Abstract
The emergence of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) concept resulted in the introduction of the subject to the curricula of management faculties at many universities worldwide. Business schools and management departments educate future decision-makers of the national and global economy. Therefore, in order to be able to anticipate future development trends in the area of CSR, surveys of students’ opinions on the responsibilities of business toward society are conducted. This study aimed to answer the question about the way in which students prioritize particular dimensions of CSR. In particular, it focuses on whether the respondents consider the economic dimension to be fundamental, given their different socio-cultural contexts. An additional aim of the research is to verify A. Carroll’s original CSR model, as expressed in terms of the economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic dimensions. The research included two groups of students at the Faculty of Management of the Lublin University of Technology—Polish and foreign. The results obtained in both study groups differ from A. Carroll’s original CSR model system. They also differ from each other. In the group of Polish students, the bottom and top dimensions of the pyramid are economic and legal, and in the group of foreign students, they are philanthropic and legal, accordingly. The shapes of the two pyramids are also different, which may be caused by different socio-cultural contexts and specific social needs. The adopted model turned out to be useful for studying the CSR structure expressed in the form of a four-element pyramid. It also allowed the weighting of the perceived importance by the respondents of each individual dimension of CSR. This study helps to predict future corporate social responsibility activities and trends in business.
Highlights
The results obtained in the study suggest that, in line with how students perceive Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), they can be divided into “pro CSR”, “resistant to CSR”, or “assigning CSR a secondary importance”, while sociodemographic variables did not turn out to be significantly differentiating the perception of CSR by the surveyed students
This study aimed to answer the following research questions: How do the surveyed students prioritize the various dimensions of CSR, and in particular, which dimension is considered fundamental by them? Is the set of dimensions universal? Is the basis always the economic dimension or is the order of dimensions dependent on the sociocultural context of the studied students? Through the study, it was possible to verify the CSR model built by A
In the group of Erasmus students, profit and ethics are perceived as largely antagonistic, the other pair being the legal and philanthropic dimensions (Table 6)
Summary
Higher Education Institutions and Education in the Field of CSR. The importance of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in business reality is constantly growing. Numerous initiatives to support the development of education in CSR have emerged worldwide. In 2007, following the communication of the European Commission entitled “Promoting corporate social responsibility” [1], higher education institutions worldwide have been invited to introduce CSR educational content into their teachings. The initiative has been enhanced by the United Nations Development Program entitled “Accelerating CSR Practices in the New EU Member States and Candidate Countries as a Vehicle for Harmonization, Competitiveness, and Social Cohesion in EU.”. One of the results was the UN Global Compact initiative, aiming at promoting the six “Principles of Responsible Management Education” (PRME), which are purpose, values, method, research, partnership, and dialogue [2] The initiative has been enhanced by the United Nations Development Program entitled “Accelerating CSR Practices in the New EU Member States and Candidate Countries as a Vehicle for Harmonization, Competitiveness, and Social Cohesion in EU.” One of the results was the UN Global Compact initiative, aiming at promoting the six “Principles of Responsible Management Education” (PRME), which are purpose, values, method, research, partnership, and dialogue [2]
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