The Role of Corporate Social Responsibility in Advancing Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights: Legal Frameworks and Multinational Perspectives

Purpose This chapter seeks to reveal what are the implications of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) debate on international investment law by focusing on the specific example of public health. The right to health is one of the human rights secured in international law and in the national legislation of a majority of States. This chapter will provide examples of investment cases concerning tobacco control measures, imposed by the Host States for the purpose of improving public health, though challenged by the tobacco companies under International Investment Agreements (IIAs) in investment tribunals. These specific examples cast rather general questions regarding the legal framework of international investment framework and its role in providing sufficient policy space for Host States to implement the public policies and to ensure that foreign companies adhere to the CSR standards. Methodology/approach In order to investigate what are the implications of the CSR debate on international investment law on the example of tobacco industry, the author performs a literature review and analyze two tobacco disputes and its possible implication on the public health debate and protection of foreign investors. Findings This case study illustrates the complex paradigm that interlink economic and human rights obligations of States on one side of the spectrum and property rights and social responsibilities of tobacco companies on the other side. Originality/value of chapter This chapter addresses a very topical and pertinent issue in public international law, namely: the role of public interest norms in the regime of foreign direct investment.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of green intellectual capital (GIC) on environmental sustainability performance (ESP) among companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE). This study further investigates the mediating role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in this relationship. This research seeks to elucidate the effects of GIC components – green human capital (GHC), green structural capital (GSC) and green relational capital (GRC) – on ESP. Design/methodology/approach This study used a mixed-method approach, collecting data from 246 managers of ASE-listed firms. Using partial least squares structural equation modeling, this research tested the direct and mediated relationships between GIC, CSR and ESP. Findings The results of this study reveal a significant positive relationship between GIC and ESP, particularly through the contributions of GHC and GSC. CSR is identified as a critical mediator, amplifying the positive effects of GIC on ESP. Notably, GRC exhibited no significant direct or mediated influence on ESP. Research limitations/implications This study is geographically limited to an emerging market context and focuses on managerial perspectives. Future research should explore broader geographic contexts, include diverse stakeholders and examine the role of organizational culture in enhancing the GIC–ESP dynamic. Practical implications This research provides actionable insights for human resource and sustainability managers. By leveraging GIC components and fostering CSR initiatives, organizations in emerging markets can enhance both environmental sustainability and corporate performance. Social implications The findings of this study underscore the importance of embedding environmental responsibility within organizational practices to create a sustainable working environment, benefiting employees and the broader community. Originality/value This study offers novel insights into the interplay between GIC, CSR and ESP, highlighting the strategic value of intellectual capital (IC) in driving environmental and organizational performance. This study bridges key gaps in the literature on sustainability in emerging markets.

