An analysis of the effects of corporate social responsibility on consumer patronage of GSM service providers in Nigeria

Great deal of inconsistencies exist in the literature regarding the influence of Corporate Social Responsibility on organizational outcomes, highlighting the need for more explorations, especially in different cultures and settings in order to build theory and update literature. This study attempts to determine the effects that customer perception of corporate social responsiveness has on patronage of GSM service providers. A survey questionnaire was used to gather data from 395 consumers of GSM services in Nigeria. Linear Regression was conducted to test the formulated hypothesis while weighted average was used to analyse the relative influence of each element of corporate social responsiveness on consumer patronage. It was found that social responsiveness of GSM service providers has a positive and significant influence on consumer patronage of their services. Of the identified elements of corporate social responsibility, intrinsic components such as special efforts to improve customer satisfaction and care for their rights as well perception of care for employees are the most emphasised by consumers. On the basis of these findings, measures are recommended to improve on consumer perception of corporate social responsiveness of GSM service providers. Given the recent increase in the GSM companies’ investment in CSR activities in Nigeria, a comprehensive independent assessment (such as this) of the impact of such investments helps in redesigning the activities for enhanced impact