How Corporate Social Responsibility Activates Customer Social Responsibility

Evidence from Generation Z in an Emerging Market (Vietnam)

Abstract

This study examines how perceived corporate social responsibility (PCSR) activates Customer Social Responsibility (CuSR) and ultimately shapes green financial consumption among Generation Z in Vietnam, an emerging market. Drawing on an integrated theoretical framework that combines Signaling Theory and Norm Activation Theory, CSR is conceptualized as a normative signal capable of triggering customers’ internal moral responsibility. The proposed sequential mechanism links PCSR → CSR authenticity (AUTH) → green trust (GTR) → CuSR → green financial intention (GFI) → green financial behavior (GFB), while incorporating greenwashing skepticism (GSK) as a boundary condition. Survey data were collected online from 396 Gen Z respondents (18–27) in Vietnam, using established multiitem measures and analyzed via covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) with 5,000 bootstrap resamples for mediation and moderation testing. Procedural and statistical remedies were applied to address common method bias, and data normality was confirmed prior to CB-SEM estimation. Results support the proposed chain: PCSR increases authenticity (β=0.61), authenticity strengthens green trust (β=0.53), trust activates CuSR (β=0.47), CuSR predicts intention (β=0.59), and intention predicts behavior (β=0.65). The model explains 50% of variance in intention and 42% in behavior, with significant sequential mediations (including CuSR → GFI → GFB, β=0.38). This study contributes to the literature by moving beyond outcome-based CSR models and demonstrating how corporate responsibility can activate customer-level moral responsibility, thereby extending traditional frameworks such as the Theory of Planned Behavior and Value–Belief–Norm theory. The findings offer important implications for promoting sustainable financial behavior in emerging markets.