Summary: | This research examines how consumers react to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and how the country of origin (COO) (domestic vs. foreign) affects the relation between CSR and consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP). With one exploratory study and two experimental studies, we sought to explore constructs. In the second study we used an open-ended contingent valuation, adopting a hypothetical approach to WTP. In the third study we adopted a first-price sealed bid auction approach, using money in a “real world” setting. The results showed that the CSR/CSIR affects the consumer behaviour and, particularly, consumers’ WTP and purchase intents. The third study supports both of the moderation hypothesis of COO in the relationship between CSR/CSIR and WTP and between CSR/CSIR and purchase intents. In the Globalization context, these results have important implications for brand’s communication and marketing strategy and can stimulate important insights in organizations. These results, the identified limitations and future research directions are also important for science, contributing for the debate of the topic.
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