TY - JOUR
T1 - Triadic Public-Company-Issue Relationships and Publics’ Reactions to Corporate Social Advocacy (CSA)
T2 - An Application of Balance Theory
AU - Rim, Hyejoon
AU - Xu, Hao
AU - Dong, Chuqing
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Drawing from balance theory, this study examines how publics respond to CSA in terms of their identification with the company and attitude toward the company depending on their balanced state and preexisting company attitude valence. Using real companies, two online experiments were employed by replicating different social issues: abortion and gun legislation. The results showed a greater degree of consumer-company identification and company attitude changes, respectively, when people experience an imbalanced state than a balanced state. The study also showed that control mutuality perception weakened such interactions, suggesting the role of equated bilateral relationships in how publics restore the balanced state. Theoretical and practical implications were discussed.
AB - Drawing from balance theory, this study examines how publics respond to CSA in terms of their identification with the company and attitude toward the company depending on their balanced state and preexisting company attitude valence. Using real companies, two online experiments were employed by replicating different social issues: abortion and gun legislation. The results showed a greater degree of consumer-company identification and company attitude changes, respectively, when people experience an imbalanced state than a balanced state. The study also showed that control mutuality perception weakened such interactions, suggesting the role of equated bilateral relationships in how publics restore the balanced state. Theoretical and practical implications were discussed.
KW - balance theory
KW - consumer-company identification
KW - control mutuality
KW - Corporate social advocacy (CSA)
KW - ideological identity
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U2 - 10.1080/1062726X.2022.2071273
DO - 10.1080/1062726X.2022.2071273
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85131923899
SN - 1062-726X
JO - Journal of Public Relations Research
JF - Journal of Public Relations Research
ER -