Living wage in the framework of corporate social responsibility: Analyzing its impact on consumer response

Abstract

Several studies indicate that corporate social responsibility (CSR) has a positive impact on consumer response. However, in spite of its effect can greatly vary, not all types of CSR have been equally examined. The current study evaluates, for the first time, the impact of living wage (LW) on consumer response through a comparative analysis with another CSR initiative, fair trade (FT), whose impact has been the subject of wide research. The findings suggest that LW has a greater effect on the perceived value of commercial proposals than FT within the segment of consumers that values CSR (prosocial). Moreover, each initiative generates a high level of processing fluency among this group. However, the main difference with LW is that it also exerts a positive impact on consumers that are averse to CSR (non‐prosocials). The findings are examined taking into consideration the beneficiary proximity. Academic, methodological, business, and social implications are identified.