FROM RESPONSIBILITY TO LOYALTY: EXAMINING THE ROLE OF CORPORATE REPUTATION, TRUST, AND ETHICAL COMMITMENT

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and customer loyalty by developing and empirically testing a comprehensive framework that incorporates corporate reputation, customer trust, and ethical commitment as mediating and moderating mechanisms. Drawing on stakeholder and signaling theories, the research investigates both the direct and indirect effects of CSR on customer loyalty. The findings reveal that CSR significantly influences customer loyalty not only directly but also indirectly through multiple psychological and relational pathways. Corporate reputation emerges as the strongest mediator, highlighting its critical role in translating CSR initiatives into favorable customer responses. Customer trust also plays a significant mediating role, reinforcing the importance of trust-based relationships in increasingly competitive and ethically conscious markets. Additionally, ethical commitment is identified as a novel and meaningful mediator, emphasizing the importance of internal moral alignment and perceived CSR authenticity in shaping customer attitudes and behavioral intentions. The study advances CSR literature by moving beyond simplistic direct-effect models and offering an integrative perspective on the CSR–loyalty nexus. Managerially, the findings suggest that authentic, ethically grounded, and strategically aligned CSR initiatives can enhance reputation, strengthen trust, and foster sustainable customer loyalty.