The Effect of Perceived Economic Mobility on Support for Corporate Activism

Companies are more frequently taking public stands on controversial and divisive socio-political issues. Thus, researchers have been paying a great amount of attention to the issues surrounding corporate activism such as how and why certain types draw more support from consumers and other stakeholders. The current research contributes to the literature by examining how people’s perception of economic mobility affects their tendency to support corporate activism. In particular, using two studies with different research designs and diverse participants, the current research demonstrates that perception of high (vs. low) economic mobility leads to stronger (vs. weaker) support for corporate activism, and further shows that this effect is mediated by the locus of control. With this nuanced finding, this research provides theoretical and substantive implications and various future research directions.