Advocacy fit and social identity in corporate social advocacy: A multigroup analysis of public responses

Companies’ engagement in sociopolitical issues requires aligning corporate identity with their advocacy efforts while also connecting to publics’ social identities. This research applies the social identity approach and attribution theory to examine the impacts of advocacy fit and ingroup identification on attributed corporate social advocacy (CSA) motives and attitudes toward the company across two social groups. A randomized between-subjects experiment with 965 Prolific participants from two racial groups revealed that higher advocacy fit increased perceived values-driven motives while reducing egoistic and strategic motives, leading to more positive attitudes toward the company. Furthermore, the multigroup analytical approach showed significant group-based differences, highlighting the distinct roles of social group membership and ingroup identification in shaping CSA attributions and attitudinal responses. Importantly, CSA attributions emerged as a key mediator in explaining the effects of advocacy fit and ingroup identification, though the impacts of perceived egoistic motives varied across groups. By centering on advocacy fit and social identity, this research advances CSA scholarship by incorporating companies’ long-term identity considerations and broader societal factors, such as intergroup dynamics.