Current Corporate Social Responsibility Research Articles

CSR's Moral Commitment and Greenwashing

This research explores the phenomenon of greenwashing within the context of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and examines its ethical implications. Greenwashing refers to the practice of companies presenting themselves as more environmentally responsible than they are, misleading stakeholders and undermining genuine CSR efforts. The study investigates the deceptive nature of greenwashing, analyzing its prevalence across various industries and its impact on corporate credibility. It also explores ethical frameworks, such as Max Weber’s typology of ethics, to understand how current CSR practices may inadvertently promote greenwashing. Effective communication and stakeholder engagement are identified as critical factors in preventing greenwashing, emphasizing the need for transparency. The paper reviews existing regulatory measures and voluntary standards aimed at curbing greenwashing and proposes a hybrid approach that combines both to enhance corporate accountability. The findings underscore the importance of a robust framework to ensure that CSR initiatives are genuine and impactful, addressing the challenges posed by greenwashing

Commitment to corporate social entrepreneurship in the context of a health crisis: The case of the scientist–entrepreneur couple who founded BioNTech

ABSTRACT If corporate social responsibility (CSR) calls for a virtuous process in which health for all becomes egalitarian, ethical and equitable, the health crisis (COVID-19) revealed certain limitations to this process. The aim of our research is to identify the limitations that can hinder corporate social entrepreneurship (CSE)’s commitment of coentrepreneurs (founders of BioNTech) in the dissemination of “their” vaccine in the context of a health crisis. The difficulties encountered in disseminating the Comirnaty vaccine (Pfizer–BioNTech) on the African continent are exemplary in this respect. A literature review presents the concept of CSE associated with the contributive advantage concept in the creation of social and economic values. We then present two research proposals: How can CSE influence the double CSR performance (social and economic) of copreneurs? What kinds of limitations may hinder CSE’s commitment to success in a health crisis context? Are ethics and profit always reconcilable? Concerning the research method, we use a qualitative approach with the investigation of a unique case study of the scientist–entrepreneur couple who founded BioNTech and led the Lightspeed project that gave birth to the Comirnaty vaccine Concerning the results by showing how CSE could expand the scope of companies’ activities and their organizational values, we are pushing them to rethink their current CSR approaches by combining team commitment, will, and desire to create common economic and social values. We also have illustrated a promising path for practitioners in a crisis context, where they can achieve their economic and social objectives to take a sustainable advantage.

Between political legitimacy and strategic competitiveness: Overseas corporate social responsibility patterns of Chinese international contractors

This article examines the overseas corporate social responsibility (CSR) patterns of Chinese international contractors (CICs). Adopting an institutional and political economy approach, a unique dataset is constructed with country-specific contents drawn from CSR-related reports and website information of 50 top CICs. This dataset provides a foundation for systematic content analysis of CICs’ overseas CSR practices, revealing that both political legitimacy-seeking and strategic competitiveness-seeking motivations drive CICs’ CSR activities abroad, characterized by the prioritization of customer and community engagement. The findings highlight the coexistence of the exogenous pressures for the national image-building purpose and the endogenous awareness of CSR strategic importance for corporate internationalization. The hybridization of political and economic rationales is presented as the defining feature of CICs’ current overseas CSR patterns, with the balance between them being determined by stakeholder type and internal business needs influenced by corporate internationalization experience.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Needs in Health Care Sectors-A Critical Analysis of Social Innovation in the Health Sector in Taiwan.

Social innovation is often used as a mechanism to jump-start public-private partnerships to leverage resources to achieve social impact; the analysis of sustainability and the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) cannot be emphasized enough. Due to advances in the information and communication technology industry in Taiwan, this paper aims to explore whether these advancements drive CSR as a form of social innovation to meet health needs in Taiwan. This paper uses a case study to look at CSR programs in the health sector in Taiwan. Corporations with diverse missions and different CSR approaches that are available on the internet are selected. The analysis of the case study takes a qualitative, exploratory approach to shed light on current initiatives. The majority of CSR programs in Taiwan are private sector activities that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic; current CSR activities in Taiwan are driven by awards, public relations, and external interests. Corporations in Taiwan have the potential to address the health care gaps of urban-rural health utilization among Taiwanese indigenous communities. It is recommended for corporations to (1) develop partnerships with public health experts or to (2) employ CSR personnel with health care backgrounds who can navigate the intersection between health, business, and policies to develop CSR strategies. Further evaluation of the projects mentioned in this paper to assess the direct and indirect impact on health outcomes could provide a more comprehensive understanding of the field of CSR in the health sector in Taiwan.