PurposeBased on the principal–agent and stakeholder theories, this study aims to put forward an intermediary model to verify the intermediary role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in executive equity incentives and corporate innovation performance to improve corporate innovation performance.Design/methodology/approachThe 2012–2018 A-share listed companies’ disclosure of executive equity incentives data was used as the research sample. This study used CSR as an intermediary to explore the relationship between executive equity incentives and corporate innovation performance. A verification analysis was carried out.FindingsThe research results show that: a positive correlation exists between executive equity incentives and corporate innovation performance, and executives’ reasonable equity incentives can promote the growth of corporate innovation performance. A positive correlation exists between executive equity incentives and CSR. Implementing equity incentives for executives can stimulate their motivation to assume CSR. A positive correlation exists between CSR and corporate innovation performance. The more a company fulfills its social responsibility, the more it can promote the improvement of corporate innovation performance. CSR plays a mediating role between executive equity incentives and corporate innovation performance. CSR promotes executive equity incentives’ impact on corporate innovation performance and exerts a “complete mediating effect” between the two.Research limitations/implicationsThe number of samples and the time span of samples can be expanded in the future. This research has tested the mediating effect of CSR, but other mediating variables may play a role in the process of executive equity incentives in promoting corporate innovation performance. Further research should be conducted to explore the mediating effect of financing constraints and media attention on corporate innovation performance. This study only verifies the influence of equity incentives on CSR and innovation performance of senior executives. In the future, other incentive methods should be explored, such as salary incentives.Practical implicationsForeign research on equity incentives has matured, but the experience of foreign countries cannot necessarily produce the expected effect in China. More than ten years have passed since the China A-share market began implementing equity incentives on December 31, 2005. As of December 31, 2017, about one-third of enterprises in the high-tech industry that had introduced equity incentives had stopped implementing the policy. Data from 2012 to 2018 were selected to analyze the relationship between executive equity incentives, CSR and corporate innovation performance to explore the influence mechanism of equity incentives. This study provides a comprehensive theoretical framework to examine the interaction among executive equity incentives, CSR and corporate innovation performance. Because most previous studies have focused on the relationship between executive equity incentives, CSR and corporate innovation performance, they are rarely been used as an intermediary variable to explore the impact of executive equity incentives on corporate innovation performance. This study explores the impact of executive equity incentives on corporate innovation performance under the influence of CSR. Moreover, this study explores the mediating role of CSR in corporate governance, which provides a new perspective for CSR research and verifies relevant literature on the mediating effect model.Social implicationsResearch countermeasures and suggestions: the research results are significant for enterprises implementing executive equity incentives, fulfilling CSR, enhancing corporate reputation, improving corporate innovation performance and ultimately obtaining market competitiveness. Therefore, the following suggestions are proposed: establish and improve the executive equity incentive mechanism and strengthen the promotion effect of executive equity incentives in CSR and corporate innovation performance. Strengthen the awareness of enterprises to actively fulfill CSR and give full play to the role of CSR in promoting corporate innovation performance. Improve the profitability of enterprises and focus on the promotion effect of enterprise profitability on corporate innovation performance.Originality/valueThis study focuses on executive equity incentives and introduces CSR as an intermediary variable to explore the influence path of executive equity incentives on corporate innovation performance. Based on the research results, this study takes targeted measures to improve corporate innovation performance and maintain its healthy growth of corporate innovation performance. This is significant in enhancing enterprises’ core competitiveness and promoting the enterprise economy’s sustainable development. Meanwhile, the enterprise has significant reference value in actively fulfilling its CSR and realizing its stable and healthy development.

Human rights queryfalse are typically presented in terms of entitlements, correlative duties, claims, “trumps,” and remedies. 1 These framings, which draw principally on law and philosophy, emphasi...

Economic Sanctions Against Human Rights Violations

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of owner family involvement in business on sustainable survival of family small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) and to empirically validate the intervening role of corporate social responsibility (CSR).Design/methodology/approachThe authors analyze data from 489 owner and nonowner executives of 150 family SMEs using PLS-SEM (Partial Least Square–Structural Equation Modeling).FindingsThe authors found evidence that family involvement in business positively impacts the sustainable survival of family SMEs while corporate social responsibility partially mediates this relationship. Apart from effective family involvement in business, active involvement in social causes enhances a firm's ability to survive longer.Research limitations/implicationsThis study was conducted in a geographic context and data were collected from family-managed and controlled firms. Further research is needed to generalize the findings to all types of family firms in the global context. In an Islamic society, family firms need to invest in social causes, human development, and environmental sustainability through zakat, sadaqat, and donations.Practical implicationsThe findings imply that family firms require stakeholder-centric competitive strategies and socially responsible behavior along with effective family control, commitment, enrichment, and successful succession since the path to sustainable survival goes through CSR.Originality/valueSurvival is the biggest challenge facing family SMEs forcing them to achieve the ability to sustain longer. Rooted in transaction cost economics (TCE) theory of the family firm and stakeholder theory, this paper validates an integrative model for family SMEs' sustainable survival.

