Consumers' perceptions of luxury brands’ CSR initiatives

This research challenges the notion that luxury and CSR are incompatible by investigating whether and under what conditions consumers react positively to different kinds of CSR initiatives among luxury companies. Extending Carroll's four-dimension model of CSR, we argue that some CSR initiatives, namely those in the economic and ethical dimensions, are less noticeable and visible to consumers than those in the legal and philanthropic dimensions.

Consumers'perceptions of luxury brands’CSR initiatives: An
investigation of the role of status and conspicuous consumption
Cesare Amatullia, * , 1
, Matteo De Angelisb
, Daniel Korschunc
, Simona Romanib
a Ionian Department of Mediterranean Legal and Economic Systems: Society,Environment,Culture,University of Bari Aldo Moro,Via Duomo,259,74123
Taranto,Italy
b Department of Business Management,LUISS University Viale Romania,32,00197 Rome,Italy
c LeBow College of Business,Drexel University,3220 Market St,Philadelphia,PA 19104,USA
a r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Received 12 January 2018
Received in revised form
3 May 2018
Accepted 14 May 2018
Available online 17 May 2018
Keywords:
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Sustainability
Luxury marketing
Status consumption
Conspicuous consumption
a b s t r a c t
This research challenges the notion that luxury and CSR are incompatible by investigating whether and
under what conditions consumers react positively to different kinds ofCSR initiatives among luxury
companies. Extending Carroll's four-dimension model of CSR, we argue that some CSR initiatives, namely
those in the economic and ethical dimensions, are less noticeable and visible to consumers than those in
the legal and philanthropic dimensions.We categorized the former as “internal” dimensions and the
latter as “external” dimensions as part of a novel classification of Carroll's four CSR dimensions.To test
our hypotheses, we conducted three experiments e one in a laboratory, one online and one in the field e
with a total of 461 respondents.Our results demonstrate that luxury companies'external (compared to
internal) CSR initiatives increase consumers' willingness to buy; this effect is accentuated for consumers
with higher status and conspicuous consumption orientation.
© 2018 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
1. Introduction
Companiesare increasingly embracing sustainable develop-
ment and Corporate SocialResponsibility (hereafter,CSR; Kotler,
2011; Romani et al.,2016),defined as the set of discretionary ac-
tivities “demonstrating the inclusion of social and environmental
concerns in business operations and in interactions with stake-
holders” (Van Marrewijk and Werre,2003,p. 107).One survey of
over 500 experts from all 32 European countries suggests that the
importance of CSR in business will even increase in the next few
years (Kudłak et al.,2018).Notwithstanding the overallupward
trend, competing views about CSR initiatives in different sectors
still persist (e.g., Sweeney and Coughlan, 2008). For instance, Green
Public Procurement has been shown to be much more important in
the ICT and construction sectors than in the retailand clothing
sectors (Kudłak et al., 2018).Meanwhile, CSR initiatives in the
automotive and aerospace sectors are mainly focused on reducing
the purchases ofchemicals from suppliers (Lindsey,2011),and
those in the retailsector mostly involve the reduction of energy
consumption and the use of greener materials for the interiors of
the stores (e.g.,Ramos and Leal,2017).
There is variability in CSR initiatives across different sectors, and
the present research seeks to contribute to our understanding of
the sources of that variability.The present research suggests that
the extent to which CSR initiatives can be successful - or not - under
the perspective of consumers depends on the visibility of the CSR
initiatives undertaken.
More specifically,we examine the role of CSR initiatives in the
context of the luxury industry. Indeed, while the global luxury
market has been characterized by a steady growth in the last
decade (The Boston Consulting Group, 2017), it is also one that has
been particularly pressured to address social issues (Davies et al.,
2012; De Angelis et al.,2017; Janssen et al.,2014; Kapferer and
Michaut-Denizeau,2014).Consequently,luxury market strategies
have begun to systematically include CSR as a key pillar(e.g.,
Cervellon and Shammas, 2013; Winston, 2016).

Kering,publish detailed annual reports about their CSR initiatives.
In short, most luxury brands are aware that they can no longer
ignore CSR issues (Cervellon and Shammas,2013; D'Anolfo et al.,
2017; Winston,2016).
It is perhaps surprising, then, that luxury brands' foray into the
CSR space contradicts some findings in the academic literature,
which has often suggested that those efforts could harm brands'
images (e.g., Torelli et al., 2012). Indeed, scholars have emphasized
that some consumers see luxury and CSR as conflicting concepts
(e.g.,Achabou and Dekhili,2013; Davies et al.,2012; Griskevicius
et al.,2010).The result of this contradiction between business re-
ality and some scientific findings about the role of CSR in luxury is
that today's luxury companies seem to lack an understanding of
how to develop and communicate CSR strategies that can appeal to
luxury consumers.Grounding on the belief that CSR can be lever-
aged to enhance consumers'perception of luxury brands,the pre-
sent article tries to answer the following research questions: What
types of CSR initiatives undertaken by luxury companies are more
likely to encounter consumer favor? Might different types of CSR
initiatives be more appealing for different luxury consumer seg-
ments? And if so, how?
We answer these questions by empirically investigating the
differential effectivenessof different types of CSR initiatives,
labelled internal and external based on the degree to which they are
visible to consumers (see Pino et al.,2016).Specifically,extending
the CSR framework proposed by Carroll (1979, 1991),internal CSR
initiatives refer to economic and ethical initiatives,while external
CSR initiatives refer to legal and philanthropic ones.The evidence
in support of our model comes from three experiments conducted
in three distinct settingsdin the laboratory, in the field, and online.
Overall,this research helps to advance current knowledge on the
luxury/sustainability relationship and,more specifically,on the
effectiveness of CSR actions for consumers of luxury goods in some
important ways.First, our study provides a counterpoint to the
great mass ofresearch studies documenting the incompatibility
between luxury and sustainability issues.Indeed,we specifically
analyze CSR in the luxury context and empirically assess the con-
ditions under which CSR initiatives might improve consumers'
luxury brand perceptions. Second, we extend the literature on CSR
by showing that the type of CSR initiative may differentially affect
consumers’brand perceptions and purchasing intentions.Third,
our research is,to the best of our knowledge,the first to connect
different CSR dimensions with perceptions aboutluxury goods.
Specifically, we test whether external CSR initiatives are more likely
to gain higher consumer favor than internalinitiatives,or vice
versa.
The article is organized as follows. In the next section, we
describe the institutional setting and in section three we review the
main theoretical ideas, thereby providing the research hypotheses.
Section four describes the empirical design, while sections five, six
and seven contain the methodology and results of the three
empiricalstudies conducted.Finally,in section eight,we discuss
the theoretical and managerial implications of our work as well as
its limitations and directions for future studies.
