Social Activism and Practice Diffusion: How Activist Tactics Affect Non-targeted Organizations

Key Insights for Managers

Activists have targeted some buyers and licensees to improve the working conditions of their suppliers, and have sometimes been successful. But when do those who were not targeted nonetheless change their behavior to meet activist demands? Authors Forrest Briscoe, Abhinav Gupta, and Mark Anner examine how universities responded when activists campaigned against other universities whose major athletics supplier was reportedly violating human rights. The activists were calling for universities they were targeting to sanction the supplier by terminating its apparel-licensing contracts until the violations were resolved. 

The study found that non-targeted universities were more likely to similarly sanction the supplier when activists used non-disruptive evidence-based tactics, such as scheduling meetings to enable administrators from targeted universities to hear directly from workers about human rights violations at their workplace. Such responses by non-targeted schools were especially likely when the targeted school was considered a peer or competitor. In contrast, the study found no evidence that non-targeted universities similarly engaged in supplier sanctioning when activists used disruptive-based tactics such as boycotts and sit-ins against targeted schools. 

This study reveals how the activists’ campaigns tactics influences the extent to which non-targeted entities change their behavior in ways sought by the activists.