International Conference on Vocational Business, Logistic, Accounting, Supply Chain, Tax (ICoBLAST)

Introduction/Main Objectives: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become a
strategic tool for companies in controversial industries to enhance their public image.
Indonesian cigarette manufacturers are no exception, frequently engaging in CSR initiatives
that trigger public scrutiny regarding their true intentions, i.e. whether these actions are
genuinely altruistic or simply calculated efforts to improve their reputation. Therefore, it is
both interesting and important to investigate how the public evaluates the CSR programs of
cigarette companies.
Background Problems: This research aims to examine how various types of CSR initiatives
(health, environment, sports, and education) affect public’s skepticism, and in turn, influence
overall evaluations of the company.
Novelty: Departing from prior studies that often treat CSR as a uniform construct, this
research compares the effects of various CSR types and examines the mediating role of
skepticism towards CSR in a controversial industry in Indonesia.
Research Methods: An experimental study was conducted, where 144 participants were
randomly assigned to four different treatment groups (health, environment, education, and
sports). The participants were given brief information about Rokoqu, a hypothetical cigarette372
company, its CSR initiatives, and key facts of tobacco risks. Well-established scales were
used to measure the variables.
Findings/Results: Results showed that skepticism towards CSR had a negative effect on
company evaluation. However, CSR types did not significantly influence skepticism.
Therefore, skepticism did not mediate the relationship between CSR initiatives and company
evaluation. Health and education-related CSR had no significant difference in influencing
company evaluation, while environment and sports-related CSR affected company evaluation
more negatively than health-related CSR did.
Conclusion: While CSR types do not trigger skepticism, they can affect company evaluation
differently. Environment and sports-related CSR are found to influence company evaluation
more negatively than health and education-related CSR.
Implementation Potential: CSR programs may backfire in the context of companies
operating in controversial industries, especially if the initiatives are misaligned with their
reputation and public expectations.
Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); Cigarette company; Skepticism towards
CSR; Company evaluation.
JEL Classification: M31, M140