2. Institutional background
While companies may be strongly committed to sustainable
development, the opportunity to develop and implement effective
CSR initiatives is often heavily affected by the specific “rules of the
game” (Thelen, 1999) at play in the different countries in which a
company operates (Halkos and Skouloudis, 2016). As stated by Xie
et al.(2017,p. 28),institutions refer to the “regulative,normative,
and cognitive structures that order and constrain human action,
providing stability to social behavior” (see also Xu and Yang, 2010).
More specifically, the institutional environment of a country refers
to the political and socio-economic environment, the bureaucracy,
the codified and non-codified norms of behavior,and the related
historical development ofa country's institutions (see Fifka and
Pobizhan,2014).Previous studies have shown that good institu-
tional environments strengthen the impact of CSR efforts on firms'
customer satisfaction (Xie et al.,2017).Interestingly,the institu-
tional environment of a country can be analyzed through the so-
called “national business systems approach” developed by
Whitley (1992) and used also to study national CSR characteristics
(e.g.,Habisch et al.,2011).As highlighted by Fifka and Pobizhan
(2014,p. 193),the nationalbusiness system of a country can be
mainly identified with “the politicalsystem,the culturalsystem,
the financial system,and the education and labor system.”
Consistent with this view of the institutional environment, past
research has demonstrated that the level of CSR penetration varies
across countries because of the discrepancies in the institutional
efficiency characterizing different countries (Marquis et al.,2007;
Welford, 2004). For instance, contexts characterized by the
Anglo-Saxon institutionalmodel seem to stimulate ethical and
social initiatives developed by companiesto a greater extent
compared to other contexts (Jackson and Apostolakou,2010).
Institutionalbarriers,however,may also depend on the specific
sector in which the company operates.According to Jackson and
Apostolakou (2010,p. 388),“sector-level institutions may be very
important in explaining the diffusion of ‘minimum standards’for
CSR,where firms respond to coercive and normative pressures of
sectoral-levelregulatory standardsor governance mechanisms
operating at the transnational scale”.
While the present research does not focus specifically on the
role of the institutional environments in driving companies'deci-
sion to engage in CSR initiatives, the framework we propose and the
results we show should be interpreted by taking into account the
differences among countries in terms of standards and legal sys-
tems at play. More specifically, when exploring the effectiveness of
CSR initiatives falling into the legal CSR dimension (Carroll, 1979,
1991),we acknowledge that the boundaries ofcompanies’legal
responsibility may be importantly shaped by the institutional
environment characterizing each country and often differentiating
that country from others.
3. Conceptual development
Past research in luxury has traditionally suggested that CSR is
not a prominent factor in luxury consumers' decision-making
(Davies et al., 2012; Griskevicius et al., 2010); one study even
found that CSR could undermine consumers' perceptions about the
quality of luxury goods (Achabou and Dekhili, 2013). Such findings
are grounded on the idea that luxury generally evokes hedonism,
excess, and ostentation (Cristini et al., 2017; De Barnier et al., 2012),
while CSR generally evokes sobriety, moderation and ethics
(Gladwin et al., 1995; Lochard and Murat,2011).Despite the prior
findings,however,there is burgeoning evidence that luxury and
CSR might be compatible after all (e.g., Janssen et al., 2014). Indeed,
a perceived fit between luxury and CSR may lead consumers to hold
positive attitudes towards luxury products when said products
elicit scarcity and ephemerality (Janssen et al.,2014).Consistent
with this, Kapferer (2010) argued that luxury and sustainable
development can converge when “both focus on rarity” (p.41).
Indeed, on the one hand, luxury is about high quality products that
are objectively rare because they employ rare materials and unique
craftsmanship skills. On the other hand, sustainable development is
about preserving natural resources by limiting the excessive use of
materials that can exceed the world's recycling capabilities
(Kapferer,2010).
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287278

In other words, luxury brands typically manufacture limited
quantities of products in order to be exclusive,and the quality of
those goods often means that they have a long lifecycle.Conse-
quently, luxury brands waste significantly fewer resources
compared to mass market brands; therefore,one could say that
luxury goods are inherently sustainable (Amatulliet al., 2017).
Following this logic, it could be argued that the luxury world has, in
many respects,the potentialto abide by the paradigm of cleaner
production,defined as “a systematically organized approach to
production activities,which has positive effects on the environ-
ment. These activities encompassresource use minimization,
improved eco-efficiency and source reduction, in order to improve
the environmental protection and to reduce risks to living organ-
isms” (Glavic and Lukman,2007,p. 1879).A recent work of De
Angelis et al. (2017) empirically supported the idea that luxury
brands can be both “gold and green” (p. 1516) in a study of
sustainability-driven luxury fashion product design, in which they
demonstrated thatconsumersmight sometime favorably view
luxury brands'new green products that are similar in design to
models produced by non-luxury companies specialized in green
production rather than similar in design to the luxury company's
previous non-green products.
Interestingly,while it is demonstrated that luxury companies
frequently engage in CSR activities that give a positive contribution
to the well-being of the environment and the society in which they
operate,how consumers react after knowing that a luxury brand
engages in CSR activities, and more specifically whether consumers
react differently to different types of CSR activities,is still unclear.
Importantly,by focusing on consumers'perceptions about com-
panies’CSR efforts,this research connects to studies thathave
demonstrated the positive effect of CSR on customer satisfaction in
non-luxury sectors (Louriero et al.,2012; Xie et al., 2017).
The starting point of our study of the role of CSR initiatives in
luxury is the well-established idea that CSR is a multidimensional
construct (D'Aprile and Mannarini, 2012; Pino et al., 2016). As very
recently noted by Arena et al. (2018), CSR is an “umbrella” concept
that includes a variety of practices aimed at fulfilling the expecta-
tion of different stakeholders.We use the multidimensional
approach of CSR proposed by Archie B. Carroll's (1979, 1991), which
is considered a seminalcontribution in the CSR domain,as our
reference theoreticalframework. According to Carroll, CSR en-
compasses four main dimensions e economic,legal,ethical,and
philanthropic e that correspond to four types of company re-
sponsibilities. Carroll portrayed such dimensions as a pyramid, with
the economic dimension,whereby companies should “make an
acceptable profit” (Carroll,1991,p. 141),at the bottom and the
philanthropic dimension,whereby companies should behave as
good corporate citizens,at the top. In the middle are the legal
dimension,whereby companies should abide by laws and regula-
tions, and the ethical dimension, whereby companies should avoid
morally unacceptable behaviors and respect human rights.
In this research, we categorize such four types of CSR initiatives
following the classification proposed by Pino et al.(2016) in their
study of consumers'attitudes toward genetically modified foods.
