The impact of perceived CSR initiatives on consumers buying behaviour: An empirical study

Abu Bashar, Assistant Professor, Institute of Management Studies, Dehradun. ABSTRACT Although research into CSR and consumer behavior is still relativel oung, there e!ists a

gro"ing interest in stud ing the lin#s bet"een CSR and mar#eting. The Indian consumers are no" "ell a"are that, in $ursuing their business endeavors, com$anies no" have to sho" more res$onsibilit to"ards societ and the environment "here the are o$erating and at the same time do managers increasingl see CSR as a mar#eting tool to hel$ create a com$etitive advantage. But "hat is the actual im$act of com$anies% engagement in CSR on consumer behavior& The consumers are getting more a"are of the cor$oration involved in cor$orate social res$onsibilit 'CSR( through better education and the increased influence of the media. The com$anies u$ to a certain e!tent has alread been reali)ed that their sociall res$onsible behaviour have a direct im$act on the consumer bu ing behaviour. In this research $a$er effort has been em$lo ed to investigate that ho" consumers are considering cor$oration%s CSR initiatives at the time of deciding on their $urchase decision of $roducts and services. *or measuring CSR economic, legal, ethical and $hilanthro$ic variables have been considered from Carroll+s definition. A random stratified sam$le of ,-. res$ondents have been considered, the data have been collected "ith the hel$ of structured /uestionnaire. After the data collection a$$ro$riate statistical data anal sis "as $erformed in the soft"are $rogram SPSS. Results confirm a $ositive relationshi$ bet"een $erceived CSR activities and consumer bu ing behaviour. 0e "ords1 corporate social responsibility, consumer behaviour, Philanthropy, Consumer buying behaviour

"ntroduction

Multinational cor$orations first introduced the term sta#eholder in the late 234.%s. Sta#eholders "ere described as those "ho "ere in an "a affected b the cor$orations% activities. Soon thereafter, the term 5cor$orate social res$onsibilit 6 came into common use. The goal of cor$orate social res$onsibilit 'CSR( is to ta#e res$onsibilit for all the com$an %s actions and to have a $ositive im$act on its environment, communities, em$lo ees, consumers and all other sta#eholders '*reeman et al., ,.2.(. The 7uro$ean Commission ',.22( defines CSR as 5the res$onsibilit of enter$rises for their im$acts on societ 6. More s$ecificall , the res$onsibilit of cor$orations includes the integration of social, environmental and ethical issues as "ell as human rights and consumer concerns, into their business o$erations and core strateg in close collaboration "ith their sta#eholders. In research literature, CSR is defined as 5a business organi)ation%s configuration of $rinci$les of social res$onsibilit , $rocesses of social res$onsiveness, and $olicies, $rograms, and observable outcomes as the relate to the firm%s societal relationshi$s6 '8ood, 23321439(. In their o$inion, the free mar#et in that sense contributes to societ b reali)ing this $ros$erit and therefore does not have an other obligations in that matter. :o"ever, on the other side of the s$ectrum the free mar#et is vie"ed as inhibiting human freedom 'e.g. through child labor( and as the root cause of economic and cultural im$erialism in man develo$ing countries. CSR is also seen as a "a to attem$t to be one ste$ ahead of governmental interference, in order to avoid an #ind of legislative restrictions or re$rimands. Additionall , CSR is regarded as being used merel as a mar#eting tool, "hich introduces concerns about h $ocris . As "ith man ethical issues, a great amount of organi)ations o$erate in the broad s$ace in bet"een these e!tremes, and the to$ic remains sub;ect to continuous discussion '*riedman, 23<.(. =ne of the most im$ortant sta#eholder grou$s is the consumer, and as Cre er and Ross '233<( confirmed> customers do indeed e!$ect sociall res$onsible behavior from com$anies. More interestingl , customers are "illing to re"ard this behavior. It is no sur$rise that a steadil gro"ing grou$ of consumers $ro?activel loo# for com$anies "ith @sustainable% $roducts and $roduction methods. This ne" t $e of consumer is sub;ect to an increasing amount of research

