Business–society interface: An exploration of a paradigmatic heuristic model of corporate social responsibility in Colombia

Abstract

This study explores how corporate social responsibility (CSR) managers in large companies conceive the business–society interface using a CSR paradigm heuristic model. The research applies a critical management studies perspective, adopting a qualitative approach. We analyze the speeches of 25 CSR managers from large companies representing four economic sectors of an emerging economy. The paradigmatic heuristic model proposes four perspectives regarding CSR, which include functionalist, constructivist, culturalist, and socio‐political paradigms. We validate the proposed heuristic model, revealing the existence of transition zones and overlapping CSR management discourses. We found that there is no single or paradigmatic discourse of CSR among the four economic sectors analyzed. In Colombia, an emerging country, new CSR approaches and discourses are uncovered that can contribute to future contextualized and contingent research in regions with complex business–society interfaces.