Those scholars advanced the idea that economic, legal, ethical and
philanthropic initiatives can be further grouped in two categories,
labelled internal and external CSR activities, based on their visibility
and noticeability for consumers.Specifically,according to the au-
thors, initiatives falling into the economic and ethical CSR di-
mensions (i.e.,reducing production costs and improving working
conditions) belong to the internal category because those initiatives
are, on the basis oftheir nature,less visible and less easy to be
noticed by consumers and public opinion than initiatives falling
into the legal and philanthropic CSR dimensions (i.e.,including
required information on product packaging and financially
supporting the construction ofa hospital in a needed territory),
which, consistently,belong to the externalcategory (Creyer and
Ross,1996; Singh et al.,2008).Of importance,while companies’
communication activities may certainly increase the visibility of
their internal CSR initiatives,those initiatives,compared to the
externalCSR ones,are inherently less visible for the reason that
consumers typically have harder time to detect if a company has
undertaken actions aimed improving internal efficiency or working
conditions versus actions aimed at abiding by legal product stan-
dards or donating resources for social causes.
We believe the visibility-based distinction of CSR initiatives into
internal versus external, introduced by Pino et al. (2016) in a study
of CSR perceptions in mass-market goods, is even more suitable to
the study of CSR in luxury because of the nature of luxury goods.
Indeed,many consumers buy luxury goods mainly to signal status
and prestige in social contexts (Han et al., 2010; Nelissen and
Meijers, 2011; Wang and Griskevicius, 2014; Wang and
Wallendorf,2006),if not to “impress others” e usually with re-
gard to their ability to pay particularly high prices for well-known
brands (Husic and Cicic,2009; Wiedmann et al.,2009).In other
words,luxury consumption is mainly related to consumers’expo-
sure to society (Kastanakis and Balabanis,2012).Interestingly,as
suggested by Steinhartet al. (2013), consumersmay respond
positively to environmental claims when those claims emphasize
status-related benefits for consumers.As a consequence,visibility
is not sufficient to define a brand as luxury one but it may be
essential to boost the prestige and the exclusivity of a luxury brand
(Fionda and Moore, 2009).
Building on this idea, we predict that luxury companies' external
CSR initiatives (i.e.,those related to the legaland philanthropic
dimensions) will be more effective than their internal CSR initia-
tives (i.e., those related to the economic and ethical dimensions) in
boosting consumers' WTB luxury products. Such a prediction rests
on the argument that the higher public visibility of externalCSR
initiatives (Creyer and Ross,1996; Singh et al.,2008) will seem
more consistent with luxury products' status-signaling orientation.
In other words, because luxury consumption implies a desire to
communicate something to others,consumers will be particularly
attracted by brand elements thatare especially noticeable and
recognizable in the marketat large. In essence,we argue that,
because external CSR aligns with the status-signaling positioning
(Du et al., 2007) of the luxury brand, these initiatives (i.e., those in
the legal and philanthropic domains)will be likely to increase
consumers'perceptions of the brand's luxuriousness and, by
extension, their WTB. To clarify, we are not predicting that visibility
always and necessarily increases perceived luxuriousness,as we
acknowledge that there are many cases where this does not
happen; rather, we predict that, compared to internal CSR activities,
externalCSR activities willbe more likely to increase perceived
luxuriousness. Formally:
H1. Compared to internal CSR initiatives,external CSR initiatives
undertaken by a brand are more likely to increase consumers'
perceptionsof that brand's luxuriousness,leading to a higher
consumer willingness to buy products from that brand.
While it is true that luxury goods typically serve a status-
signaling function,it is also true that consumers'dispositions and
inner motivations toward luxury purchasing can vary.Indeed,the
literature suggests that people's motives for luxury consumption
can be externalor internal (Eastman and Eastman,2015).Some
customers may buy luxury goods mainly to demonstrate their
status and prestige,which qualifies as an externalized approach.
Other customers purchase luxury products to satisfy their personal
taste and style, which qualifies as an internalized approach
(Amatulli et al.,2015; Han et al.,2010).
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287 279

As emphasized by Eastman and Eastman (2015),externally-
motivated luxury consumption may lead to more public con-
sumption of status products and more conspicuous-style con-
sumption. In other words, consumers who mainly have an
externalized luxury approach place greaterimportance on the
“visibility” of luxury goods than those who mainly have an inter-
nalized luxury approach (Nueno and Quelch, 1998).This visibility
can be captured by the idea of conspicuous consumption (e.g.,
Jaikumar and Sarin,2015; Wang and Griskevicius,2014),which
refers to the tendency to buy symbolic and visible products with
the aim of communicating a distinctive self-image to others
(Chaudhuri et al.,2011; Fuchs et al.,2013).
Based on this reasoning,we expect that the effectiveness of
external versus internal CSR initiatives in driving consumers’ WTB
luxury products will depend on the perceived personalbenefits
that the consumer derives from those initiatives (Bhattacharya
et al.,2009).More specifically,we predict that actions related to
externalCSR dimensions,such as those in the legaland philan-
thropic domains (Eastman et al., 1999),will be more appealing to
such customers who adoptan externalized approach to luxury
consumption (Chaudhuri et al., 2011). In contrast, consumers with a
more internalized approach to luxury will value those dimensions
to a lesser degree.
Moreover, while status and conspicuous consumption have
conceptual overlap and could be perceived as identical (e.g.,
Bernhaim,1994; Marcoux et al.,1997),we also acknowledge the
argument that they are not exactly the same,and, consequently,
should be measured in differentways (O'Cass and Frost,2002;
O'Cass and McEwen,2004). Indeed,O'Cass and McEwen (2004)
demonstrated that status and conspicuous consumption are
distinct constructs that reflect a different set of consumer behaviors
and consumption motives: Status consumption can be defined as
“the behavioural tendency to value status and acquire and consume
products that provide status to the individual”,while conspicuous
consumption as “the tendency for individuals to enhance their
image,through overt consumption of possessions,which commu-
nicates status to others” (O'Cass and McEwen, 2004, p. 34). In other
words, the driving difference between the two is that status con-
sumption is affected by consumers'self-monitoring (whereby
consumers aim to enhance their overall image in social contexts),
whereas conspicuous consumption is affected by interpersonal
influences (whereby consumers aim to gain approvalfrom their
reference group by overtly displaying visible products) (O'Cass and
Frost, 2002). Indeed, according to O'Cass and McEwen (2004),
“status consumption is more a matter of consumers' desires to gain
prestige from the acquisition of status-laden products and brands;
however, conspicuous consumption focuses on the visual display or
overt usage of products in the presence of others” (p.27).
Based on the above, we predict that the positive effect of
communicating luxury brands' legal and philanthropic (vs. economic
and ethical) CSR initiatives on consumers' WTB said brands’ products
will be magnified for consumers with a high tendency toward status
consumption and conspicuous consumption. Formally:
H2. The effect of external CSR initiatives on consumers'willing-
ness to buy luxury goods over internal CSR initiatives will be
magnified for consumers with a higher rather than a lower status
consumption orientation.
