Three essays on corporate responses to social movement activism

This three-essay dissertation addresses two central research questions: (1) ‘how do firms defend themselves when targeted by social movement activists?’ and (2) ‘why do firms respond differently to activists’ demands?’ Essay 1 is a single-case study of Royal Dutch/Shell’s rhetorical responses to anti-apartheid activists’ demands for the firm to divest from, or sever its ties to, South Africa in the late 1980s. Building on the findings from the first essay, Essay 2 is an examination of Coca-Cola, Inc.’s covert, or secret, funding of a front group that intended to defame the audiences (e.g., social activists, legislators) putting anti-soda pressures on the firm in the early 2000s. I address the second research question in Essay 3. Specifically, I develop and test theory regarding the factors that influenced American firms’ differential responses to anti-apartheid activists’ pressures for divestment from South Africa in the late 1980s. This dissertation contributes to the academic literature in the following ways. Essays 1 and 2 are the first examinations of defamation as a plausible strategy in firms “defensive repertoire” when they are targeted by external audiences such as social activists and legislators. Essay 3 is the first study to show that differences in firms’ substantive commitments to marginalized or repressed stakeholders in a host country influence the divestment decision. Overall, this dissertation offers new insight into the ways firms defend themselves as well as the factors that influence firms’ differential responses to social movement activism.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Business Administration

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2017

Author dc:creator

• Minefee, Ishva

Contributors dc:contributor

• Bucheli, Marcelo
• Clougherty, Joseph
• Leblebici, Huseyin
• Mahoney, Joseph
• Shah, Sonali

• Organizational impression management
• Social movement activism

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2017 Ishva Minefee

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/98146

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/98146