Differential Response to Corporate Political Advocacy and Corporate Social Responsibility: Implications for Political Polarization and Radicalization

In recent years, firms have become increasingly involved in sociopolitical issues via corporate political advocacy (CPA) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) while consumers have become more politically polarized and skeptical of political institutions. Merging these developments, the present work examines similarities and differences in response to CPA and CSR, and the implications for consumer polarization and radicalization. Utilizing three studies across numerous domains, the authors demonstrate that (1) CPA results in increased negative sentiment and CSR results in increased positive sentiment on social media; (2) relative to CSR, CPA results in more negative and polarized reactions due to the controversial nature of CPA; and (3) polarized responses to CPA are stronger among consumers lower in political efficacy. Together, the findings shed light on the distinction between CPA and CSR and illustrate how (and among whom) CPA may contribute to polarization and radicalization via negative sentiment expressed through social media and consumer actions. Theoretical contributions, practical implications, and future research directions are detailed.