H3. The effect of external CSR initiatives on consumers'willing-
ness to buy luxury goods over internal CSR initiatives will be
magnified for consumers with a higher rather than a lower con-
spicuous consumption orientation.
It is important to note that hypothesizing that the general effect
in H1 being moderated by consumer-related factors (as per H2 and
H3) is in line with recent work in luxury and sustainability.De
Angelis et al. (2017),for example,have shown that such a con-
sumers'characteristics as their prior knowledge about a luxury
brand moderates the effectof introducing a new green luxury
product that resembles a non-luxury,green company's previous
model versus one that resembles a luxury company's previous
model on luxury brand evaluation. In particular, their results show
that consumers with higher luxury brand knowledge,and thus
those who are more concerned about the luxury brand's status-
signaling function,are more likely than those with a lower luxury
brand knowledge to prefer a new green luxury productthat is
similar in design to a luxury brand's previous models rather than
similar in design to a model produced by a non-luxury brand
specialized in green product.
In the following, we describe three experiments designed to
empirically test our hypotheses.Taken together,they provide evi-
dence for our theoretical approach.We begin with a study on the
effect of externalCSR on WTB, as well as the mediating role of
brand luxuriousness.
4. Overview of studies
Study 1 was an in-lab experiment conducted to test H1; Study 2
was a field experiment designed to test H2 (status consumption);
and Study 3 was an online experiment designed to test H3. Across
all the studies,we assessed our focal constructs using appropriate
measures by following a question order that reflected the hy-
pothesized causal chain. In Study 1,for instance, we measured the
perceived luxuriousness related to the brand, which played the role
of mediator,before the dependent variable. In Studies 2 and 3,we
respectively measured the participants'status consumption and
conspicuous consumption,which played the role ofmoderators,
before the independent variable.We considered that a different
question order would have been potentially distorting,given the
nature of the dependent variable we employed across the three
studies,that is the WTB.Indeed,given that both our moderators
and dependent variable were related to luxury consumption,we
wanted to reduce the risk of having participants’ answers about the
former being influenced by those about the latter.Moreover,we
adopted the same measurement for the dependent variable in all
studies in order to confer robustness to the results.
5. Study 1: the mediating role of consumers’luxury brand
perception
Study 1 sought to test H1 by exploring the mediational role of
consumers' perceptions about a brand's luxuriousness on the effect
of external versus internal CSR initiatives on consumers'WTB.
More specifically,we expected external CSR initiatives (i.e.,in the
legal and philanthropic dimensions) to enhance perceived brand
luxuriousness more than internalCSR initiatives (i.e.,in the eco-
nomic and ethical dimensions),thereby increasing consumers'
WTB products for that brand.In short,this study investigated the
effect of CSR initiatives on consumers'behaviouralintentions,as
well as the mechanism driving such an effect.
5.1.Design and procedure
One hundred and nineteen participants (70 females,49 males;
M Age ¼ 32.95,SDAge ¼ 10.65),who encompassed both workers and
university students living in a large European city,were randomly
assigned to a two-cell (CSR dimensions:external vs. internal)
between-subjects experiment.Participants completed their ques-
tionnaire in a laboratory setting. No monetary incentives were used
for motivating respondents to participate to the experiment.The
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287280

questionnaire was delivered through the Qualtrics platform so that
we could easily randomize the experimentalconditions.Partici-
pants were first told they were participating in a survey about their
perceptions of certain brands and were then asked to complete the
questionnaire via a tablet.They first read a scenario regarding a
fictitious company called Shine (please see the Appendix).This
company was described as producing leather goods and under-
taking two kinds of CSR initiatives: either economic and ethical (in
the internal CSR condition) or legal and philanthropic initiatives (in
the external CSR condition). More specifically, the economic
initiative consisted of the company buying a software tool to
optimize its production process,thereby reducing its production
costs and improving profits; the ethical initiative involved the
company offering health care and insurance benefits for its work-
force; the legal initiative entailed the company becoming
compliant with raw material processing regulations and adding its
certification to all its products; finally,the philanthropic initiative
involved the company donating a significant amount of money to
build a new pediatric hospital.
We pretested the effectiveness of the CSR dimensional manip-
ulation with a sample of121 respondents recruited via Amazon
Mechanical Turk. Such participants were asked to what extent they
perceived the described initiatives as visible and observable from
outside the company (e.g., by people not working for the company,
such as consumers)on a seven-point scale (1 ¼ notvisible and
observable at all, 7 ¼ extremely visible and observable). The results
revealed that,as expected,respondents in the externalCSR con-
dition perceived the brand's initiatives as more visible and
observable than those in the internal CSR condition (M exter-
nal ¼ 5.02,SD ¼ 1.21 vs.M internal¼ 4.00,SD ¼ 1.56;t(119) ¼ 2.67,
p ¼ .01).
Immediately following the manipulation, participants were
asked to rate how they perceived the brand using the 20-item
(seven-point bipolar) Brand Luxury Index (BLI) scale (see
Vigneron and Johnson,2004).The BLI scale captures the extent to
which consumers perceive a brand as “prestigious,”“elitist,”
“exclusive,” and so on.Finally, we measured respondents’WTB
using the three-item scale from Dodds et al. (1991; “I would buy a
product from this brand,” “I could consider buying a product from
this brand,” and “The likelihood I buy a product from this brand is
high”),which respondents answered on seven-point Likert scales
(1 ¼ strongly disagree, 7 ¼ strongly agree).
5.2. Results and discussion
We combined the scores from the 20 items comprising the BLI
scale (a ¼ 0.90)and three items assessingparticipants’ WTB
(a ¼ 0.88) to obtain measures of the mediator and the dependent
variable,respectively.We employed Model 4 of the PROCESS SPSS
Macro (Hayes, 2013) to test the mediation model. BLI served as the
mediator of the relationship between the CSR dimensions and
WTB.
The results showed a significantand positive effect(b ¼ .32,
t(116) ¼ 2.15,p ¼ .03) of the CSR dimensions (coded
as 1 ¼ internal and 1 ¼ external) on the BLI,which suggests that
reading about legal and philanthropic initiatives increased
perceived brand luxuriousness more than reading about economic
and ethical initiatives. Moreover,BLI had a positive and significant
effect on WTB (b ¼ 0.52,t(116) ¼ 3.87,p < .001).Importantly,the
results revealed a non-significant (b ¼ - 0.07, ns) direct effect of CSR
dimensions on the WTB,but a significant and positive indirect ef-
fect of CSR dimensions on the WTB via the BLI (b ¼ 0.17,95% con-
fidence interval: 0.02, 0.42; see Fig. 1 and Table 1 for a summary of
results). Thus, the results indicate an indirect-only effect of the CSR
dimensions on consumers’ WTB via brand luxuriousness (see Zhao
et al., 2010). In full support of H1, these findings confirmed that the
BLI mediated the effect of externalCSR dimensions on the WTB
products from the brand that emphasizes its legaland philan-
thropic actions.
