Sustaining customer engagement behavior through corporate social responsibility: The roles of environmental concern and green trust

• Published in: Journal of cleaner production 2020-07, Vol.262, p.121348, Article 121348
• Main Authors: Chuah, Stephanie Hui-Wen, El-Manstrly, Dahlia, Tseng, Ming-Lang, Ramayah, Thurasamy
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Corporate social responsibility; Customer citizenship behavior; Environmental concern; Green trust; Sustainable customer engagement behavior
• ISSN: 0959-6526; 1879-1786
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.121348

Prior studies on high-fit corporate social responsibility programs have yield equivocal findings; some studies have shown a positive impact on desirable customer outcomes and others have shown a negative impact. To reconcile these two divergent views, this study proposes that the relationship between perceived corporate social responsibility-brand fit and sustainable customer engagement behavior is serially mediated by self-cause and/or brand integration. Furthermore, such serial mediation mechanism is moderated by environmental concern and green trust. The results of an empirical study carried out in the airline industry confirm that the link between perceived corporate social responsibility-brand fit and sustainable customer engagement behavior is serially mediated by self-cause and/or brand integration and moderated by environmental concern and green trust. Sustainable customer engagement behavior, in turn, drives customers’ extra-role, citizenship behavior that goes beyond their in-role, loyalty behavior. This study contributes to the micro-corporate social responsibility stream of cleaner production by demonstrating that the relationship between perceived corporate social responsibility-brand fit and sustainable customer engagement behavior is not straightforward and by providing a theoretical framework to better explain the psychological mechanisms and boundary conditions affecting this relationship. [Display omitted] •A moderated mediation model of perceived CSR-brand fit and sustainable customer engagement behavior is proposed.•Self-cause and brand integration are the psychological mechanisms that underlie customers’ responses to high-fit CSR programs.•Environmental concern and green trust are the boundary conditions for this mediation process.•Customers citizenship behavior is as an important outcome variable of sustainable customer engagement behavior.•The findings provide a guidance to airlines to achieve sustainable customer engagement behavior.