Job insecurity is one of top concerns in the contemporary workplace, which significantly affects emotional exhaustion and workplace deviance. Thus, this study seeks to explore the buffering role of employees' corporate social responsibility (CSR) perceptions to against the effect of job insecurity. Based on micro-CSR literature and social identity theory, this study tested the proposition that employees' CSR perceptions moderate the relationship between job insecurity and emotional exhaustion through organizational identification. Using three-wave data collected from 145 employees in one of China's biggest computer equipment providers, we found that employees' CSR perceptions alleviate (exacerbate) the negative relationship between quantitative (qualitative) job insecurity and emotional exhaustion via organization identification. Our findings provided new insights to scholars and managers in dealing with job insecurity.

At present, climate and other environmental problems are arising because of the development of the industrial sector at a large level. The industrial sector is supposed to be a major cause of climate change problems that lead to global warming. Therefore, corporate social responsibility (CSR) with the help of corporate governance is an imperative approach to control these social problems. Consequently, in the context of the organizational and management theory, agency theory, and the stakeholder theory, this study focuses on important factors of internal corporate governance such as chief executive officer (CEO) power, the board size, independence, ownership concentration, managerial ownership, and audit quality for improving the profitability of firms. Moreover, this study considers corporate social responsibility as a controlling and moderating factor for firm performance and internal corporate governance. We employed ordinary least square (OLS) for endogeneity testing, fixed effect (FE), generalized method of moments (GMM), and feasible generalized least square (FGLS) on data of Pakistani firms for the period of 2010–2019. The results of this study demonstrate the following outcomes: firstly, all internal corporate governance factors are positively linked with firm performance; secondly, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the most valuable tool for improving profitability. Importantly, this study suggests that all internal corporate governance factors are positively linked with firm performance because of the interactive role of corporate social responsibility (CSR). This study practically contributes to the literature by suggesting the imperative role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) for internal corporate governance, which may help to reduce climate and social problems.

Leadership styles outline the routes used by managers and employeesto reach their desired goal of long-term success. Researchers argued that the compartmentalized components of transactional, transformational, and servant leadership fail to take into consideration the complexities of leaders and followers. Considering the alarming rise of corrupt and selfish leaders in recent years, this research examined a potential countermeasure by investigating the impact of transcendental leadership (TL) on task performance contextual (TPC) and organizational performance contextual (OPC). Additionally, the mediating role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and moderating role of workplace spirituality (WS) is also investigated in Pakistani industries. The data were collected from 266 respondents and analyzed using hierarchical regression analyses. The results indicated that TL has significant impact on TPC and OPC, whereas CSR mediates the relationship of TL and performance dimensions. Also, WS strengthens the relationship between TL and CSR. We propose implications for practicing managers and researchers hereunder. Received: 16 December 2023 | Revised: 6 February 2024 | Accepted: 28 February 2024 Conflicts of Interest The author declares that he has no conflicts of interest to this work. Data Availability Statement The data that support this work are available upon reasonable request to the corresponding author.

