Applying the self-construal (SC) temporal match effect to a cause marketing context, this study investigated the conditions under which cause-related marketing campaigns generate stronger altruistic attributions of sponsor motives and subsequently purchase intention. As major factors, temporal duration (long-term vs. short-term), SC (independent vs. interdependent), and product involvement (high vs. low) were incorporated in the integrative model and the three-way interaction effect on altruistic attributions was assessed. With the use of online experimental data from 323 college students, the matching effect of temporal duration and SC was found, such that independent individuals were influenced by the message that was framed with the distant, long-term duration. Our findings further found that this matching effect was more pronounced for the high-involvement product, but not for the low-involvement product. In addition, this study discovered that altruistic attributions mediated the effect of temporal duration on purchase intention in the low-involvement product condition, but not in the high-involvement condition. Theoretical and managerial implications were discussed for researchers and practitioners.
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