Korean Journal of Community Nutrition (대한지역사회영양학회지)

The Korean Society of Community Nutrition (대한지역사회영양학회)
권호 표지
DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

Do American Consumers Perceive Corporate Social Responsibility Actions and Exhibit Loyalty Intentions Differently according to the Reputation of Fast Food Restaurants?

패스트푸드 기업의 인지도가 기업의 사회적 책임 활동에 대한 미국 소비자의 인식과 구매충성도에 미치는 영향

  • Lee, Kiwon (Department of Hospitality Management, College of Education, Health, and Human Services, Kent State University) ;
  • Lee, Youngmi (Department of Food and Nutrition, College of Natural Science, Myongji University)
  • 이기원 (켄트주립대학교 호텔경영학과) ;
  • 이영미 (명지대학교 자연과학대학 식품영양학과)
  • Received : 2021.05.31
  • Accepted : 2021.06.25
  • Published : 2021.06.30
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

Objectives: This study investigated the different perceptions of customers toward traditional and non-traditional fast-food restaurants regarding restaurant healthfulness, corporate reputation, and the impact of corporate reputation on loyalty intentions through corporate social responsibility (CSR) motive. Methods: An online survey was conducted on U.S. residents who were aware of fast food restaurants' CSR activities. Participants selected one fast food restaurant participating in CSR activities, coded as either traditional (n = 117) or non-traditional (n = 48), and answered questions about the selected restaurant's healthfulness, reputation, CSR motives, and loyalty intentions. The participants' perceptions of healthfulness and corporate reputation of the two types of fast-food restaurants were compared. A mediation path of corporate reputation - CSR motive - loyalty intention was analyzed. Results: Non-traditional fast-food restaurants (5.02 ± 1.26) were perceived to be more healthful than traditional ones (3.93 ± 1.72). The participants perceived that compared to traditional fast-food restaurants, non-traditional ones had a better overall corporate reputation (P = 0.037), were more concerned about their customers (P = 0.029), better workplaces (P = 0.007), more environmentally and socially responsible (P < 0.001), and offered higher quality products and services (P = 0.042). Significant positive correlations were shown between restaurant healthfulness and corporate reputation (P < 0.001 for all reputation items). The suggested mediation path was supported with 95% CIs excluding zero, implying that when fast-food restaurants had a better reputation overall, were customer oriented, good employers, strong companies with a good product and service quality, social and environmental responsibility, the participants were more likely to perceive their CSR activities to be sincere and were hence loyal to that restaurant. Conclusions: Overall, participants were more favorable towards non-traditional fast-food restaurants which had a healthier image and better reputation than traditional ones. Therefore, fast food restaurants need to consider offering healthy food and enhance their image, which would maximize the return on their investment in CSR.