b social and economic scientists, and characteri)ed as @so$histicated% and @environmentall and sociall conscious% '*orster, ,..<(. Cor$orations that do not e/ui$ themselves "ith CSR activities "ill often be left behind "ith the increasing global com$etition and borderless mar#ets, and international cor$orations "ith sound CSR activities gro" stronger 'Altman, ,..<(. As the education level increases, consumers are made more a"are of the need for $ro social cor$orate behaviour. A lot of "or# has been done in 8estern countries to identif an organi)ation%s behaviour regarding consumer $urchasing decisions. :o"ever, not man studies have been conducted in emerging mar#ets, such as India. CSR activities should enhance a cor$oration+s image. This $a$er aims to e!amine the influence of $erceived CSR initiatives on the bu ing behaviour of Indian consumers. 8e are interested in e!$loring "hether consumers in India consider organisations+ CSR issues before associating themselves "ith organisations% $roducts and services. A$art from that, this stud also aims to identif the a"areness level of Indian consumers to"ards CSR. The results of this stud "ill also be useful for business organisations in understanding the consumers+ $riorit for the CSR activities that the should be engaging in, and it "ill contribute to the e!isting literature. The remainder of this $a$er is structured as follo"s. The ne!t section "ill discuss the literature revie". The third section "ill e!$lain on the methodolog used. The findings and discussion "ill be $resented in the fourth section and "ill be follo"ed b conclusions and im$lications in the final section. # Scope of the study

The sco$e of the stud has been limited to CSR initiatives of cor$orate and consumer bu ing behaviour onl . The stud has been confined to Delhi A BCR region as this area has greater number of to$ notch cor$orations $ %b&ectives

2. To stud and anal )e the current CSR $ractices being em$lo ed b cor$orations in India. ,. To find out the level of a"areness of consumer about CSR

9. To find out the relation and im$act of cor$oration%s CSR initiatives on consumer bu ing decisions C. Research 'ethodology The stud is based on descri$tive research design. A structured /uestionnaire has been designed, to #no" the level of a"areness and im$act of cor$oration%s CSR initiatives on their bu ing decisions. The /uestionnaire consists of three ma;or sections. The first section gathers information on consumers% a"areness to"ards cor$orate social res$onsibilit 'CSR(. This section covers some general /uestions to obtain the res$ondent+s understanding of the term CSR, "hich indicates the abilit of the res$ondent to com$lete the rest of the /uestionnaire. The res$ondents "ho indicated having no #no"ledge in CSR "ere not included in the data anal sis. Second section covers /uestions on consumer bu ing behaviour to"ards CSR initiatives b the business organisations. The statements "ere divided into four subsections based on Carroll+s $ ramid of CSR, "hich include economic, legal, ethical and $hilanthro$ic res$onsibilities. 8hile third section designed to gather demogra$hic information of the res$ondents such as gender, age, education level and monthl income level. Section A and Section C "ere designed using nominal scales, "hereas Section B "as designed using a five?$oint Di#ert scale ranging from E2E for Estrongl disagreeE to E-E for Estrongl agreeE. Cronbach+s Al$ha coefficient "as used to evaluate the reliabilit ..<-3. The surve "as conducted in Delhi A BCR> res$onses of ,-. res$ondents "ere collected. 8e targeted res$ondents "ho are seems to be conscious bu er and hence the sam$ling techni/ue is non?$robabilit convenience sam$ling. *or visual re$resentation of finding and results bar charts, $ie charts and tables etc. ahs been used. ( Revie) of literature of the measures. The

Cronbach+s Al$ha coefficient for the four inde$endent variables and one de$endent variable "as

