“We Go Together”: Understanding social cause-related purchase intentions of young adults

Maja Arslanagic-Kalajdzic,Selma Kadic-Maglajlic,Jasmina Dlacic,Vesna Zabkar

doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.10.072

Abstract

Building on social identity theory, this study sheds light on the interplay of social connections and emotion regulation in determining social cause-related purchase intentions. The focus of the study is on young adults, an age segment whose active role in solving social problems is appreciated today. We examine the context of three South-East European countries with varying levels of familiarity with social cause-related purchases and test the conceptual model using multi-group structural equation modeling. The results show that social connections are positively related to young adults’ social cause-related purchase intentions, while emotion regulation strengthens this relationship in countries where young adults have more opportunities for social cause-related purchases. The study has both theoretical and policy-related implications for multiple stakeholders, including managers, policy makers, and advocacy group representatives.

Highlights

Practitioner literature (e.g., Barakat, 2014) has identified young adults as a group prone to helping behavior
The results show that social connections are positively related to young adults’ social cause-related purchase intentions, while emotion regulation strengthens this relationship in countries where young adults have more opportunities for social cause-related purchases
We aim to address this gap by applying the premises of social identity theory (SIT; Tajfel, 1978; Tajfel & Turner, 1979) and examining the predictive effect of young adults’ social connection and emotion regulation in shaping consumers’ receptivity to Cause-related marketing (CrM) in the form of stimulating social cause-related purchase intentions

Summary

Introduction

Practitioner literature (e.g., Barakat, 2014) has identified young adults as a group prone to helping behavior. They expect companies to do their part as well (Creyer & Ross, 1996). By purchasing products from companies that donate a portion of the money raised to a charity, consumers receive the psychological satisfaction of having acknowledged and supported socially challenging situations (problems and issues) through their involvement (Olsen, Pracejus & Brown, 2003; Demetriou et al, 2010), whereas companies can promote both a positive long-term image (Gupta & Pirsch, 2006) and short-term sales

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Conclusion