Do you reap what you sow? Driving mechanism of supply chain transparency on consumers' indirect reciprocity

Abstract

IntroductionTo maintain sustainable poverty alleviation in the post-pandemic world, China encourages firms to participate in the “Social Commerce Helping Farmers Project.” This study aims to explore the phenomenon of indirect reciprocity between firms, consumers, and farmers in the supply chain. This study explores how supply chain transparency stimulates indirect reciprocity among consumers through competence trust, goodwill trust, and integrity trust. Furthermore, we explore the impact of compassion and the need for social status on the model.MethodsWe fit a partial least square analysis structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using data from an online random vignette-based experiment questionnaire survey.ResultsSupply chain transparency of social responsibility practices asymmetrically affects three dimensions of consumer trust by improving perceived information quality. And the three dimensions of trust asymmetrically contribute to indirect reciprocity. Furthermore, compassion has a positive moderating effect on the relationship between perceived information quality and trust. However, the moderating effect of the need for social status on the relationship between the three dimensions of trust and indirect reciprocity differed significantly.DiscussionOur findings indicate that supply chain transparency improves consumer trust, making consumers more responsive and rewarding companies that assist vulnerable groups in their supply chains. Faced with a trust crisis, companies can take different measures to achieve their goals based on each dimension of trust. At the same time, companies need to consider differences in the responses of consumers with different personality traits (e.g., compassion and the need for social status) when revealing their corporate social responsibility practices to consumers.

Is It Both Sufficient and Necessary to Disclose Environmental Information Regarding the Origin on Consumer Purchases?

“…This benign trust also enhances consumers' propensity to make purchases, as they view the producer as reliable and capable of delivering environmentally friendly products that align with their expectations. The conclusion that integrity trust does not play an intermediary factor between information disclosure and purchase intention contradicts the findings of He et al [31]. The inconsistency may be attributed to the fact that integrity trust is closely linked to the commitments and performances of businesses across the entire transaction process.…”

“…Honesty and trust in e-commerce refer to consumers' reliance on online merchants to offer accurate product details and adhere to commitments and transaction regulations. Research has shown that the disclosure of supply chain information can bolster consumers' trust in the competence, integrity, and benevolence of the merchants [31]. The study conducted by Xuhui demonstrated that the information presented by merchants on the platform has a substantial impact on consumers' trust in competence, integrity, and benevolence [32].…”

A study on the influence of product environmental information transparency on online consumers’ purchasing behavior of green agricultural products

“…Competence trust is a prerequisite for consumers to judge sellers and make purchase decisions ( Fu et al, 2022 ). Supply chain transparency can stimulate indirect reciprocity among consumers by increasing competence trust, benevolence trust, and integrity trust through improved perceived information quality ( He, 2023 ). In online shopping situations, when consumers’ trust in a seller’s competence is established, they tend to trust the seller’s ability to provide safe, quality-compliant products and reliable product information, and these trusts can lead to online purchase behavior.…”