The Impacts of CSR Program on Young Students' Attitudes toward the Corporation and Natural Environment: Tourism Study from a Convergence Perspective

Background/Objectives: This study examines the impact of an educational environmental CSR program on young South Korean students' attitudes toward the corporation and natural environment. Methods/Statistical Analysis: A selfadministered questionnaire was conducted on the last day of the camp program in 2013 at the camp site. Questionnaires were distributed by a camp program manager to all teenager participants and 133 valid data sets were obtained after seven incomplete questionnaires were eliminated. The questionnaire consisted of three main sections covering issues related to experience of environmental CSR program, attitudes towards the corporation, and attitudes towards natural environment. Findings: The participants can be characterized as interactive and escapist groups. It would be because the camp is based on the premise that participants are interested in environment and expect to learn about environment. Second, the environmental CSR program can contribute to enhance the corporate’s brand image, but it cannot always lead to immediate sales improvement. It could result from that the participants are high school students who are not great consumers and that Korean and American consumers have different awareness and behavior in relation to environment. Lastly, environmental CSR could give knowledge of natural environment and improve environmental awareness. Consequently it could modify participants’ attitudes but not their behavior. Application/Improvements: To reach a fuller understanding of the impact of the environmental CSR program, a further extensive study is needed to be done through a follow-up survey.