Source  JOURNAL OF CONSUMER PSYCHOLOGY, 16(4), 377-390

Based on theories of attribution and suspicion, three experiments highlight the mediating role
of perceived sincerity of motives in determining the effectiveness of CSR activities. CSR activities
improve a company's image when consumers attribute sincere motives, are ineffective
when sincerity of motives is ambiguous, and hurt the company's image when motives are perceived
as insincere. Variables affecting perceived sincerity include the benefit salience of the
cause, the source through which consumers learn about CSR, and the ratio of CSR contributions
and CSR-related advertising. High benefit salience of the cause hurts the company, in particular
when consumers learn about it from a company source. This backfire effect can be overcome
by spending more on CSR activities than on advertising that features CSR.