This study aims to investigate the role of corporate social responsibility as a mediator between social factors and sustainable socially responsible purchases in the food industry of Sindh, Pakistan. To determine the findings of this study, a sample size of 250 is drawn from the study’s primary data. The department of purchasing is requested to voluntarily complete the questionnaire utilized in previous studies. The convenience sampling strategy and the snowball sampling strategy are considered for data collection. For data analysis, SmartPLS version 3 is utilized. This study revealed that corporate social responsibility partially mediates the connection between human rights, social welfare, and sustainable socially responsible purchasing. Nevertheless, the full mediation effect between safety and health for socially responsible purchasing has been uncovered. The novel finding of this study is that the mediation effect was not previously conducted a. However, the mediating role of corporate social responsibility and the food industry has been evaluated in the context of Sindh, Pakistan.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in tax avoidance in Palestinian companies. These companies exist in an unstable situation and a fluctuating economy. It is worth studying to what extent the role of CSR in Palestinian companies affects their tax avoidance. Design/methodology/approach This study uses primary data from commercial and industrial listed major and top companies in Palestine. Based on purposive sampling, out of 480 questionnaires distributed, 126 valid responses were obtained. This paper uses Spearman’s correlation coefficient to analyze the data and test the hypotheses. Findings The findings reinforce the previous literature on the relationship between CSR and tax avoidance. The results show that CSR is positively correlated to tax avoidance via organizational ethical culture in terms of CSR for the work environment and CSR for the community. However, the CSR for education was found to have no relationship with tax avoidance in Palestinian companies during the sample period. This might be due mainly to the low profitability achieved by the Palestinian companies, along with the unstable political and economic factors. Also, companies would prefer to invest directly in community development projects rather than pay traditional taxes. Yet another reason that compels companies in Palestine to engage in CSR is to regain their reputation and the ability to balance self-interest with social causes. Research limitations/implications This study addresses the relationship between tax avoidance and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices in Palestine. It further hypothesizes that a firm may engage in ESG practices to offset aggressive tax practices, thus begging the question as to whether the ESG efforts are legitimate or not to help improve their appearance. This study further supports stakeholder theory, especially in ensuring that a firm that takes into consideration the interest of its stakeholders performs better overall. Following the resource-based and legitimate view of the firm, ESG practices are strategic assets that could be fundamental in managing risk and creating value and innovation in the long term. Regulation can even have a positive effect by reinforcing reputation and helping to develop good relationships with stakeholders. Practical implications The study has several important practical and social implications. The study highlights that sustainable CSR investment plays a crucial role in enhancing an organization’s nonfinancial performance. It contributes to building a strong reputation, increasing brand value, fostering customer loyalty, and improving cost efficiency in palestine. Additionally, CSR serves as a strategic tool for risk management by addressing ESG factors, thereby reducing the likelihood of legal liabilities and reputational damage. Despite the short-term costs associated with CSR initiatives, the long-term benefits—such as improved brand reputation, customer loyalty, and organizational innovation—are evident, particularly in the context of Palestine. Social implications On a broader level, the study underscores the social value of CSR by demonstrating its ability to attract socially responsible investors. Organizations that engage in ethical and sustainable business practices are perceived more favorably in the market of palestine, leading to higher stock prices and easier access to capital. This positive perception not only benefits individual companies but also promotes a more responsible and sustainable business culture. In regions like Palestine, the adoption of CSR can drive socio-economic development by fostering trust, ethical conduct, and long-term investment in community well-being. Originality/value The originality of this paper is that it empirically tests the selected dimensions of CSR and their relationships with tax avoidance in the Palestinian context. This study sheds light on the causes of tax avoidance in Palestine and the relationship between the tax administration and taxpayers. Since it represents a significant advancement and improvement over earlier research. The current study proposes a further examination of the relationship between CSR and tax avoidance by using different and modern techniques.

Corporate social responsibility has become a necessary part of each company in the 21st century. Almost all businesses either observe or attempt to incorporate corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities into their operations (Lubis, 2018). Since hospitals are also a type of economic institution and the only place that works to preserve human life, it is imperative to comply with the elements of CSR in order to improve performance and maintain the well-being of society and the environment. The role of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has not been clear so far in Afghanistan's companies and organizations' context. In addition to that, research under this title has not been conducted yet. The present study aims to evaluate the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Afghanistan's states and private hospitals. From the total of 667 state and private hospitals, a sample of 146 hospitals has been selected for analyzing and testing the research hypothesis. The primary and secondary data have been used to show the role of CSR in Afghanistan hospitals. Furthermore, the multiple regression and correlation tests helped us estimate the role of CSR in Afghan hospitals. The result of the study shows that the level of CSR in Afghanistan hospitals, both public and private, is appropriate in all economic, legal, humanitarian, and ethical aspects, and the level of difference in central hospitals in ethical and humanitarian dimensions is higher than in non-central hospitals, while the level of difference in non-central hospitals in economic and legal dimensions is higher than in central hospitals.