Overall,Study 1 suggests that consumers have a higher WTB a
product from a brand engaging in initiatives belonging to the
external(rather than internal) CSR dimensions because knowing
about the former boosts that brand's perceived luxuriousness. This
finding is consistent with our proposition that CSR initiatives in
luxury may be differentially effective in influencing consumers'
purchasing attitudes depending on whether such initiatives are
internal versus external in nature. In particular, the finding in Study
1 is in line with our conceptualization that more visible initiatives
trigger consumer favor because they have a better fitwith the
typical social orientation characterizing luxury purchases.More-
over,the findings of Study 1 are in line with those shown in Pino
et al.’s (2016) work in a different,non-luxury context,as these
authors found that consumers' perceptions about genetically
modified foods producers'legal and philanthropic responsibilities
favorably affect consumers'attitudes and intention to buy geneti-
cally modified food.
6. Study 2: the moderating role of status consumption
Study 2 aimed to test H2 by exploring whether the effect of CSR
dimensions on consumers'WTB is moderated by a consumer's
status consumption orientation.We expected thatthe effect of
external(compared to internal)CSR initiatives on WTB will be
magnified for a consumer who has a high (rather than low) ten-
dency toward status consumption. In other words,this study tests
the notion that luxury brands' external (vs. internal) CSR initiatives
might be particularly appreciated by luxury consumers who
possess a relatively high desire to elevate their social position.
6.1.Design and procedure
One hundred and twenty-one participants (58 females, 63
males; MAge ¼ 36.99, SDAge ¼ 10.52) were randomly intercepted in a
luxury mall and assigned to one of two conditions (CSR di-
mensions: externalvs. internal) within a two-cell,between-sub-
jects experiment, similar to Study 1's design. No monetary
incentives were used for motivating participants to participate to
the experiment.Also in this case the questionnaire was created
through the Qualtrics platform in order to randomize the experi-
mental conditions; participants completed it using a tablet. In order
to pursue both control and realism (Levitt and List,2009),partici-
pants were asked to complete the questionnaire while seated in a
dedicated corner of a specific luxury store. In this way, participants
were in a quiet environment but stillwithin a realistic shopping
context. Participantswere first asked to complete a five-item
measure of status consumption (Eastman etal., 1999; e.g., “I
would buy a product only because it is a status symbol,” “Iam
interested in buying new status-symbolproducts”) using seven-
point Likert scales (1 ¼ strongly disagree,7 ¼ strongly agree).
Next, participantsread scenarios describing a luxury company
(Shine,i.e., the same as in Study 1) undertaking either external
(economic and ethical) or internal(legal and philanthropic) CSR
initiatives,depending on the condition participants were assigned
to (please see the Appendix). Subsequently,we checked our
manipulation using the same measure used in Study 1's pretest.
Finally,participants were asked to complete the same three-item
measure employed in Study 1 that assessed their WTB products
from Shine.
It is worth noting that in both Study 1 and Study 2,the ques-
tionnaire was administered via a tablet for two reasons. First,
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287 281

participants needed such a device to view the electronic ques-
tionnaire created through the Qualtrics platform. Second, the tablet
increased the perception of anonymity associated with the survey.
That is,participants could answer questions with the knowledge
that the research associate could notread their answers after
completion, thereby reducing social desirability bias.
6.2. Results and discussion
Respondents in the external CSR condition perceived the luxury
brand's initiatives as more visible and observable than those in the
internal CSR condition (Mexternal¼ 5.43, SD ¼ 1.20 vs. Minternal¼ 3.17,
SD ¼ 1.10; t(119) ¼ 2.26, p < .001).
We combined the scores from the five items assessing status
consumption tendency (a ¼ 0.92)and the three items assessing
participants’WTB (a ¼ 0.93) to obtain composite measures of the
moderator and the dependent variable, respectively. We employed
the PROCESS SPSS Macro to analyze the data (Hayes,2013)dspe-
cifically utilizing Model 1 to test moderation models,in line with
H2. The status consumption measure served as the moderator in
the relationship between the CSR dimensions and WTB.
The results showed a significant and positive main effect of CSR
dimensions (coded as 1 ¼ internal and 1 ¼ external)on WTB
(b ¼ 0.79, t (118) ¼ 9.04, p < .001) and a non-significant main effect
of status consumption on WTB (b ¼ -. 07, ns). Of greater importance,
the interaction between the CSR dimensions and consumers’ status
consumption was significant (b ¼ 0.23,t(118) ¼ 3.62,p < .001; see
Fig. 1).
Further, since status consumption was a continuous variable, we
explored its significant interaction effect via the Johnson-Neyman
“floodlight” approach (Spiller etal., 2013).The results revealed
that the magnitude of the CSR dimension's positive effect on WTB
increased as status consumption values increased (see Fig. 2), thus
supporting H2. In particular, the floodlight analysis showed that the
positive effect ofthe CSR dimensions on WTB turned out to be
significant for status consumption levels equal to and greater than
2.04 (bJN ¼ 0.31,SE ¼ 0.16,95% confidence interval: 0.00,0.62) and
remained significant at all higher levels until 6.8 (b JN ¼ 1.43,
SE ¼ 0.20,95% confidence interval: 1.03, 1.82).
For illustrative purposes,Table 1 contains an analysis ofthe
conditional effect of the CSR dimension on WTB at three discrete
levels of the moderators (i.e.,low, medium and high status con-
sumption orientation).Consistent with the floodlight technique,
such an analysis revealed that the effect of the CSR dimensions was
strongest for high levels of status consumption (b ¼ 1.11,
t(118) ¼ 8.90,p < .001) compared to medium (b ¼ 0.79,
t(118) ¼ 9.03,p < .001)and low levels (b ¼ 0.47,t(118) ¼ 3.83,
p < .001). Thus, these findings confirmed that the positive effect of
Notes: * p < .05, ** p < .01.
CSR Dimensions
(-1 = Internal,
1= External)
Brand Luxury Index
(BLI) scale WTB
.32* .52**
Indirect effect = .17 (95% confidence interval = .02, .42)
CSR Dimensions
(-1 = Internal,
1 = External)
Status Consumption
WTB
Conspicuous
Consumption
CSR Dimensions
(-1 = Internal,
1 = External)
WTB
Direct effect = .79**
Interaction effect
.23**
Direct effect = n.s.
Interaction effect
.25*
Fig. 1. Mediation and moderation models of the 3 studies.
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287282

external CSR dimensions on the WTB products from a brand that
emphasizesits legal and philanthropic actions is particularly
influenced by the high or medium levels of status consumption that
characterize some consumers.Thus,we found empiricalsupport
for H2.
