Document Type

Thesis

First Faculty Advisor

Christopher Morse

Second Faculty Advisor

Julie Volkman

Keywords

corporate social responsibility; content analysis

Publisher

Bryant University

Rights Management

CC-BY-SA

Abstract

Companies are increasingly taking action on societal issues and are aware of the impact that their corporate voice has on impressionable publics. Existing research focuses greatly on corporate social responsibility and the moral standards that set up companies to market themselves authentically to the values they build themselves on. The current study explores how three companies utilize their platform to share their values in relation to ethical issues arising in the modern world. Through the Twitter accounts of Ben & Jerry's, Patagonia, and Starbucks, a content analysis was conducted on their use of language related to their ethical standpoints on climate change and environmentalism. The data found a relationship between the context of keywords in tweets and the quality of information being shared by the company. Developing a strong presence on social media that is transparent with company values allows customers to trust the authenticity of the brands they invest in.

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