Can Consumers’ Altruistic Inferences Solve the CSR Initiative Puzzle? A Meta-analytic Investigation

AbstractResearch into consumer responses to corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives has expanded in the past four decades, yet the evidence thus far provided does not paint a cohesive picture. Results suggest both positive and negative consumer reactions to CSR, and unless such mixed findings can be reconciled, the outcome might be an amalgamation of disparate empirical results rather than a coherent body of knowledge. The current meta-analysis therefore tests whether the mixed findings might reflect consumers’ distinct, altruistic inferences across various contingency factors. On the basis of 337 effect sizes, involving 584,990 unique respondents, in 162 studies published between 1996 and 2021, this study reveals that altruistic inferences are central to the current CSR paradigm, such that they mediate the effects of CSR initiatives on consumer responses across multiple contingencies. The mediation by altruistic inferences is stronger (weaker) in conditions favorable to dispositional (situational) motive attributions. Furthermore, consumers respond more favorably to cause marketing or philanthropy rather than business-related CSR initiatives, when the initiative is environmental (vs. social), the firm’s offering is utilitarian (vs. hedonic), the CSR initiative takes place in self-expressive (vs. survival) cultures and in earlier (vs. later) periods. These findings offer several ethical implications, and they inform both practical recommendations and an agenda for further research directions.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance of Commercial Banks in Rwanda: A Case of BPR Bank Rwanda Plc

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) denotes firms’ commitment to conduct their activities ethically by considering their social, economic and environment effects. CSR can be vital for commercial banks in Rwanda in creating lasting corporate image that serve to benefit their financial performance. The present research examined the contribution of CSR on financial performance of commercial banks in Rwanda using a case of BPR Bank Rwanda Plc, located in Nyarugenge District, Rwanda. A descriptive and correlational research design was adopted using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The target population of this research was 125 employees from the bank and sample size of 96 selected using stratified random sampling technique. Data collection was done using questionnaire and interview guide. Secondary data was obtained using desk research from financial statements published by the bank. Pearson correlation and multilinear regression analyses were performed to measure the effect. The findings on employee trainings (r=0.233, p=0.022) was significantly and positively related to financial performance of commercial banks. Since the p-value was less than 5%, then the correlation was statistically significant. Similarly, charity work (r=0.283, p=0.005) and community development projects (r=0.475, p=0.000) positively influence the financial performance of BPR, since the p-value were less than 5%. All the indicator variables of CSR were seen to have positive effect on financial performance of commercial banks though with low correlation. The regression model (F=23.917, p=0.000) was statistically significant since the p-value was less than 5%. The researcher recommends that bank managers should analyze the viability of the current CSR strategies before launching new strategies. It is only after critical analysis that managers can use new CSR strategies. They should also make sure that any new CSR strategies are aligned to the overall mission and vison of the bank.

Corporate Sustainability Reporting and Stakeholders’ Interests: Evidence from China

This paper examines whether the adoption of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) by listed firms could enhance the alignment between corporate sustainability reporting and stakeholders’ interests in China. Drawing on content analysis of the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reports of 48 selected listed firms and a questionnaire survey of 409 respondents, this study shows that most of the sampled firms with GRI adoption have more sustainability activities identified in the content analysis than their peers that do not follow the GRI guidelines in the same industries; both groups of firms have a similar pattern of disclosure frequency in light of the six dimensions developed in this study; and there is a disconnect between the stakeholders’ needs and the sustainability reporting practice of the sampled listed firms. The findings reflect that the current corporate social responsibility reporting practice could be interpreted as a strategic response to the government’s policy priorities, rather than a direct attempt to address stakeholders’ concerns.

Does CSR award affect sustainability assurance levels?

Purpose This study aims to examine the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) award and sustainability assurance levels for the French CAC 40 companies. Design/methodology/approach A sample of 57 French companies in the CAC 40 index corresponding to 448 observations was analyzed between 2008 and 2020 using an ordinal regression. Findings The main results conclude that the inclusion in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index World, the CSR award and the introduction of the Grenelle 2 law have a significant influence on sustainability assurance levels. However, incentive compensation does not appear to be relevant to explain sustainability assurance levels. Research limitations/implications The present study focuses on a sample, limited to companies belonging to the CAC 40 index. To enhance the understanding of sustainability assurance levels, this research may include other global sustainability indices, such as the MSCI World and the FTSE4Good World, in the CSR awards. Practical implications This study could be useful for audit practitioners, leading them to reconsider their evaluation methods and take into account CSR incentives for a more objective analysis. Regulators should investigate the current CSR issues to improve CSR disclosure standards. Finally, these findings could motivate other researchers to expand the scope of the research to diverse contexts. Originality/value This study helps fill the gap existing in sustainability assurance literature by highlighting the relationship between CSR rewards and sustainability assurance levels.

Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure of Publicly Traded Manufacturing Companies in Bangladesh

This study is aimed at analyzing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) disclosure of publicly traded manufacturing companies in Bangladesh based on the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards and the legitimacy theory. The study used a stratified random sampling procedure to select the representative number of manufacturing companies listed in the country’s largest capital market- the Dhaka Stock Exchange Limited (DSE). The study has analyzed the annual reports of 51 companies out of 202 manufacturing companies belonging to 11 different sectors. It has used the content analysis method to identify CSR disclosures made in the corporate annual reports. Content analysis used social and environmental categories of the GRI categorization. The study has used measurement instruments and coding processes for social and environmental disclosures adapted from previous works. Findings show that the selected companies have disclosed some CSR information in their annual reports but the CSR reporting pattern as well as the extent of such reporting is diverse across different company categories. The findings also suggest that the entire manufacturing companies do not follow the GRI standard completely to disclose CSR information and tend to focus on limited aspects only. The nature of disclosure was mostly declarative statements associated with good news or self-laudatory while bad news or neutral news was scant. This self-laudatory pattern of CSR disclosure implies that companies are trying to prove their positive stance toward society and the environment, which is consistent with legitimatizing motives. The study thus provides some support for legitimacy theory to explain current CSR practices. This study recommends that policy planners in Bangladesh make it mandatory for companies to disclose socio-economic-environmental information following international best practices such as the GRI standard categories.

CEO Current and Prospective Wealth Option Compensation and Corporate Social Responsibility: The Behavioral Agency Model

This study examines the relationship between CEO options compensation and corporate social responsibility (CSR) based on the behavioral agency model (BAM). The BAM assumes that the CEO is bounded by loss-aversion behavior. Using constructs from the BAM, i.e., CEO current and prospective wealth from their options compensation, this study examines the differing effects of CEO current wealth and prospective wealth on firms’ CSR strengths, CSR concerns, institutional CSR and technical CSR. Based on a sample of 1565 U.S. firms during 1996 to 2018, the study finds that CEO current wealth is negatively related to firms’ CSR strengths and CSR concerns. The study also finds that CEO prospective wealth is positively related to firms’ CSR strengths but is unrelated to CSR concerns. CEO current wealth is negatively related to institutional CSR, whereas CEO prospective wealth is positively related to institutional and technical CSR. CEO current (prospective) wealth is more strongly and negatively (positively) related to institutional CSR than technical CSR. This study indicates that designing CEO option compensation to align top managers’ interests with the stakeholder interests requires a greater understanding of how CEO bounded rationality behavior toward loss aversion and risk taking is influenced by their option compensation.

Policy Development Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) based on Village Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Bukit Batu District Bengkalis Regency

Current Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies are often judged to be less targeted and unsustainable, causing disappointment to the community and government. In order for this CSR policy to be right on target and sustainable, then it needs to be based on the policy of accelerating the achievement of the Village Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Bengkalis Regency currently has one large company, namely PT. Pertamina Sungai Pakning which is committed to the implementation of CSR. The company has made a CSR policy from 2014, but this CSR policy has not been based on the Village SDGs. The purpose of this study is to develop CSR policies based on Village SDGs in order to assist villages in accelerating the achievement of national development goals. This study uses a qualitative method. The results of the study found that the development of CSR policies can be formulated using an incremental policy model by maintaining the fields of education, health, the environment and adding several fields, namely the economic, social, institutional and technological fields which have implications for the objectives of the Village SDGs. This policy can be realized through charity programs, infrastructure, capacity building, and community empowerment.

Overselling corporate social responsibility

AbstractWe show that firms hype up their corporate social responsibility (CSR) narratives during the turn‐of‐the‐year earnings conference calls to project an overly responsible public image of their firms. This previously unexplored phenomenon does not appear to be related to past, current, and future CSR engagements and cannot be explained by observed time‐varying firm attributes and unobserved time‐invariant firm and CEO attributes. We find that the fourth‐quarter CSR narrative hike is more pronounced among firms that are (ex ante) expected to do more corporate good as well as firms embedded in dirty industries, but less prevalent among firms facing elevated product‐market threats. Although elevated CSR narrative is associated with positive short‐term market reaction and lower near‐term stock price crash risk, such behavior tends to reduce financial report readability and leads to lower equity valuation in the longer term. Our analyses suggest that CSR narrative hike at the turn‐of‐the‐year is a pervasive phenomenon in the corporate landscape and may have valuation and governance implications.