Overall, Study 2 suggests thatstatus consumption acts as a
catalystfor the effect of CSR dimensions on WTB. Indeed, the
magnitude of the effect of communicating legal and philanthropic
(compared to economic and ethical) initiatives on WTB was higher
when consumers had a stronger tendency toward status con-
sumption.This finding affirms our proposition that externalCSR
actions may be particularly effective with customers who buy
luxury products mainly to exhibit their social status.
7. Study 3: the moderating role of conspicuous consumption
Study 3 aimed to test H3 by exploring whether and how the
effect of CSR dimensions on consumers'WTB is moderated by
consumers'conspicuous consumption orientation.We expected
that the greater effect of external (compared to internal) CSR ini-
tiatives on WTB will be magnified for consumers with a relatively
higher tendency toward conspicuous consumption. In other words,
this study tests the possibility that luxury brands’external (vs. in-
ternal) CSR initiatives might be particularly appreciated by con-
sumers with a relatively high desire to own and consume visible
products.
7.1.Design and procedure
Two hundred and twenty-one participants (103 females,118
males; MAge ¼ 40.04,SDAge ¼ 12.69),recruited from an online pool
of paid respondents (i.e., Amazon Mechanical Turk), were randomly
assigned to one of two conditions within a two-cell, between-
subjects experiment that manipulated the CSR dimensions as in
Study 1 and 2.Participants were first asked to complete a 12-item
measure of conspicuous consumption (Chaudhuri et al.,2011; e.g.,
“I admire people who own expensive homes,cars,and clothes,” “I
like to own things that impress people”),using seven-point Likert
scales (1 ¼ strongly disagree, 7 ¼ strongly agree). Then, participant
read the scenarios describing a luxury company (Shine,i.e., the
same company as in Study 1 and Study 2) that had undertaken
either internal (economic and ethical) or external (legal and phil-
anthropic) CSR initiatives, depending on the condition participants
were assigned to (please see the Appendix).Subsequently,we
checked our manipulation using the same measure used in our
previous experiments. Finally, participants were asked to complete
the same three-item measure employed in Study 1 and Study 2 to
assess their WTB products from Shine.
Table 1
Summary of results of experimental studies.
Study 1 (N ¼ 119) (laboratory study)
Variables Direct Effects Indirect Effect of the IV on the DV via the BLI
Independent Variable (IV): CSR dimensions
(1 ¼ external; 1 ¼ internal)
Direct effect of the IV on the BLI: b ¼ .32,p < .05 b ¼ .17, p < .05
Mediator: BLI (continuous variable) Direct effect of the BLI on the WTB: b ¼ .52, p < .01
Dependent Variable (DV): WTB (continuous
variable)
Direct effect of the IV on the DV: b ¼ .06 (n.s.)
Study 2 (N ¼ 121) (field study)
Variables Direct Effects Conditional Direct Effects
Independent Variable (IV): CSR dimensions
(1 ¼ external; 1 ¼ internal)
Direct effect of the IV on the DV: b ¼ .79,p < .01 Conditional direct effect of the IV on the DV at lower level of status
consumption: b ¼ .47,p < .01
Moderator: status consumption (continuous
variable)
Direct effect of the interaction (IV x status consumption)
on the DV: b ¼ .23, p < .001
Conditional direct effect of the IV on the DV at average level of
status consumption: b ¼ .79, p < .01
Dependent Variable (DV): WTB (continuous
variable)
Conditional direct effect of the IV on the DV at higher level of
status consumption: b ¼ 1.11, p < .01
Study 3 (N ¼ 221) (online study)
Variables Direct Effects Conditional Direct Effects
Independent Variable (IV): CSR dimensions
(1 ¼ external; 1 ¼ internal)
Direct effect of the IV on the DV: b ¼ .69 (n.s.) Conditional direct effect of the IV on the DV at lower level of
conspicuous consumption: b ¼ .30 (n.s.)
Moderator: conspicuous consumption
(continuous variable)
Direct effect of the interaction (IV x conspicuous
consumption) on the DV: b ¼ .25, p < .05
Conditional direct effect of the IV on the DV at average level of
conspicuous consumption: b ¼ .10 (n.s.)
Dependent Variable (DV): WTB (continuous
variable)
Conditional direct effect of the IV on the DV at higher level of
conspicuous consumption: b ¼ .51, p < .05
0
0,2
0,4
0,6
0,8
1
1,2
1,4
1,6
1,8
2
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Size of the effect of CSR dimensions on
WTB
Status consumption values
Fig. 2. Floodlight analysis for the effect of CSR dimensions on WTB for any levelof
status consumption orientation (Study 2).
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287 283

7.2. Results and discussion
Respondents in the external CSR condition perceived the luxury
brand's initiatives to be more visible and observable than those in
the internal CSR condition (Mexternal¼ 4.77,SD ¼ 1.43 vs.M inter-
nal ¼ 4.18,SD ¼ 1.59; t(129) ¼ 2.19,p ¼ .03).
We combined the scores from the 12 items assessing conspic-
uous consumption (a ¼ 0.95) and the three items assessing par-
ticipants’WTB (a ¼ 0.91) to form measures of the moderator and
the dependent variable,respectively.As before,we employed the
PROCESS SPSS Macro, and specifically Model 1, to analyze the data
(Hayes, 2013): the conspicuous consumption measure served as the
moderator in the relationship between the CSR dimensions (the
independent variable) and WTB (the dependent variable).
The results showed a marginally significant and negative main
effect of CSR dimensions (coded as 1 ¼ internal and 1 ¼ external)
on WTB (b ¼ 0.69, t (218) ¼ 1.86,p < .06) and a significant and
positive main effect of conspicuous consumption on WTB (b ¼ . 28,
t (218) ¼ 4.08,p < .001). Of greater importance,the interaction
between the CSR dimensions and consumers’conspicuous con-
sumption was significant (b ¼ 0.25, t(218) ¼ 2.40, p ¼ .01; see Fig. 1).
We again applied the Johnson-Neyman “floodlight” technique
(Spiller et al., 2013), which revealed a significant and positive effect
of the CSR dimensions on WTB,but only for conspicuous con-
sumption values equal to and greater than 4.33 (b JN ¼ 0.41,
SE ¼ 0.21,95% confidence interval: 0.00,0.83; see Fig.3).
For illustrative purposes,Table 1 contains an analysis ofthe
conditional effect of the CSR dimensions on WTB at three discrete
levels of the moderators (i.e.,low, medium and high status con-
sumption orientation).This analysis revealed thatthe effect of
external CSR dimensions on WTB was significant (b ¼ 0.51,
t(218) ¼ 2.17,p ¼ .03)for consumers with a higher conspicuous
consumption orientation,but not for consumers with medium
(b ¼ 0.10,t(218) ¼ 0.63,ns) and lower (b ¼ - 0.30,t(218) ¼ 1.26,ns)
level of orientation. Thus, these findings provide empirical support
for H3: The positive effect of the external CSR dimensions on the
WTB products from a brand that emphasizes its legal and philan-
thropic actions is positively influenced by a strong orientation to-
ward conspicuous consumption.
