Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 2021-7
Effect of violation of social missions on public attitude towards a social enterprise crisis: Mediation of causal attribution and moderation of medium and framing of online articles
This study examined the mediating effect of perceived causal attribution of crisis on the relationship between perceived violation of social missions and public attitude, in addition to examining the moderating effects of both the medium and framing of online articles on the relationship between perceived violation of social missions and public attitude and that between perceived causal attribution and public attitude. The study conducted a quantitative content analysis of 511 comments obtained from 16 online articles for analysing a social enterprise crisis. The results supported that perceived causal attribution mediated the effect of perceived violation of social missions on public attitude. In addition, episodically framed articles enhanced the effect of perceived violation of social missions on public attitude, whereas Facebook articles enhanced the effect of perceived causal attribution on public attitude. Implications for public relations practitioners and journalists are discussed in this article.
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