During the ,2th centur , the focus of the environmental as$ect of CSR gre" even stronger and societ %s increased interest regarding environmental issues $ut ne" light on CSR. :ence, even higher $ressure "as $ut on cor$orations and their initiatives for su$$ort of the environment. This

can be seen in the 7uro$ean Commission%s CSR?re$ort from ,..,, in "hich CSR is described to have a close relationshi$ bet"een com$anies and societies to tac#le both social and environmental concerns1 5CSR is a conce$t "hereb com$anies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business o$erations and in their interaction "ith their sta#eholders on a voluntar basis. In their latest definition, the 7uro$ean Commission ',.22( e!$lains CSR as 5the res$onsibilit of enter$rises for their im$acts on societ 6. Another trend emerging in the ,2th centur "as the focus of CSR from a consumer $ers$ective. The fact that cor$orations started to "or# and $artici$ate activel in $ro;ects regarding CSR $redictabl "o#e u$ an interest also among consumers. Researchers "ere then eager to find out "hether CSR activities had an influence on consumers or not, and if so, in "hat "a and to "hat e!tent. In ,..2, Mohr et al. studied the relationshi$ bet"een CSR and consumers% bu ing behavior. The results of the stud sho"ed that the ma;orit of the res$ondents "ere in general $ositivel dis$osed to"ards social res$onsible firms and moreover e!$ected firms to be highl active "ithin CSR. *urthermore, the results revealed that a small ma;orit of the res$ondents did not reall thin# about basing their $urchase behavior on CSR or did it onl sometimes, even if CSR as a bu ing criterion didn%t $la much of a role in the decision $rocesses or $urchase behavior. :o"ever, 93F of the res$ondents "ere basing some or much of their $urchasing on CSR 'Mohr et al., ,..2(. In ,..-, Bec#er?=lsen and :ill contributed "ith t"o studies investigating the role of $erceived fit 'e.g. Similarit bet"een cor$orate mission and social initiative(, $erceived cor$orate motive 'other?centered versus $rofit?centered(, and timing of an announcement 'reactive versus $roactive( on consumers% res$onses to cor$orate social initiatives. The aim of the stud "as to e!$lore the im$act of $erceived CSR on consumer behavior. The results of the stud demonstrated that an over"helming ma;orit half of the res$ondents stated that the of the res$ondents believed that firms should engage in social initiatives and <4F thought that those initiatives "ould benefit the firms. About "ould bo cott firms that acted irres$onsibl , if reasonable alternatives "ere available 'Bec#er?=lsen A :ill, ,..-(. *inall , another relativel ne" trend "ithin CSR develo$ed in the ,2th centur is to vie" and utili)e the "hole conce$t as a com$etitive advantage. In ,..4, the mar#eting and strateg guru Michael Porter "rote an article together "ith Mar# R. 0ramer, in "hich the introduced a

frame"or# that organi)ations can use to identif the im$act the have on societ , determine "hich effects to address and then suggest effective "a s to do so. The authors $ro$ose that "hen loo#ing at CSR from a strategicall $ers$ective it can become a source of remar#able social $rogress, since cor$orations a$$l their resources, e!$ertise, and insights to activities that benefit societ as a "hole 'Porter A 0ramer, ,..4(. In carr ing out their economic res$onsibilit , cor$orations are e!$ected "or# "ithin the frame"or# of la"s and regulations as a $artial fulfillment of the Esocial contract6 bet"een cor$orations and societ . Carroll '2332( stated that it is im$ortant for legal res$onsibilit to be $erformed in a manner that is consistent "ith the e!$ectations of governments and la"s com$l ing "ith the various federal, state and local regulations. A successful cor$oration should be recognised as one that fulfils its legal obligations. Conchius ',..4(, on the other hand, stated that legal res$onsibilit includes abiding b

consumer and $roduct la"s, environmental la"s and em$lo ment la"s "hile also adhering to la"s and regulations governing com$etition in the mar#et$lace. :o"ever, legal res$onsibilities do not embrace the full range of behaviours e!$ected of cor$orations b societ . Da"s are im$ortant, but the are often inade/uate. *irst, the cannot $ossibl address all of the issues or areas that a cor$oration ma face. Second, la"s often lag behind more recent conce$ts of "hat is considered right behaviour, and third, la"s ma re$resent the $ersonal interests and $olitical motivations of legislators 'Carroll, 233G(. Although economic and legal res$onsibilities re$resent ethical standards concerning fairness and ;ustice, ethical res$onsibilit encom$asses those activities and $ractices e!$ected or $rohibited b societ that e!$and be ond the limitations of legal res$onsibilities. 7thical res$onsibilit embodies those standards and e!$ectations that reflect a concern for "hat consumers, em$lo ees, shareholders, and the communit regard as fair, ;ust, or in #ee$ing "ith the res$ect or $rotection of sta#eholders+ moral rights 'Carroll, 23<3(. According to Carroll '2332(, business $erformance can be determined b the cor$oration+s consistenc in $romoting moral and ethical standards. If a cor$oration $ractises good cor$orate citi)enshi$, the activities of the cor$oration are trusted. 7thical res$onsibilit also recognises that

