You asked, we listened: Examining accountability through actions and listening in corporate social advocacy

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine corporate social advocacy (CSA) through the lens of stakeholder theory to explore how different CSA strategies may impact perceptions of accountability and stakeholder outcomes. A 2 (demonstrable action: present v. absent) x 2 (organizational listening: present v. absent) experiment was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 636 U.S. adults. Results revealed that both demonstrable action and organizational listening had positive effects on CSA accountability (i.e., perceived intent and perceived transparency), and these measures of accountability led to positive attitudes and supportive intentions toward the company. The findings provide guidelines for how CSA can effectively demonstrate accountability to stakeholders – to move beyond talking-the-talk to actually being seen as walking-the-walk in regard to engagement on social-political issues.