10/25/2016

When Companies Praise Good Behavior, They May Encourage the Exact Opposite

Why giving credit for altruism can backfire

In January 2011, Maryam Kouchaki walked out of a local Starbucks with her usual: a steaming-hot vanilla latte. But the cup struck her as unusual, and made such an impression that a version of it still sits on a shelf in her home office. It reads: “YOU. BOUGHT 228 MILLION POUNDS OF RESPONSIBLY GROWN, ETHICALLY TRADED COFFEE LAST YEAR. … Way to go, you.”

Messages such as this one—that imply that a customer has done something eco-friendly or charitable by buying a specific brand—are increasingly common. Praising a customer in these ways is thought to increase consumer loyalty and improve a company’s image. And of course, it makes us customers feel good about our actions.

But to Kouchaki, an assistant professor of management and organizations at the Kellogg School, the cup triggered a research question: Does telling a person they are helping the environment or another social cause actually help those causes? Or might it somehow do the opposite?

Please click here to read the complete article from Kellogg Insight.