Social responsibility approach among universities’ community

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to explore the extent to which universities in developing countries have adopted social responsibility (SR) and track its implementation.Design/methodology/approachThrough content analysis, the study examined the SR activities in 14 universities in Albania and North Macedonia. A framework for assessing SR in universities was developed based on the ISO 26000/2010 standard and the main SR domains relevant to the university context were identified and analysed. A comparison between public and private universities was made and best practices were highlighted.FindingsThe results showed that the highest scoring domain is organisational governance, while the environment domain scored lowest. No significant differences between public and private universities were identified in the disclosure of the university social responsibility (USR) domains.Research limitations/implicationsDomains were assessed based on the online content the universities disclosed and did not consider any unpublished content.Social implicationsThe best SR practices are promoted to increase other universities’ level of engagement with the USR approach.Originality/valueThe study adds to the contributions in the USR literature by providing a better understanding of the application of USR in developing countries. The developed framework may be used to assess USR engagement in a practical way.