relevant for international marketers confronted with (potential) investments and activities in China, inbound or outbound, or in need of a comparative global perspective.Social implications -While our findings show some context-specificity for CSR in China, they also confirm the relevance of the originally Western CSR components to an emerging-market setting. These insights may be helpful for those interested in furthering CSR across countries, and locally as well as globally.Originality/value -This study responds to calls for an improved understanding of the contextspecificity of the originally Western CSR construct and of the extent to which it may be generalizable to non-Western settings such as China. We used a sample covering all regions of China and discovered two important dimensions. The results may be helpful to guide the debate on the plethora of CSR conceptualizations into a more focused direction, with clear relevance for the marketing field.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Consumer Buying Behavior in Emerging Market: A Mixed Method Study

“…Thus, the impact of CSR in developing nations has remained largely unexplored. In fact, Kolk et al (2015) established that constructs developed in the West are not applicable the same way in China, and suggested that there is a need to focus on non-Western countries.…”

Corporate Social Responsibility and the Long-Term Performance of Mergers and Acquisitions: Do Regions and Related-Party Transactions Matter?

“…Namely, comparing to their counterparts in the middle and western regions of China, firms in eastern regions enjoy more benefits in M&A performance by fulfilling CSR. Compared to other studies that focus on CSR differences across regions [42][43][44], this paper further explores different CSR-performance linkages across regions. Our study indicates that different markets, legal requirements, and governance environments might have significant effects on CSR-performance linkages.…”

“…Kühn found that, unlike companies in Western countries, African companies' CSR activities mainly focus on philanthropy, and CSR reporting was positively influenced by both GDP and the level of governance standards. Kolk et al (2015) [43] conducted a survey in China and found that Chinese customers perceive two components (instead of four) in Western CSR constructs. Baughn et al (2007) [44] conducted a survey in 104 countries and found that CSR is different across countries and regions.…”

The Fit between Employees’ Perception and the Organization’s Behavior in Terms of Corporate Social Responsibility

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