Conversational Receptiveness Increases Positivity for Organizations Addressing Controversial Issues

Abstract: Data show that the public expects organizations to address societal issues. However, businesses that take positions on controversial topics risk losing political favor, revenue, and reputational standing. In extant literature, individuals who make “conversationally receptive” statements to disagreeing others are rated as more trustworthy, more desirable as team members, and are less likely to be in an escalating conflict. Thus, we investigate whether “conversational receptiveness”—using language to signal willingness to engage sincerely on a contentious topic—reduces risks to organizations and affords similar positive allowances. Additionally, we extend conversational receptiveness research, which has focused exclusively on disagreeing others, by examining effects for both agreeing and disagreeing others since organizations must address stakeholders with wide-ranging opinions. In four pre-registered studies (N=4095), we find evidence that the positive benefits of conversational receptiveness extend to organizations and have a favorable impact even when stakeholder attitudes are mixed on issues.

Keywords: conversational receptiveness, reputation management, corporate social responsibility, communication processes