cor$orate integrit regulations.

and ethical behaviour should go be ond the re/uirements of la"s and

Balancing economic, legal and ethical res$onsibilities is im$ortant. If the cor$oration does something that is a$$ro$riatel Philanthro$ic res$onsibilit economic and legal, it must also be a$$ro$riatel ethical. refers to cor$orate actions that are in res$onse to societ +s

e!$ectations of good cor$orate citi)ens. Cor$orate $hilanthro$ is li#el to enhance the image of cor$orations es$eciall those that have high $ublic visibilit . Cor$orate $hilanthro$ should also increase em$lo ee lo alt and im$rove customer ties. Philanthro$ic activities include business contributions in terms of financial resources or e!ecutive time, such as contributions to the arts, education, or communities. The distinguishing characteristic bet"een $hilanthro$ic and ethical res$onsibilities is that $hilanthro$ic res$onsibilities are not e!$ected in an ethical or moral sense. Philanthro$ is located at the most voluntar and discretionar dimension of cor$orate res$onsibilit and has not al"a s been lin#ed to $rofits or the ethical culture of the firm '*errell, ,..C(. Although societ "ishes cor$orations to be $hilanthro$ic, it is voluntar on the $art of

cor$orations 'Carroll, 2332(. According to *ombrun, Hardberg and Barnett ',...(, the case for $hilanthro$ comes from t"o different sources> strategic $hilanthro$ists argue that, although $hilanthro$ ma not generate direct economic returns, it "ill enhance the firm+s long?term com$etitive $osition through intangible gains in re$utation, legitimac or em$lo ee lo alt . Consumer Behaviour to)ards CSR This $a$er aims to e!amine consumers+ bu ing behaviour as a result of cor$orate CSR initiatives. 8e are interested in e!amining that "hether the $urchase decisions of the $roducts and services of consumers in India are based on cor$oration+s CSR initiatives or not. In addition, "e also see# to identif "hich t $e of CSR com$onent based on Carroll+s $ ramid of CSR "ill have significant im$act on consumers+ bu ing behaviour. Several studies have suggested that there is a $ositive relationshi$ bet"een a cor$oration+s CSR activities and consumers+ attitudes to"ards that cor$oration and its $roducts 'Bro"n A Dacin, 233<> Cre er Ross, 233<> 7llen, 8ebb, A Mohr, ,...(. Mohr, 8ebb and :arris ',..2(

e!amined and their finding indicated a significant relationshi$ bet"een CSR and consumer res$onses. Sen and Bhattachar a ',..2( research on reaction of consumers to CSR sho"s that CSR "ill directl affect consumers+ intentions to $urchase cor$oration+s $roducts. As cited in Pomering and Dolnicar ',..G(, mar#et$lace $olls re$orted that consumers e!$ect cor$orations to $rovide information about "hat the do, and the "ill su$$ort those cor$orations that $ursue CSR initiatives. 7nvironics International Dtd. '7nvironics, 2333( conducted a surve regarding consumer res$onses to"ards cor$orate social res$onsibilit . The result of the surve indicated that Australians have the highest CSR consumer e!$ectations from businesses. A total of G4F of IS res$ondents in the surve of Cone Inc. ',..C( said that cor$orations should $rovide information on ho" the su$$ort social issues. * Research Results and +iscussions

Table !: ,ender of respondents ,ender *re/uenc Jalid Male *emale Total 2,2 2,3 ,-. Percent CG.C -2.4 2.... Jalid Percent CG.C -2.4 2.... Cumulative Percent CG.C 2....

