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The increasing importance of corporate social responsibility in recent years has been largely discussed, mainly as a part of business strategies to cope with growing environmental challenges. Discourses regarding corporate social responsibility intensified with the emergence of financial crisis. Many of these debates refer to the role CSR plays in society and reasons for a company to involve in supporting social causes in times of crisis.

Considering a macro view of business and higher education interactions, this chapter explores key facets for business interest in other organizations (e.g., other businesses and their social agendas, nonprofits, and higher education) and a trend toward the creation of signature programs, which allow most companies to focus efforts by highlighting Carroll's (1991) Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility and Jacoby's (1973) Three Models of Behavior of the Business Enterprise. This chapter also addresses ethical opportunities and problems.

This chapter aims to understand to what extent the use of cause-related marketing, can become a tool of strategic positioning and differentiation for influencing consumption decisions of a critical type of external stakeholder, that is, the customers (participants and non-participants), in the context of school sports events. Accordingly, quantitative empirical research was carried out resorting to a questionnaire. A sample of 829 pupils in mainland Portugal was gathered, covering both participants and non-participants in School Sports events associated with food products, namely, Compal Air and Nestum Rugby. The results reveal that customers’ perception of the attributes of social responsibility and of the general attributes of the brand has a positive influence on consumption decisions, especially with regard to participants in this type of event. In addition, individual motivations, determining the decision to participate or not in events, are found to influence the consumption decision.

We examine the role of communication in stimulating consumer attitudes and buying behavior regarding corporate social responsibility (CSR).

We review the literature on communicating CSR to consumers through (1) messages constructed and verified by the company (such as product claims and corporate advertising), (2) messages constructed by the company, but verified by a third party (such as disclosures), and (3) messages constructed and verified by a third party (such as independent consumer guides and publicity).

Communication messages constructed and verified by the company can be quite effective in persuading consumers, if they are communicated in a credible way. The latter can, for example, be done by including specific behaviors and/or outcomes in the message. Messages constructed by the firm, but verified by a third party tend to have a higher credibility, but risk containing either too little information or too much. Finally, messages constructed and verified by a third party can be seen as highly credible, but can sometimes be seen as merely PR. In addition, both messages focusing on deontological responsibility (the firm’s motives and behavior), and messages focusing on consequentialist responsibility (the outcomes of the firm’s behavior) seem important to consumers.

The results offer suggestions on how to communicate about CSR to consumers.

The chapter provides the first comprehensive overview of the literature on communication about CSR to consumers.

This study explores the relationship between brand image and brand equity in the context of sports sponsorship. Keller's (1993, 2003) customer-based brand equity models are the conceptual inspiration for the research, with Faircloth, Capella, and Alford's (2001) conceptual model – adapted from the work of Aaker (1991) and Keller (1993) – the primary conceptual model. The study focuses on the sponsorship relationship between the New Zealand All Blacks and their major sponsor and co-branding partner, adidas. The sporting context for the study was the 2003 Rugby World Cup held in Australia. Data were collected from two independent samples of 200 respondents, utilizing simple random sampling procedures. A bivariate correlation analysis was undertaken to test whether there was any correlation between changes in adidas' brand image and adidas' brand equity as a result of the All Blacks' performance in the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Results support the view that Keller (1993, 2003) proposes that brand image is antecedent to the brand equity construct. Results are also consistent with the findings of Faircloth et al. (2001) that brand image directly impacts brand equity.

To investigate consumer responses to conditional (CRM) versus unconditional (corporate philanthropy) corporate giving initiatives in advertising. Cross-cultural approach to investigate whether Dutch and Germans differ in their responses.

2×3, between-subjects experiment, involving 178 Dutch and German consumers (convenience samples). Nationality and type of corporate giving initiative were the independent variables. Type of corporate giving initiative was manipulated in a product advertisement. Attitude to company, attitude to product and purchasing intent were measured in a written questionnaire.

Main effect for type of corporate giving initiative: participants exposed to the conditional (CRM) or the unconditional (corporate philanthropy) giving initiatives displayed significantly more positive attitudes to company than participants in the control condition. Main effect for nationality: German participants were significantly more positive about the product and the company than the Dutch. No effects on purchasing intent, and no interaction between nationality and type of corporate giving initiative.

Communicating about corporate giving (in advertising) can contribute to positive consumer outcomes, with respect to attitude to the company. The two nationalities studied did not differ in their response to the two types of corporate giving initiative, suggesting that both types could be effective in boosting corporate reputation in these countries.

Cross-cultural research on consumer response to CSR initiatives is underrepresented, as are studies that investigate the relative effects of different types of corporate giving. This study regionally expands research on the efficacy of corporate giving to Germany and the Netherlands.

This chapter reviews The Bruntland Report (United Nations, 1987) and World Economic Forum's (2002) views and broader concerns for people, profit, and planet. Cone's (2010a) corporate citizenship spectrum is explained and discussed. This more modern concept focuses on more sophisticated behaviors of companies including employee engagement, modern measurements of impact and outcomes, and consideration of signature programming.