The Relationships between Current Ratio, Firm Age, Good Corporate Governance, and Corporate Social Responsibility: The Moderating Effects of Firm Size

Few studies have explored how firm size moderates the effect of the current ratio, firm age, and good corporate governance on corporate social responsibility. This research examined the effect of current ratio, firm age, and good corporate governance on corporate social responsibility. It explored the moderating effects of firm size on the relationships between current ratio, firm age, and good corporate governance on corporate social responsibility among mining sector companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange from 2017 to 2021. Purposive sampling was used to select 17 different mining firms that met the study's criteria. By applying a moderated regression analysis, the results indicated a negative and statistically insignificant relationship between the current ratio and corporate social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility was positively affected by the maturity of the company and by its commitment to ethical business practices. Meanwhile, there was an inverse relationship between firm size and corporate social responsibility. Furthermore, firm size did not affect the relationship between the current ratio and corporate social responsibility, nor the relationship between firm age and corporate social responsibility. This study revealed that firm size weakened the link between good corporate governance and corporate social responsibility.

Tracking CSR Communication Research Within the Chinese Context: A Systematic Literature Review

Considering the globalization of corporate social responsibility (CSR), China has become an important and distinctive market for CSR practice and research. Communication, as a fast-growing subfield of CSR research, has made substantial contributions to the theorization of CSR yet has been dominated by Western contexts. To provide a contextualized view of CSR communication, this study systematically examined the 88 articles of CSR communication research published in peer-reviewed journals with a focus on the Chinese context. Findings revealed the unique characteristics of Chinese CSR and the status of Chinese CSR communication literature in terms of publication trend, authorship/institution, RQ/Hypothesis, research topics, research context, theoretical frameworks, and methodological approaches. In addition, this study identified gaps in the current Chinese CSR communication research. It offered directions for future development regarding strengthening conceptual development, innovating methodological approaches, and expanding research topics and scopes.

HOW DO EMPLOYEE SALARY/BENEFITS AND CSR/ESG PERFORMANCE AFFECT EMPLOYEE PRODUCTIVITY AND FIRM PERFORMANCE-EVIDENCE FROM STEEL INDUSTRY LISTED FIRMS IN TAIWAN

ABSTRACT Based on the data of 45 listed firms in the steel industry on the Taiwan Stock Exchange and the Taipei Exchange Market from 2000 to 2020, this study examines how employee’s salary/benefits and firm’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance affect employee productivity and firm performance. Employee salary/benefits is measured by the salary/benefits per employee, the ratio of salary/benefits to net sales, and the ratio of salary/benefits to net income. CSR is measured by social contribution value, social return on assets and social contribution value per share, current CSR performance, cumulative CSR performance and repeated CSR performance. Employee productivity is measured by net sales per employee, gross profit per employee, after tax net income per employee, and yearly change in market value of common equity per employee. Firm performance is measured by return on assets, return on equity, earnings per share, annualized gross stock return, annualized excess stock return, and Tobin's q. Through correlation analysis and multiple regression estimation, evidence shows that larger employees salaries/benefits and better CSR performance are associated with superior performance on employee productivity and firm performance. Additional tests through various dimensions on CSR performance and ESG ratings show similar outcomes. Keywords Employee Salary/Benefits, CSR, ESG, Employee Productivity, Firm Performance

Cooperative behavior in the workplace: Empirical evidence from the agent-deed-consequences model of moral judgment.

Moral judgment is of critical importance in the work context because of its implicit or explicit omnipresence in a wide range of work-place practices. The moral aspects of actual behaviors, intentions, and consequences represent areas of deep preoccupation, as exemplified in current corporate social responsibility programs, yet there remain ongoing debates on the best understanding of how such aspects of morality (behaviors, intentions, and consequences) interact. The ADC Model of moral judgment integrates the theoretical insights of three major moral theories (virtue ethics, deontology, and consequentialism) into a single model, which explains how moral judgment occurs in parallel evaluation processes of three different components: the character of a person (Agent-component); their actions (Deed-component); and the consequences brought about in the situation (Consequences-component). The model offers the possibility of overcoming difficulties encountered by single or dual-component theories. We designed a 2 × 2 × 2-between-subjects design vignette experiment with a Germany-wide sample of employed respondents (N = 1,349) to test this model. Results showed that the Deed-component affects willingness to cooperate in the work context, which is mediated via moral judgments. These effects also varied depending on the levels of the Agent- and Consequences-component. Thereby, the results exemplify the usefulness of the ADC Model in the work context by showing how the distinct components of morality affect moral judgment.