The above table sho"s that CG.CF of male and -2.4F female res$ondents, it sho"s that more females are ma#ing $urchasing as com$ared to men. Table #: Age of respondents Age in years *re/uenc Jali 2G?,d ,-?9, 9,?93 93?C4 Total ,C 229 GG ,, ,-. Percent 3.4 C-., 9-., G.G 2., 2.... Jalid Percent 3.4 C-., 9-., G.G 2., 2.... Cumulative Percent 3.4 -C.G 3... 3G.G 2....

C4 and above 9

Ma;orit of res$ondents are in age grou$ of ,-?9, 'C-.,F( ears and 9,?93 ears '9-.,F( both of this age grou$ alone contains around <GF of total res$ondents. Therefore, it ma concluded that most of the sho$$ers are in ,-?93 ears of age. Table $: +isposable "ncome of respondents +isposable "ncome *re/uenc under -... -...?2.... 2....?2-... 2-...?,.... ,.... and above Total ,9 2.2 GC 93 9 ,-. Percent 3., C..C 99.4 2-.4 2., 2.... Jalid Percent 3., C..C 99.4 2-.4 2., 2.... Cumulative Percent 3., C3.4 G9., 3G.G 2.... be

Most of the res$ondents are having dis$osable income ranging bet"een -...?2-... '<CF(. Table -: .ature of &obs of respondents .ature of &ob Jalid *re/uenc Hovernment 7m$lo ee Private sector self 7m$lo ed Total 4< 249 ,. ,-. Percent ,4.G 4-., G.. 2.... Percent ,4.G 4-., G.. 2.... Cumulative Percent ,4.G 3,.. 2....

Ma;orit of res$ondents '4-.,F( are in $rivate sector ;obs. Table (: ,eneral A)areness on CSR

,eneral A)areness %n CSR Jalid *re/uenc Jalid 8ell Inderstood Moderatel Inderstood Dittle Inderstood Bot At All Total 3. 2., -, 4 ,-. Percent 94.. C..G ,..G ,.C 2.... Percent 94.. C..G ,..G ,.C 2.... Cumulative Percent 94.. <4.G 3<.4 2....

It is evident from the above table that almost '3<.4F( of the res$ondent are a"are of CSR initiative of cor$orations the are transacting "ith, "hile onl ,.CF '4 in numbers do not have an idea regarding CSR(, these 4 res$ondents "ill not be included in the further $rocessing of data.

Table *: +efinition of CSR +efinition of CSR Jalid *re/uenc Jalid Addition In Shareholder+s Jalue Meeting legal =bligations Contributing To Charitable firms Doing Communit Services Mnimising Racism and Discriminations Total ,9 2.2 GC 93 9 ,-. Percent 3., C..C 99.4 2-.4 2., 2.... Percent 3., C..C 99.4 2-.4 2., 2.... Cumulative Percent 3., C3.4 G9., 3G.G 2....

The finding sho"s that meeting legal obligations has obtained the highest 'C..CF(, follo"ed closel b contribution to charitable firms '99.4F(. Doing communit Services '2-.4F( "as the third choice. Table /: CSR "nitiatives %rganisations 'ust "nvolved "nto CSR Activities %rganisations 'ust "nvolved "nto Jalid *re/uenc Jalid Donation 7nvironmental Protection Produce Safe Products Communit 8or# Minimisation of Discrimination Total ,4 2< 3. GG ,3 ,-. Percent 2..C 4.G 94.. 9-., 22.4 2.... Percent 2..C 4.G 94.. 9-., 22.4 2.... Cumulative Percent 2..C 2<., -9., GG.C 2....

