How do consumers’ perceptions differ across dimensions of corporate social responsibility and hotel types?

ABSTRACT

This study develops three hypotheses regarding corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the context of the hotel industry. First, the study examines a ranking of consumers’ perceived importance of the four CSR dimensions proposed by Carroll’s hierarchy of CSR in 1991, expecting the following orders: philanthropic, ethical, legal, and economic dimensions, from most to least important. Second, the study investigates the relationship between consumers’ perceived importance of and their overall support for CSR. Third, the study introduces the type of hotel (for example, economy, mid-scale, and upscale) as a moderator to provide a better explanation of the relationship between consumers’ perceived importance of the CSR dimensions and support for CSR. Contributions to the CSR literature in general, and also specifically relating to the hotel context, and managerial implications are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Corporate social responsibility
• importance of corporate social responsibility dimensions
• moderating role of hotel types
• hotel industry

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.