Keywords

References

  1. Kim K, Park E. Nutrient density of fast-food consumed by the middle school students in Cheongju City. Korean J Community Nutr 2005; 10(3): 271-280.
  2. Garcia G, Sunil TS, Hinojosa P. The fast food and obesity link: Consumption patterns and severity of obesity. Obes Surg 2012; 22(5): 810-818. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-012-0601-8
  3. Jeffery RW, Baxter J, McGuire M, Linde J. Are fast food restaurants an environmental risk factor for obesity? Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 2006; 3(2): 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-3-1
  4. Lee SS. A study on dietary behavior of children according to their preferences for fast food. Korean J Community Nutr 2004; 9(2): 204-213.
  5. QSR. The new definition of "fast food" [internet]. QSR; 2010 [cited 2021 May 12]. Available from: https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/new-definition-fast-food
  6. National Restaurant Association. 2021 State of the restaurant industry [internet]. National Restaurant Association; 2021 [cited 2021 May 12]. Available from: https://restaurant.org/research/reports/state-of-restaurant-industry
  7. QSR. The QSR 50 [internet]. QSR; 2020 [cited 2021 Jun 22]. Available from: https://www.qsrmagazine.com/reports/2020-qsr-50
  8. Chandon P, Wansink B. The biasing health halos of fast-food restaurant health claims: Lower calorie estimates and higher side-dish consumption intentions. J Consum Res 2007; 34(3): 301-314. https://doi.org/10.1086/519499
  9. McDonald's. Values in action [internet]. McDonald's; 2021 [cited 2021 May 14]. Available from: https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/about-us/values-in-action.html.
  10. Reich AZ, Xu YH, McCleary KW. The influence of social responsibility image relative to product and service quality on brand loyalty: An exploratory study of quick-service restaurants. Hosp Rev 2011; 28(1): 20-51.
  11. Swimberghe KR, Wooldridge BR. Drivers of customer relationships in quick-service restaurants: The role of corporate social responsibility. Cornell Hosp Q 2014; 55(4): 354-364. https://doi.org/10.1177/1938965513519008
  12. Xu Y. Understanding CSR from the perspective of Chinese diners: The case of McDonald's. Int J Contemp Hosp Manag 2014; 26(6): 1002-1020. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-01-2013-0051
  13. Adams R. Fast food, obesity, and tort reform: An examination of industry responsibility for public health. Bus Soc Rev 2005; 110(3): 297-320. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0045-3609.2005.00017.x
  14. Gregory S, McTyre C, DiPietro RB. Fast food to healthy food: A paradigm shift. Int J Hosp Tour Adm 2006; 7(4): 43-64. https://doi.org/10.1300/J149v07n04_03
  15. Lee K. Consumer skepticism about quick service restaurants' corporate social responsibility activities. J Foodserv Bus Res 2020; 23(5): 417-441. https://doi.org/10.1080/15378020.2020.1780187
  16. Schroder MJA, McEachern MG. Fast foods and ethical consumer value: A focus on McDonald's and KFC. Br Food J 2005; 107(4): 212-224. https://doi.org/10.1108/00070700510589503
  17. Bhattacharya CB, Sen S. Doing better at doing good: When, why, and how consumers respond to corporate social initiatives. Calif Manage Rev 2004; 4(1): 9-24. https://doi.org/10.2307/41166284
  18. Ellen PS, Mohr LA, Webb DJ. Charitable programs and the retailer: Do they mix? J Retail 2000; 76(3): 393-406. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-4359(00)00032-4
  19. Mohr LA, Webb DJ. The effects of corporate social responsibility and price on consumer responses. J Consum Aff 2005; 39(1): 121-147. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6606.2005.00006.x
  20. Du S, Bhattacharya CB, Sen S. Maximizing business returns to corporate social responsibility (CSR): The role of CSR communication. Int J Manag Rev 2010; 12(1): 8-19. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2009.00276.x
  21. Bogel PM. Company reputation and its influence on consumer trust in response to ongoing CSR communication. J Mark Commun 2019; 25(2): 115-136. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527266.2016.1166146
  22. Rim H, Song D. The ability of corporate blog communication to enhance CSR effectiveness: The role of prior company reputation and blog responsiveness. Int J Strateg Commun 2013; 7(3): 165-185. https://doi.org/10.1080/1553118X.2012.738743
  23. Yoon Y, Gurhan-Canli Z, Schwarz N. The effect of corporate social responsibility activities on companies with bad reputations. J Consum Psychol 2006; 16(4): 377-390. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1604_9
  24. Walsh G, Beatty SE. Measuring customer-based corporate reputation: scale development, validation, and application. J Acad Mark Sci 2007; 35(1): 127-143. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-007-0015-7
  25. Cai Y, Jo H, Pan C. Doing well while doing bad? CSR in controversial industry sectors. J Bus Ethics 2012; 108(4): 467-480. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-1103-7
  26. Palazzo G, Richter U. CSR business as usual? The case of the tobacco industry. J Bus Ethics 2005; 61(4): 387-401. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-7444-3
  27. Buhrmester M, Kwang T, Gosling SD. Amazon's Mechanical Turk: A new source of inexpensive, yet high-quality, data? Perspect Psychol Sci 2011; 6(1): 3-5. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691610393980
  28. Kim HJ, Park J, Kim M, Ryu K. Does perceived restaurant food healthiness matter? Its influence on value, satisfaction and revisit intentions in restaurant operations in South Korea. Int J Hosp Manag 2013; 33: 397-405. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2012.10.010
  29. Wei W, Miao L. Effect of calorie information disclosure on consumers' food choices at restaurants. Int J Hosp Manag 2013; 33: 106-117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2012.06.008
  30. Nguyen N, Leblanc G. Corporate image and corporate reputation in customers' retention decisions in services. J Retail Consum Serv 2001; 8(4): 227-236. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0969-6989(00)00029-1
  31. Walsh G, Beatty SE, Shiu EMK. The customer-based corporate reputation scale: Replication and short form. J Bus Res 2009; 62(10): 924-930. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2007.11.018
  32. Nunnally J, Bernstein I. Psychometric theory. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1994.
  33. Dave JM, An LC, Jeffery RW, Ahluwalia JS. Relationship of attitudes toward fast food and frequency of fast food intake in adults. Obesity 2009; 17(6): 1164-1170. https://doi.org/10.1038/oby.2009.26
  34. Hayes AF. Introduction to mediation, moderation and conditional process analysis. New York: Guilford Press; 2018.
  35. Bae YK, Kim YN. Fast foods intake of highschool students in Daejeon area. J Korean Home Economic Educ Assoc 2016; 28(2): 41-50. https://doi.org/10.19031/jkheea.2016.06.28.2.41
  36. Hong SH. Fast food intake frequency and health practices. Korean J Health Promot 2020; 20(2): 58-69. https://doi.org/10.15384/kjhp.2020.20.2.58
  37. Okrent AM, Elitzak H, Park T, Rehkamp S. Measuring the value of the U.S. food system: Revisions to the food expenditure series. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service; 2018 Sep. Report No. TB-1948.
  38. Story M, Kaphingst KM, Robinson-O'Brien R, Glanz K. Creating healthy food and eating environments: Policy and environmental approaches. Annu Rev Public Health 2008; 29: 253-272. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.29.020907.090926
  39. Commetric. Fast food in the media: The rise of the health-conscious consumer [internet]. Commetric; 2019 [cited 2021 May 25]. Available from: https://commetric.com/2019/01/04/fastfood-in-the-media-the-rise-of-the-health-conscious-consumer/
  40. Block JP, Condon SK, Kleinman K, Mullen J, Linakis S, Rifas-Shiman S et al. Consumers' estimation of calorie content at fast food restaurants: Cross sectional observational study. BMJ 2013; 346: f2907. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.f2907
  41. Kim Y, Ramos MLZ. Stakeholder responses toward fast food chains' CSR: Public health-related vs generic social issue-related CSR initiatives. Corp Commun Int J 2018; 23(1): 117-138. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCIJ-05-2017-0047
  42. Kim DJ, Kim YJ. A study on customer perception on a food service company's corporate social responsibility activities. Culi Sci Hos Res 2012; 18(1): 259-271.
  43. Preacher KJ, Hayes AF. SPSS and SAS procedures for estimating indirect effects in simple mediation models. Behav Res Methods Instrum Comput 2004; 36(4): 717-731. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03206553