The effects of message framing in CSR advertising on consumers’ emotions, attitudes, and behavioral intentions
While recent research on sustainability communication demonstrates the relevance of message framing, research on the effects of message framing on consumers' emotions is scant. Using the Stimulus-Organism-Response (5-0-R) framework, this paper examines the impact of environmental advertisements (stimuli) on two discrete emotions - hope and guilt - (organism) and how these emotions influence consumers' behavioral intentions (responses). Relying on the prospect theory, this study focuses on positive (gain) and negative (loss) frames. Study 1 shows that, in the context of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), a gain message elicits hope while a loss-message triggers guilt. Study 2 shows that …
How environmental gain messages affect cause involvement, attitude and behavioural intentions: the moderating effects of CSR scepticism and biospheric values
PurposeThis study examines the direct effect of outcome message frames (gain vs loss) on cause involvement and the moderating roles of consumers' corporate social responsibility (CSR) scepticism and biospheric values. Furthermore, the authors analyse (1) the effects of gain-framed messages on consumer attitudes towards an environmental cause (i.e. the use of reusable coffee cups) and towards the company promoting the cause (a coffee shop chain); (2) how consumer attitudes towards the cause affect their attitudes towards the company; and (3) how consumer attitudes towards both the cause and the company affect their behavioural intentions towards both the cause and the company.Design/methodol…