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN THE CONTEXT OF ESG: DEVELOPMENT AND CURRENT TRENDS

The unexpected and complex situation facing global society as a result of COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of companies' commitment to social responsibility. For this reason, scholars have called for a more comprehensive picture of corporate social responsibility (CSR) research (Su et al., 2022). Each country is adopting applicable modern CSR trends to develop this concept. This article analyzes current trends in five countries, such as the USA, China, India, Russia and Kazakhstan. The purpose of this article is to identify the most important current trends that are used in all countries by comparing the trends in these countries, as well as proving that the trends can differ depending on the main problems in the countries. In this paper, an analysis of scientific papers on the topic of CSR, the selection of articles and the analysis of selected articles were carried out. A content analysis of publications on the topic “corporate social responsibility” was carried out for all time and for the last 5 years. An information on current CSR trends was collected from news publications of each country to compare them. The article proved the current relevance of component S by analyzing scientific publications on this topic. The analysis showed an active growth of publications on the development of CSR over the past 5 years, especially the period from 2020 to the present day, which was a consequence of the pandemic, which changed the understanding and development trends of CSR.

Research on the composition of corporate social responsibility management system in big data environment

In the modern social development, corporate social responsibility management has become a hot problem in the management science and organizational behavior, through the way of using logical reasoning and inductive analysis, in determining the connotation, the system management concept and practical development experience, based on the building big data environment theory of corporate social responsibility management model, It can provide effective basis for modern enterprises to deal with the pressure of internal and external environment. Therefore, on the basis of understanding the changes in the big data environment and according to the composition of the current corporate social responsibility management system, this paper deeply discusses how to improve the theoretical system of corporate social responsibility management system in the big data environment, and puts forward in-depth thinking on its practical application.

CSR disclosure and debt financing in India: does CEO tenure matter?

PurposeThe study aims to examine whether corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure does improve debt financing of listed firms with sustainable development agendas coupled with high chief executive officer (CEO) tenure in India.Design/methodology/approachEmploying panel regression based on fixed effect and instrumental variable regression with fixed effect assumptions, the study examined data from the Bombay stock exchange from the period 2010 to 2019.FindingsThe study demonstrates that the disclosure of current exchange capital and moral capital cannot cause a firm to access short-term and long-term debt financing. However, lag investment in moral capital causes a positive effect on short-term debt financing. The second findings show that CEO tenure has a positive and statistically significant association with short-term debt financing and an insignificant association with long-term debt financing. The third findings show that the interaction of current CSR disclosure (moral and exchange capital) and CEO tenure is insignificant in affecting short-term and long-term debt finance. However, the interaction of lag CSR disclosure (moral and exchange capital) and CEO tenure positively affect short-term debt financing. The study addresses any endogeneity concerns arising from the CSR disclosure-debt financing association.Research limitations/implicationsThis study uses a single country to examine the inter-relationship between CEO tenure and debt financing and CSR measured by moral capital and exchange capital, thereby limiting the study's results for generalisation.Practical implicationsThe observation is that moral capital investment and disclosure do not guarantee new entrants the chance to access debt financing, but subsequent and lag CSR disclosure ensures access.Originality/valueNo studies examine morality from CSR disclosure on debt financing. This study shows that decoupling CSR into exchange capital and moral capital in accessing debt financing presents new inputs for scholarly debate on CSR.

Role of green innovation and supply chain management in driving sustainable corporate performance

Amidst the current demand for sustainable development in the globalized world, a green-orientation emerges as a strategic direction for businesses that increasingly attracts stakeholders because of its significant value for the business viability and sustainable development. The extant literature shows that the studies on CSR's influence on corporate outcomes have diverse approaches. The study explored the link of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainable corporate performance (SCP) of SMEs mediated by green innovation (GI) and green supply chain management (GSCM) in an emerging economy context. The extant literature lacks discussions around the above combined relationship and impact to the sustainability domain. Using the survey method and Partial Least Squared Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) using 486 primary responses covering middle and senior managers, the study supports role of CSR in driving the sustainable corporate performance (SCP) with the intervention of GI and GSCM. The deliberations advance the current CSR literature and its involvement in the value-creating activities that lead to business performance. Importantly, this study emphasizes the implications of a circular economy in GSCM towards sustainability. Accordingly, it motivates SMEs to make strategic, operational changes that lead to significant environmental, social, and economic impacts.