Overall, the results of Study 3 suggest that communicating
external,rather than internal,CSR initiatives is more likely to be
effective among consumerswith higher levels of conspicuous
consumption orientation.In conjunction with Study 2, Study 3
underscores that both status and conspicuous consumption
orientation influence the effect of external CSR initiatives on con-
sumers’WTB.
Taken together, Study 2 and Study 3 demonstrated that luxury-
related consumer’dispositions moderate the effect of the type of
CSR initiatives on WTB.The key message drawn from these two
studies is that there is a consistency between the type of CSR ini-
tiatives (internal vs.external) and consumers'approach to luxury
buying, whereby external CSR initiatives (i.e., those falling into the
legal and philanthropic responsibility domain),are particularly
appreciated by consumers with an externalized approach to luxury,
that is those with a relatively high status and conspicuous con-
sumption orientation. These result can be somehow paralleled with
those of De Angelis et al.(2017),inasmuch as they suggest con-
sumers who are particularly concerned about the social function of
luxury goods (i.e.,consumers with high status and conspicuous
consumption orientation and consumers with high luxury brand
knowledge) are those who are more concerned about the visibility
and noticeability of luxury brand's action (i.e., engaging in external
CSR initiatives in the case of the present research and designing a
new green luxury product that clearly resembles a luxury brand's
previous product models).
8. General discussion
In contrast with some previous scholars,we argue that luxury
companies'CSR and sustainability initiatives can have meaningful
value for consumers and may be particularly successfulif devel-
oped following a strategic approach based on the characteristics of
the target market. Through three experiments conducted in online
and offline contexts,we demonstrated the existence of a general
effect whereby knowledge of a luxury company's externalCSR
initiatives (i.e.,those in the more visible legaland philanthropic
dimensions)tend to increase consumers'perceptions of brand
luxuriousness. The effect of CSR dimensions on WTB is moderated
by two individual-level,dispositional factors: namely,status con-
sumption (tested in Study 2) and conspicuous consumption
orientation (tested in Study 3). Specifically, higher status (Study 2)
and conspicuous consumption orientation (Study 3) increase said
effect.
8.1.Theoretical implications
Past research in luxury has argued that CSR is not a relevant
driver in luxury consumption and may even dilute luxury brands’
image (Achabou and Dekhili, 2013; Davies et al., 2012; Griskevicius
et al., 2010). Indeed, luxury is generally associated to concepts like
excess and differentiation while CSR is typically associated with
sobriety and equity (Cristiniet al., 2017; De Barnier et al.,2012;
Gladwin et al., 1995; Lochard and Murat,2011).However,despite
such prior findings,the present study boosts the emerging evi-
dence that luxury and CSR might be compatible and may success-
fully co-exist (e.g.,Janssen et al.,2014).Indeed,the present study
shows that CSR strategies,in luxury,may be effective and may in-
crease the perceived luxuriousness of high-end brands, particularly
when the CSR initiatives developed by the luxury company are in
line with the characteristics of the target market.
Specifically, the present research contributes to the literature on
luxury consumption by arguing that scholars need to consider the
internal and external nature of CSR initiatives when investigating
their effects.To this end,we conceptually and empirically investi-
gated whetherconsumers'preference for luxury goods can be
explained by the perception of luxuriousness elicited by the two
kinds of CSR initiatives (internal vs. external). Moreover, we
investigated how two different but converging consumer charac-
teristics (status and conspicuous consumption) may influence the
-1
-0,8
-0,6
-0,4
-0,2
0
0,2
0,4
0,6
0,8
1
1,2
1,4
1,6
1,8
2
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Size of the effect of CSR dimensions on
WTB
Conspicuous consumption values
Fig. 3. Floodlight analysis for the effect of CSR dimensions on WTB for any levelof
conspicuous consumption orientation (Study 3).
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287284

effect of CSR initiatives on consumers'attitudes toward a luxury
brand's products.Our findings offer three main contributions to
extant research.
First,we supplement the literature on CSR with a novel exten-
sion of Carroll (1991) multidimensionalCSR model,whereby the
four dimensions (economic,legal,ethical and philanthropic) are
classified into two types based on their visibility to consumers.
Next,we show that these two types (internal vs.external) differ-
ently influence not only consumers' perceptions about a brand, but
also their purchasing intentions. Specifically, the findings illustrate
that the externalCSR dimension increases the perceived luxuri-
ousness of brands and,in turn, consumers'willingness to buy.
Therefore, our findings extend knowledge regarding CSR by
showing its dichotomous elements, based on two meta-dimensions
(internal vs. external),which affect purchase contingentupon
consumers'characteristics.
Second,this research is the first to connect the different CSR
dimensions with luxury marketing, and more specifically with
luxury goods' perceptions. In particular, our results serve to reframe
the four dimensions of Carroll's CSR model in a way suitable to the
study of luxury consumption. Our studies imply that luxury brands'
external CSR initiatives are likely to garner higher consumer favor
than their internal counterparts.Therefore,our results shed light
on how the well-established Carroll's CSR model should be theo-
retically linked to luxury brand management.
Third, we contribute to the literature on sustainable develop-
ment e and more specifically to the literature on the application of
CSR in luxury e by identifying the conditions under which CSR may
be effectively integrated within a luxury brand strategy (Amatulli
et al.,2017; Kapferer,2010).Indeed,our studies stand in contrast
against not only most studies about CSR,which have focused on
non-luxury goods or other industries, but also a great deal of
studies documenting the incompatibility between luxury and
sustainability issues (Yoon et al., 2006). Instead, we expand current
knowledge aboutthe potential boundary conditions thatmight
enhance the effectivenessof sustainability and CSR in luxury
marketing.We empirically demonstrate that externalCSR initia-
tives may be more positively perceived by consumers than internal
ones.More specifically,we find that the effectiveness of external
CSR dimensions is increased by consumers’ tendency to buy luxury
for status and conspicuousness.Therefore,our results support the
notion that the differences between internal and external CSR di-
mensions are not only conceptually substantive, but also practically
relevant with regard to targeting specific consumer segments.
8.2. Managerial implications
The present research demonstrates that sustainability can be
positive for luxury brands and luxury consumption.Our research
suggests that luxury companies have the opportunity to embrace
sustainability in a more effective way by developing their CSR
strategy and focusing on specific initiatives.In fact, the findings
offer several suggestions to managers of luxury goods companies
who want to increase the effectiveness of their CSR efforts.
In particular,the results of this study have important implica-
tions for luxury managers dealing with both communication and
product management.The first and most apparent suggestion is
that,when implementing their CSR branding and communication
actions,luxury companies should consider them in light of their
visibility to consumers.Managers should be aware that legal and
philanthropic initiatives might generally elicit more favorable re-
actions from luxury consumers than economic and ethical initia-
tives. At the same time,the success ofan external,rather than
internal,focus might be limited to certain segments of consumer-
sdnamely, those with a higher orientation toward status or con-
spicuous consumption.
