The impact of CSR on nonprofit outcomes: how the choice of corporate partner influences reputation and supportive intentions

PurposeWhile research has shown that corporate social responsibility (CSR) can enhance a company's reputation, less is known about the effects of CSR communication on nonprofits. Hence, the current study seeks to understand how corporate reputation, message credibility and message source may impact consumers' attitudinal and behavioral intentions toward nonprofits.Design/methodology/approachA 2 (corporate reputation: low vs high) × 2 (CSR communication source: newspaper blog vs nonprofit blog) between-subjects online experiment was conducted. Real-world corporations (Toyota and Volkswagen) and a nonprofit (World Wildlife Fund) were chosen based on a pretest.FindingsNonprofit reputation increased after reading a CSR message, especially when it involved a partnership with a low-reputation corporation. Nevertheless, CSR partnerships with high-reputation corporations evoked higher volunteer intentions. Message credibility mediated the relationship between corporate reputation and nonprofit reputation. When the communication source was the nonprofit and the partnership involved a high-reputation corporation, positive evaluations of nonprofit likeability and competence resulted.Practical implicationsNonprofit communication managers should understand the merit of communicating CSR partnerships with their constituents, regardless of medium. Additionally, the choice of a corporate partner is important for certain nonprofit outcomes. Lastly, message credibility is another important factor that should be considered.Originality/valueThe study bridges literature in communications that typically examines CSR by focusing on its effects on corporate outcomes with literature in nonprofit management that looks at nonprofit outcome measures. This study demonstrated that nonprofit–corporate alliances can also influence nonprofit reputation and donation/volunteer intentions based on the reputation of the corporate partner.

The Role of Vocal Affect in Persuasion: The CIVA Model

Past research has largely focused on how emotional expressions provide information about the speaker’s emotional state, but has generally neglected vocal affect’s influence over communication effectiveness. This is surprising given that other nonverbal behaviors often influence communication between individuals. In the present theory paper, we develop a novel perspective called the Contextual Influences of Vocal Affect (CIVA) model to predict and explain the psychological processes by which vocal affect may influence communication through three broad categories of process: emotion origin/construal, changing emotions, and communication source inferences. We describe research that explores potential moderators (e.g., affective/cognitive message types, message intensity), and mechanisms (e.g., emotional assimilation, attributions, surprise) shaping the effects of vocally expressed emotions on communication. We discuss when and why emotions expressed through the voice can influence the effectiveness of communication. CIVA advances theoretical and applied psychology by providing a clear theoretical account of vocal affect’s diverse impacts on communication.

Promouvoir « la parité » en entreprise : un enjeu de communication source de dépolitisation de l'égalité

Cet article s’intéresse à une campagne de communication hybride qui fait la promotion du « volet parité » la politique « diversité » de l’entreprise Accenture intitulée Equals. Son objectif, à la fois institutionnel et promotionnel, est d’attirer les talents en montrant l’entreprise énonciatrice comme un espace de travail où il fait bon travailler. Diffusés dans l’espace public comme en interne de l’organisation, les affiches et leurs messages sont les objets analysés ici. Notre analyse critique du discours de campagne montre la manière dont il reproduit une bicatégorisation genrée normative en soulignant que l’engagement égalitariste déclaré est conditionné à une égalité préalable. Il souligne que les efforts consentis par l’entreprise en vue d’un traitement plus égalitaire sont arrimés à la démonstration des compétences et des performances professionnelles des femmes. Cette posture discursive renvoie implicitement au fait que celles-ci sont elles-mêmes responsables des phénomènes inégalitaires qu’elles subissent dans le monde du travail. Les inégalités sources de discriminations ne sont ici ni montrées ni prises en compte. Ce discours de campagne qui présente l’implication de l’entreprise pour davantage d’égalité constitue dès lors, paradoxalement, un discours à caractère euphémique et aux effets dépolitisants.

The Value of Brand Fans during a Crisis: Exploring the Roles of Response Strategy, Source, and Brand Identification

Using a two (crisis response strategy: diminish vs. rebuild) × three (source: brand organization vs. brand executive vs. brand fan) experimental design, this study examines how brand fans (i.e., consumers who identify with a brand) can be prompted to protect a brand’s reputation during crises and how the selection of a crisis spokesperson can influence consumers’ evaluations of the crisis communication. Being buffers for their preferred brands, brand fans are more likely to accept their brand’s crisis response and engage in positive electronic word-of-mouth on social media. Brand fans are more likely to evaluate other brand fan’s social media accounts as a credible crisis communication source, whereas those who are not brand fans are more likely to evaluate brand and/or brand executives as credible. Findings provide theoretical applications in paracrisis literature pertaining to social media but also practical implications for brand managers to strategically utilize brand fans in crisis communication.

