Explaining the growth of CSR within OECD countries: the role of institutional legitimacy in resolving the institutional mirror vs. substitute debate

"Two strands of literature have emerged to explain the rise of a new form of private governance, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). One camp argues that CSR expansion is likely during periods of economic liberalization because CSR tends to substitute for growing institutional voids and a la...

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Main Authors: Kinderman, Daniel, Lutter, Mark
Institution:ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
Format: TEXT
Language:English
Published: Köln 2018
MPIfG
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19399509124911177819-explaining-the-growth-of-CSR-w.htm
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author Kinderman, Daniel
Lutter, Mark
author_facet Kinderman, Daniel
Lutter, Mark
collection Library items
description "Two strands of literature have emerged to explain the rise of a new form of private governance, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). One camp argues that CSR expansion is likely during periods of economic liberalization because CSR tends to substitute for growing institutional voids and a lack of social regulation. The other camp argues that CSR is likely to diffuse within coordinated economies because it mirrors these institutional settings. While both camps find empirical support for their arguments, no one has yet managed to combine both perspectives. In our study, we develop three hypotheses based on two (rationalist and constructivist/sociological) strands of institutional theory. Based on a new dataset comprising the corporate membership in business-led CSR organizations in over thirty countries from 1981 to 2008, we show that economic liberalization has a strong effect on CSR expansion when the legitimacy of CSR is low. However, when the practice has achieved substantial cultural acceptance, economic liberalization no longer drives CSR expansion. In this setting, CSR expansion is most likely to occur within socially regulated economic contexts. "
format TEXT
geographic OECD countries
id 19399509124911177819_42981f48908b4153b81646707ed7f61c
institution ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
is_hierarchy_id 19399509124911177819_42981f48908b4153b81646707ed7f61c
is_hierarchy_title Explaining the growth of CSR within OECD countries: the role of institutional legitimacy in resolving the institutional mirror vs. substitute debate
language English
physical 27 p.
Digital
publishDate 2018
publisher Köln
MPIfG
spellingShingle Kinderman, Daniel
Lutter, Mark
corporate social responsibility
institutional economics
Explaining the growth of CSR within OECD countries: the role of institutional legitimacy in resolving the institutional mirror vs. substitute debate
thumbnail https://www.labourline.org/Image_prev.jpg?Archive=133379195155
title Explaining the growth of CSR within OECD countries: the role of institutional legitimacy in resolving the institutional mirror vs. substitute debate
topic corporate social responsibility
institutional economics
url https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19399509124911177819-explaining-the-growth-of-CSR-w.htm