Decoding the Dynamics of CEO Sociopolitical Activism and Stakeholders’ Response

Business leaders today function as powerful symbolic figures whose sociopolitical stances can transform consumer loyalty, investor confidence, and organizational stability. This study decodes how stakeholders interpret executive actions and respond through behaviors such as boycotts, divestment, or heightened advocacy, highlighting both short and long-term consequences. Drawing on signaling, stakeholder, social identity, social influence, intrinsic motivation, and reputational risk theoretical frameworks, this study develops a four-stage interpretive model that links leadership behavior to stakeholder perceptions, reactions, and market outcomes within varying contextual and environmental conditions. Through a case-based analysis, it illustrates how CEO stance, media framing, and ideological alignment shape these responses. By specifying the mechanisms of compliance, identification, internalization, and intrinsic motivation, this research advances marketing theory and practice in a meaningful way. Findings underscore the strategic importance of managing leadership visibility and aligning brand narratives with stakeholder values in an era of heightened sociopolitical sensitivity.