Identifying a credible spokesperson for corporate social responsibility initiatives: Findings from a cross-national study

The aim of this study is to fill gaps in the literature related to perceptions of spokesperson credibility in a cross-cultural corporate social responsibility (CSR) context. After collecting data in two countries (Chile & U.S.) using two common forms of CSR disclosures (email/video), findings offer numerous insights for both theory and practice. Recent global trade literature found that employees are the best spokesperson for corporate communication messages (Beiser, 2017). Findings from the current study indicate that these perceptions are sensitive to cultural factors in a CSR context. Further, while scholars widely accept the need for transparent communication about CSR (Chaudhri & Wang, 2007), trade research indicates that organizational transparency falls short of consumer expectations (Edelman, 2016). Our research indicates that different dimensions of transparency (integrity, respect, openness) may be driving perceptions of spokesperson credibility and thus help to explain the variance in performance and perception.