The Mediating Effect of Perceived Consumer Effectiveness on Attitude ...

A company’s engagement in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and the provision of information about it are commonly understood as desired by consumers. However, recent literature describes “greenhushing”, the deliberate underreporting of CSR efforts for fear of negative customer opinions. This research investigates whether general attitudes towards CSR communication are worsened or improved by CSR communication (one-way or two-way CSR communication) as compared to non-CSR communication. The mediating role of perceived consumer effectiveness (PCE) is investigated. Results show that two-way CSR communication leads to higher attitudes towards CSR communication than non-CSR communication. Moreover, for this type of communication, PCE fully mediates the relationship.