Relatedly,our research highlights that, for luxury companies to
develop effective CSR strategies,they need to assess the luxury
market on the basis ofconsumers’status and conspicuous con-
sumption traits.Indeed,luxury companies could decide to invest
more or less into their CSR-related communication campaigns
based on the extent to which their consumers buy luxury products
for status and conspicuousness.
Moreover,by demonstrating that legaland philanthropic ini-
tiatives are more effective in luxury than ethicaland economical
ones, this research underscores the importance of sustainability in
luxury brands’ product developmentand sponsoring/financing
activities.Legal initiatives typically involve the use of specific ma-
terials or the achievement of specific certifications that are relevant
for manufacturing luxury goods.Philanthropic initiatives are typi-
cally based on the opportunity to support (often financially)
external activities that realize socially useful projects.
8.3. Implications for theory and practice on cleaner production,
sustainability and CSR
Theoretically, by emphasizing the role of CSR in luxury business
and the way it should be developed and communicated by luxury
brands, the present study may open new venues for research
related to the cleaner production paradigm,which implies the
adoption of production activities aimed at improving environ-
mental protection (Glavic and Lukman, 2007). In particular,
although our research did not focus specifically on the protection of
the environment,as it employed a broader,multidimensional CSR
paradigm,it is one of the first to suggest that behaving fairly may
generate positive returns for luxury companies.In this respect,
future work could explore more closely how securing environ-
mental protection affects consumers’perceptions aboutluxury
brands.
From a managerial standpoint, our results demonstrate that the
paradigm of cleaner production may be supported by luxury brands
and by the luxury sector at large.More specifically,our research
suggests thatboth luxury consumption and cleaner production
may be significantly improved through external CSR initiatives (i.e.,
those related to the legal and philanthropic dimensions).Indeed,
external CSR initiatives,compared to the internal ones (i.e.,those
related to the economic and ethicaldimensions) are both more
effective in luxury consumption and potentially more instrumental
to environmental protection.
8.4. Limitations and directions for future research
Our research has some limitations that representpotentially
interesting avenuesfor future studies. First, while our study
focused on two luxury-related, individual-level moderators, future
work could test whether the differential effect of CSR dimensions
on consumers' responses holds when considering different kinds of
moderators. For instance, future research may focus on consumers’
preference for logo prominence, that is, on their tendency to prefer
“quiet” or “loud” logos on luxury products (Han et al., 2010). Indeed
given our findings, luxury companies could expect that some
consumers have more or less desire for logo visibility on luxury
products,which may inform their CSR strategy development.
Second,future studies may also consider alternative mediators
such as the anticipated emotions.Indeed,while we prove that,in
luxury,specific CSR initiatives are effective because they increase
C. Amatulli et al./ Journal of Cleaner Production 194 (2018) 277e287 285

the luxuriousness of the brand,future work could consider inves-
tigating if specific CSR initiatives are effective because of the acti-
vation of anticipated negative emotions, such as, for instance, guilt
or shame,associated with the consumption of luxury products.
Third, our studies specifically showed that consumers tend to
evaluate luxury brands' external CSR initiatives better than internal
ones, and further, that this difference might be stronger or weaker
based on consumers’dispositionaltraits. However,future work
could test for reversals of this effect: For instance, consumers may
be less influenced by brand visibility when assessing products that
do not signal status.This account could be tested by studying the
effect of internal versus external CSR initiatives among brands that
sell utilitarian/non-luxury products.
Fourth, in the present research we did not consider the potential
influence of institutional environments on the development of CSR
initiatives (Halkos and Skouloudis, 2016; Xie et al., 2017). Therefore,
next studies may have the aim of shedding light on the specific
institutional barriers that could negatively influence the imple-
mentation of internal versus external CSR initiatives.
Fifth, we illuminated the effect ofexternalCSR initiatives on
consumers'WTB when said consumers were highly oriented to-
ward status and conspicuous consumption.However,we did not
specifically assess consumers’wealth or frequency of luxury pur-
chases. Thus, future studies could consider replicating our findings
with samples of real luxury clients.
Finally,we only tested a model that included the mediator and
one moderator, either status or conspicuous consumption. Moving
forward, research could investigate mediatorsand moderators
together in a unique model. It would be interesting to understand if
consumer-related moderators,such as status or conspicuous con-
sumption, directly affect the relationship between external CSR and
BLI, or alternatively,the effect of BLI on purchasing intentions.
Appendix
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Experimental scenarios of Study 1
Internal CSR dimensions (ethical and economic)
SHINE,a brand producing leather goods has recently developed the following
initiatives,an ethical and an economic one.
- Concerning the ethical initiative, the company offers to its employees health care
and insurance benefits for them and their children.
- Concerning the economic initiative,the company has bought a software able to
optimize the manufacturing process thus reducing internal production costs.
Eternal CSR dimensions (philanthropic and legal)
SHINE,a brand producing leather goods has recently developed the following
initiatives,an ethical and an economic one.
- Concerning the philanthropic initiative,the company has donated money to help
the building of a new pediatric hospital.
- Concerning the legal initiative,the company has acquired a certification attesting
the traceability of its raw materials,thus having now the opportunity to put this
certification on the label of its products.
Experimental scenarios of Study 2
Internal CSR dimensions
SHINE,a brand producing leather goods has recently developed the following
initiatives,an ethical and an economic one.
- Concerning the ethical initiative, the company offers to its employees health care
and insurance benefits for them and their children.
- Concerning the economic initiative,the company has bought a software able to
optimize the manufacturing process thus reducing internal production costs.
Eternal CSR dimensions
SHINE,a brand producing leather goods has recently developed the following
initiatives,an ethical and an economic one.
- Concerning the philanthropic initiative,the company has donated money to help
the building of a new pediatric hospital.
- Concerning the legal initiative,the company has acquired a certification attesting
the traceability of its raw materials,thus having now the opportunity to put this
certification on the label of its products.
Experimental scenarios of Study 3
Internal CSR dimensions
SHINE,is a luxury brand that has recently developed the following initiatives,an
ethical and an economic one.
- Concerning the ethical initiative,the company offer to its employees a series of
working benefits for them and their children.
- Concerning the economic initiative,the company has bought a software able to
optimize the manufacturing process thus reducing internal production costs.
Eternal CSR dimensions
SHINE,is a luxury brand that has recently developed the following initiatives,a
philanthropic and a legal one.
- Concerning the philanthropic initiative,the company has donated money to help
the building of a new pediatric hospital.
- Concerning the legal initiative,the company has acquired a certification attesting
the traceability of its raw materials,thus having now the opportunity to put this
certification on the label of its products.
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