Dangerous liaisons: an online experiment on the role of scientific experts and politicians in ensuring public support for anti-COVID measures

The effectiveness of public health measures to prevent COVID-19 contagion has required less vulnerable citizens to pay an individual cost in terms of personal liberty infringement to protect more vulnerable groups. However, the close relationship between scientific experts and politicians in providing information on COVID-19 measures makes it difficult to understand which communication source was more effective in increasing pro-social behaviour. Here, we present an online experiment performed in May 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic on 1131 adult residents in Lombardy, Italy, one of the world's hardest hit regions. Results showed that when scientific experts recommended anti-contagion measures, participants were more sensitive to pro-social motivations, unlike whenever these measures were recommended by politicians and scientific experts together. Our findings suggest the importance of trusted sources in public communication during a pandemic.

Modelling and optimising a new hybrid ad-hoc network cooperation strategy performance using genetic algorithm

The lifetime of an ad-hoc network depends on a mobile device?s limited battery capacity. In ad-hoc multi-hop communication, source nodes use intermediate nodes as a relay to communicate with remote destinations. As cooperation between nodes is restrained by their battery resources, it might not be in their best interests to always accept relay requests. Therefore, if all nodes decide how much energy to spend for relaying, selfish or non-cooperative nodes reduce cooperation by rejecting to forward packets to others, thereby leading to a dramatic drop in the network?s throughput. Three strategies have been founded to solve this problem: tit-for-tat, live-and-let-live, and selective drop. This research explored a new strategy in ad-hoc cooperation which resulted from the combination of the live-and-let-live and selective drop strategies. This new strategy is based on the suggestion to select fewer hops with a low drop percentage and sufficient power to stay alive after forwarding the data packets towards the destination or other relays at the route path. We used a genetic algorithm (GA) to optimise the cooperative problem. Moreover, the fitness equation of the GA population was designed according to the mixing of the two strategies, which resulted in a new optimized hybrid dynamic-static cooperation.

Influence of Interpersonal Communication Partner on Uptake of Voluntary Medical Male circumcision among Married Men in Kenya

Background Studies have shown that male circumcision offers partial “vaccine” against heterosexually acquired HIV as a result WHO recommended it as one of the strategies to fight the AIDS scourge. Married and older men have registered low uptake of the “cut” in the targeted communities in Kenya. Considerable evidence suggests that communication inequality and choice of interpersonal information source are determinants in adoption of healthy behaviours such as adoption of male circumcision. This study aimed to examine how interpersonal communication source attributes (trust, similarity and expertise) may influence uptake of male circumcision among married men in Busia County, Kenya. Methods Voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) programme targets males aged up to 49 years. This study targeted married men aged between 20 and 49 years. Measures included socio-demographic characteristics, sources of VMMC information, perception on interpersonal source attributes of trust, expertise, and similarity between source and recipient. Sources regarded as trusted and expert were also measured including similarity dimensions of ethnicity, gender, age and marital status. A total of 377 participants completed the self-administered questionnaires, giving a response rate of 100%. Descriptive statistics tables such as those showing frequencies, mean and standard deviation of constructs were used. Due to the nature of the data collected, the Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient was computed to measure the relationship between socio-demographic characteristics and interpersonal communication source attribute. Results The Pearson Correlation computed revealed there existed a significant positive correlation between age and source trustworthiness and negative correlation with expertise. Marriage duration had a significant positive correlation with trustworthiness of source attribute. Trusted source was a friend. A health care provider was regarded as an expert source while similarity between source and recipient dimensions of age and ethnicity were given more weight. Health worker was the most popular source of VMMC information. Conclusion This study has revealed fundamental insights and provided evidence that the quality of the message carrier and demographic characteristics are critical factors to consider in implementing VMMC programme especially targeting married and older men who register low uptake. VMMC programmes using interpersonal channels must put more premium on the choice of the messenger as trust and expertise of source including similarity between communication partners is vital in the success of such communication interventions involving adoption of a sensitive cultural and sexual issue especially targeting married men.