Ambient cues, attributions of brand sustainability efforts, and professional service provider recommendations

This study examines how unaffiliated professional service providers (PSPs) interpret the motivations underlying brands’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts. Drawing on attribution theory, we propose a dual-pathway model in which belief in general eco-claims and perceptions of sustainability as a social norm shape attributions of altruistic and strategic brand motives. Using a cross-sectional survey of unaffiliated PSPs and a structural equation modelling approach, the results show that perceived eco-norms and trust in environmental messaging shape motive attributions and downstream recommendation intentions. The findings indicate that PSPs rely on ambient, brand-neutral sustainability cues that operate outside firm-controlled communication channels. These results highlight PSPs as key intermediaries through which CSR meanings and sustainability norms diffuse beyond firm-controlled communication channels.