When Employers Speak Out: Examining Effects of Corporate Social Advocacy Through Belief Match, Organizational Identification, and Authenticity

Abstract

Stakeholders expect companies to speak out on contentious issues, but such advocacy risks backlash. While much prior research on corporate social advocacy (CSA) has focused on external stakeholders, companies must also consider how advocacy affects employees. Drawing on organizational identification theory, this study uses an experiment (N = 256) to examine effects of an organization’s decision to engage in advocacy on employees’ attitudes and behavior intentions. We found that when employees agree with an employer decision to tackle a controversial social issue in the form of belief match and view it as authentic, this strengthens their relationship, ultimately resulting in positive outcomes for employers (e.g., loyalty) as well as for social movements (e.g., activism intentions).