Corporate social responsibility and CSR fit as predictors of corporate reputation: A global perspective

•Most studies on CSR and reputation focus on practical implications.•Institutional theory provides an understanding of the relationship between CSR and reputation.•CSR is one of the key public relations tools used to communicate norms and gain legitimacy.•When organizations have a positive reputation, high-fit CSR activities lead to less skepticism.•A negative reputation combined with high-fit CSR may lead to skepticism and a negative reputation. This paper reviews the literature for articles that include both the terms corporate social responsibility and reputation in the title and/or abstract. The results of the conceptual analysis reveal that most studies on CSR and reputation focus on practical implications without contributing to the theoretical framework. The authors propose applying institutional theory to enhance the understanding of the relationship between CSR and reputation and to foster public relations theory development.