Earticle

This study examines how the corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities of Korean firms affect the job pursuit intentions of Chinese and Vietnamese international students in Korea, against the policy background of the Study Korea 300K Project. It has two related aims. First, it investigates how international students interpret CSR information released by Korean firms and how this information is translated into evaluations of the firm as a prospective employer. Second, it examines whether the relevant relationships vary by nationality. The empirical analysis draws on survey data collected from 200 Chinese and Vietnamese students enrolled at a university in Seoul. To minimise the influence of prior brand familiarity, the questionnaire presented respondents with CSR information concerning a fictitious Korean electronics company. The data were analysed using SPSS 27.0 and AMOS 29.0. The results show that economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic responsibility all have significant positive effects on corporate image. Among the four direct effects on job pursuit intention, ethical responsibility has the largest standardised coefficient. Corporate image also has a significant positive effect on job pursuit intention and partially mediates the relationships between each of the four CSR dimensions and job pursuit intention. However, none of the principal path differences between the Chinese and Vietnamese groups reaches statistical significance; H4 is therefore not supported. By linking employer-attraction research in human resource management with an area-studies perspective, this study offers empirical evidence for understanding how Korean firms may develop their employer image and attract Chinese and Vietnamese international talent.