Purpose Based on the combination of stakeholder theory (ST), institutional theory (IT) and resource-based view (RBV), this study aims to examine the relationship between stakeholder pressure (SP) and green innovation (GI), considering the mediating role of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Design/methodology/approach Partial least squares path modeling was used to investigate a sample of 327 respondents at food industry companies in Vietnam. Findings Community, government and customer are the stakeholders that have an impact on CSR, in which the influence of government is the most significant. Government, customer and employee are the stakeholders that have an impact on green product innovation and green process innovation. CSR is shown to have an impact on both green product innovation and green process innovation, in which the impact on green process innovation is stronger. In addition, the full or partial mediating role of CSR in the relationship between SP and GI is also explored. Research limitations/implications This study was conducted in the context of food processing enterprises in an emerging economy, while the typical characteristics of different economic contexts may influence the research results to some extent. Therefore, future studies should consider other contexts to diversify the research context for this research area. Practical implications First, based on the needs and desires of government, community and customers, companies need to improve the level of CSR implementation through better implementation of economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities. Second, companies should use CSR as a way to fully use tangible and intangible resources, reuse waste and use renewable energy to contribute to the development of green products. Third, managers need to thoroughly implement CSR and GI through clear implementation policies at the enterprise and codes of ethics publicly disclosed to relevant parties. Originality/value First, the author demonstrates the influence of community, government and customer on CSR, in which the government is identified as having the strongest influence. Second, based on the combination of ST, IT and RBV, the author provides a theoretical framework to analyze the relationship among SP, CSR and GI, especially the relationship between CSR and GI of companies from both the pressure and motivation perspectives. Third, this study clarifies the influence of government, customers and employees on green product innovation and process innovation. Finally, this study was conducted in an emerging country in the specific context of food processing enterprises.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of servant leadership on frugal innovation through the mediating role of corporate social responsibility to employees. Design/methodology/approach This study used a quantitative research method and structural equation modeling to test hypotheses in the proposed research model based on a sample of 325 Vietnamese firms. Findings The research findings indicated that five dimensions of servant leadership including empowerment, humility, standing back, stewardship and authenticity are positively related to frugal innovation. Moreover, corporate social responsibility to employees partially mediates the connections between five servant leadership’s dimensions and frugal innovation. Research limitations/implications This study provides important insights and a novel approach for leaders of Vietnamese small and medium-sized firms to improve their firms’ frugal innovation capability through leadership practice and corporate social responsibility to employees. Originality/value This study significantly fills research gaps in the literature and advances the understanding of how servant leadership promotes corporate social responsibility to employees to improve frugal innovation.

The purpose of this research is to understand the relationship between green business ethics, green finance, and sustainable business performance, and to evaluate the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in this relationship. The impact of the damage inflicted on nature’s functioning order is being felt much more strongly today. In light of these realities, companies must emphasize sustainability principles not just out of financial concerns but as a result of corporate social responsibility. In this context, focusing on the role of corporate social responsibility in sustainable business performance is the main goal of this research. Quantitative research methods, specifically the cross-sectional survey method, were employed for data collection and analysis. For this purpose, a convenience sampling method was used to select 427 white-collar employees working in industries operating in Türkiye as the sample for this study. The data collected through surveys were analyzed using the AMOS 24 statistical program. The findings underscore that green business ethics and green finance have a significant impact on corporate social responsibility and sustainable business performance. Additionally, it was determined that corporate social responsibility plays an intermediary role in shaping sustainable business performance. These findings are expected to provide an important foundation that can guide both employees and managers in developing awareness about green policies and sustainability, emphasizing the importance of green policies in working life.