Universität zu Köln

Conrads, Julian ORCID: 0009-0006-2196-8514, Eyberg, Alexandra ORCID: 0009-0005-5600-4611, Irlenbusch, Bernd and Sarin, Maivand ORCID: 0000-0002-1340-3162 (2025). Does corporate responsibility increase consumers’ product value? Evidence from two experiments. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 238. pp. 1-13. Elsevier. ISSN 0167-2681

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Abstract

[Artikel-Nr.: 107189] Do consumers reward companies for engaging in corporate responsibility (CR)? Obtaining clear evidence on this question is challenging in naturally occurring purchasing environments due to numerous confounding factors, including brand reputation, product quality, and product appearance. CR predominantly focuses on two dimensions, i.e., (i) the social dimension, like providing fair working conditions, and (ii) the ecological dimension, like using recycled materials in production. We provide new evidence on this debate through two experiments in backpack sales for young adults. We find that CR information about both dimensions increases consumers’ product value by more than 17 percent. In a separate study, we ask whether this effect is potentially entirely driven by one of the two CR dimensions, specifically social versus ecological. We find no significant difference in the increase in consumers’ value between these two dimensions.

Item Type:	Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Conrads, Julian UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0009-0006-2196-8514 UNSPECIFIED Eyberg, Alexandra UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0009-0005-5600-4611 UNSPECIFIED Irlenbusch, Bernd UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Sarin, Maivand UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1340-3162 UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-806668
Identification Number:	10.1016/j.jebo.2025.107189
Journal or Publication Title:	Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization
Volume:	238
Page Range:	pp. 1-13
Number of Pages:	13
Date:	October 2025
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	0167-2681
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Management, Economy and Social Sciences
Divisions:	Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences > Business Administration > Corporate Development > Professorship for Business Administration, Corporate Development and Business Ethics
Subjects:	Social sciences Economics Management and auxiliary services
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language Corporate responsibility (CR) ; Responsible consumption ; Experiment ; Social dimension of CR ; Ecological dimension of CR English
['eprint_fieldname_oa_funders' not defined]:	Publikationsfonds UzK
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/80666