CSR Sales-Contingency Belief

What it measures

Assesses the extent to which a consumer believes that a company's level of social engagement fluctuates based on its product sales performance, suggesting that CSR is a commercially contingent rather than principled commitment. Used as a manipulation check in research examining how CSR framing affects perceptions of price fairness.

Response format

7-point Likert (likely: fully disagree / fully agree)

Scale items

• The extent of _____'s social activities depends on how many products they sell.
• _____ engages to a greater extent in social activities if it sells more products.
• The extent to which _____ engages in social projects depends on their product sales.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Used by Habel et al. (2016) in Study 5 (web appendix; n = 87 undergraduates) as a manipulation check. Alpha = .96. Verbal anchors not explicitly described but assumed to be fully disagree / fully agree, consistent with other Habel et al. scales. Conceptually inspired by Kirmani & Rao (2000) on signalling. Replace blanks with the company name.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Habel, J., Schons, L.M., Alavi, S., & Wieseke, J. (2016). Warm glow or extra charge? The ambivalent effect of corporate social responsibility activities on customers' perceived price fairness. Journal of Marketing, 80(1), 84–105.

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