The above table sho"s that $roduction of safe $roducts '94F( and communit "or# '9-.,F( scored the highest among the activities organi)ations must involved into. / "mpact of Perceived CSR "nitiatives on Consumers Buying Behaviour

Multi$le regression anal sis has been $erformed to get the relationshi$ bet"een de$endent and inde$endent variables. A regression anal sis $rovides the o$$ortunit to e!amine the relationshi$ bet"een inde$endent variables and de$endent variables. More s$ecificall , it hel$s us to understand ho" the value of the de$endent variables is affected b variations in the value of the inde$endent variable, "ith other variables 'control variables( held fi!ed. In our case the de$endent variable is consumer Behaviour 'CB( and inde$endent variables are CSR 'economic, legal, ethical and $hilanthro$ic variables(. According to the model summar of multi$le regressions in Table G, the multi$le R is ..-<,. Because multi$le R is $ositive in value, it sho"s that there is a $ositive linear relationshi$ bet"een ethical, legal, economic and $hilanthro$ic activities and consumers+ bu ing behaviour.

Table 0: 'odel Summary of 'ultiple Regressions 'odel Summary of 'ultiple Regressions Ad;usted R Model CSR? CB R .-<9a R S/uare .9,3 S/uare .92Std. 7rror of the 7stimate .94CG9 com$onents "hich

a. Predictors 1' Constants( CSR1 cor$orate social res$onsibilit

include ethical, economic, $hilanthro$ic, legal. CB?Consumer Behaviour The R s/uare 'coefficient of determination( is a $ortion of the total variation in the de$endent variable that is e!$lained b the variation in the inde$endent variables. According to the model summar , R s/uare is e/ual to ..9,3, "hich is less than 2. This indicates that there is a "ea# linear relationshi$ bet"een CSR activities and consumers+ bu ing behaviour. A$$ro!imatel 9,.<F of variance in all the CSR com$onents can significantl e!$lain consumers+ bu ing behaviour. An anal sis of variance 'AB=JA( has been $reformed to test "hether there is a statistical significant linear relationshi$ bet"een the combination of the four CSR com$onents '7conomic, legal, 7thical and $hilanthro$ic( and consumers+ bu ing behaviour e!ists or not. According to Table 3, the p?value is ...., indicating that the four CSR com$onents significantl influence consumers+ bu ing behaviour. Table 1: A.%2A of 'ultiple Regressions A.%2Ab Sum of Model CSR? CB Regression Residual Total
a

S/uares 2,.2C3 ,-..<2 9<.,,.

df C ,C< ,-2

Mean S/uare 9..94 .294

* ,,.G2<

Sig. ....a

Predictors 'CSR(1 constant, cor$orate social res$onsibilit

com$onents i.e. ethical, economic, $hilanthro$ic, legal

A.%2Ab Sum of Model CSR? CB Regression Residual

b

S/uares 2,.2C3 ,-..<2

df C ,C< ,-2

Mean S/uare 9..94 .294

* ,,.G2<

Sig. ....a

Total 9<.,,. De$endent Jariable 'CB(1 consumer

behaviour A coefficient table is ver much hel$ful in e!$laining the relationshi$ bet"een the four CSR com$onents and consumers+ bu ing behaviour. Based on the calculated significances in Significance 'Sig.( column of Table 2., the p?value for each CSR com$onent is less than ...-, "hich indicates that all the CSR com$onents have a statisticall significant relationshi$ "ith consumers+ bu ing behaviour. Table !3: Coefficients of 'ultiple Regressions

Coefficientsa Instandardi)ed Coefficients Model CSR? 'Constant( CB 7conomic ,-3 Degal 22, 7thical 244 Philanthro$ic 24G a. De$endent Jariable1 Consumer Behaviour 'CB( In Table 2., the unstandardised beta coefficient is used for the values of the numbers in the linear regression e/uation. Theor e!$lains that a higher beta value indicates a greater im$act of the inde$endent variable on the de$endent variable. The inde$endent variable 'CSR com$onents( can be ran#ed according to the magnitude of the beta coefficient to determine "hich com$onent has the most significant im$act on consumers+ bu ing behaviour. The regression model relates K 'the de$endent variable( to a function of L 'the inde$endent variable( and M 'the un#no"n $arameter(. It is formulated as K Nf'L, M(. The multi$le regression anal ses $erformed in this stud are modeled as follo"s1 Ki O 2!i2 P M,!i, P 9!i9 P C!iC Therefore, the multi$le regressions line e/uation for this current stud is1 Consumer Behaviour O 2.,G4 P ..,-3 7conomic Res$onsibilit P ..24G Philanthro$ic Res$onsibilit P ..244 7thical Res$onsibilit P ..22, Degal Res$onsibilit . . .-. .4G . ,22 . .-9 . 2<. . 9..-, ..9 2.,G4 . .4G . 2CG . ,.C24 .2< . 9,C . ,-9 . ,..G< .9G . B Std. 7rror . 9.34G . 9.<<4 ... . ... . Standardi)ed Coefficients Beta t Sig. .

The results e!$licitl defines that the economic res$onsibilit attribute has the most significant im$act on consumers+ bu ing behaviour, as it has the highest beta value, follo"ed b $hilanthro$ic res$onsibilit , ethical res$onsibilit and, finall , legal res$onsibilit . Indian consumers seem to vie" CSR $riorit differentl from other nations. 7conomic

res$onsibilit "as still the basic utmost $riorit $referred. :o"ever, the ran#ed $hilanthro$ic res$onsibilit as the second most im$ortant res$onsibilit com$ared "ith legal res$onsibilit . It is not sur$rising that Indian consumers see cor$orations+ $hilanthro$ic res$onsibilit as being more im$ortant than their legal res$onsibilit . Consumers "ant cor$orations to contribute their mone , facilities and em$lo ees+ time to humanitarian $rograms or $ur$oses. Indians have been #no"n as one of the most generous nations in the "orld. *or e!am$le, the countr +s rate of donation and $artici$ation in hel$ing the victims of natural disasters in the "orld has al"a s been ver encouraging. In addition, "e have al"a s heard that the generous Indians have made financial $ledges and contributions to hel$ those in need, the be or$haned children, the $oor, accident victims and so on. Although the Indian consumers themselves have been ver generous, the e!$ectation for business institutions to do the same is un/uestionable. As for com$l ing "ith rules and regulations, it is not sur$rising that Indian consumers ran#ed legal res$onsibilit last com$ared "ith Carroll+s $ ramid, "hich suggested that legal res$onsibilit is the ne!t most im$ortant res$onsibilit Com$ared "ith those in develo$ed nations, Indians regard rules lightl , to a certain e!tent, as "e have al"a s heard from the ne"s about ho" Indians bend and ignore sti$ulated rules and regulations. Among the most common e!am$les are the bending of traffic rules and regulations $romoting environmental $rotection. 0 C%.C45S"%. A.+ "'P4"CAT"%.S

*or academicians, this research ma#es a contribution to the understanding the underl ing d namics of the role of cor$orate social res$onsibilit in consumers+ bu ing behaviour. The result of this stud indicates that all of the CSR com$onents have a significant relationshi$ "ith consumers+ bu ing behaviour. :o"ever, the limitations of this stud must also be considered. The ma;or limitation relates to the sam$le. 8ith onl ,-. usable res$ondents, this sam$le si)e might limit the e!ternal validit of the findings.

Managers should note that this research su$$orts $revious results re$orted in the literature, suggesting that a substantial, viable and identifiable consumer grou$ e!ists that considers a com$an +s level of social res$onsibilit in its $urchase decisions. Manufacturers and retailers have an o$$ortunit to a$$eal to this grou$ "hile simultaneousl meeting their business ob;ectives and ma#e contributions to societ . The t $e of CSR activities that should be engaged b the cor$orations should $referabl be based on the $riorit indicated in the finding of this stud , "here the economic res$onsibilit attribute has the most significant im$act on consumers+ bu ing behaviour, follo"ed b $hilanthro$ic res$onsibilit , ethical res$onsibilit and finall , legal res$onsibilit . :o"ever, com$anies that $romote themselves as sociall res$onsible need to be $re$ared to deal "ith criticisms of an irres$onsible behaviour the are seen as committing, as information travels "ithin seconds in this information technolog era. In contrast, com$anies "ho disregard e!$ectations concerning social res$onsibl ma ris# consumer bo cotts as a result of the strengthening of consumers+ a"areness and rights in toda +s mar#et scenario. 1 References

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