National CSR and institutional conditions: An exploratory study

Abstract

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) footprints in terms of relevant policies, plans and programs are evident at a global scale, but the level of national uptake and penetration differs, as countries differ considerably in terms of institutional efficiency. With this in mind, the purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between CSR penetration and institutional conditions that shape and define the macroeconomic environment and development dynamics of countries. Building on Campbell's seminal propositions on institutional parameters that facilitate effective CSR management, the study's results lend partial support to his conceptual framework as it was operationalized in our assessment. Civic engagement, regulatory effectiveness and competitive conditions appear to be very significant factors influencing CSR penetration with macroeconomic conditions and industrial self-regulation to play a less significant role on national CSR penetration. These findings provide fertile ground to theorists and researchers for a deeper investigation of the impact of institutional arrangements that define the national specificity of CSR and act as moderators of responsible business behavior.

Useful information for stakeholder engagement: A multivariate proposal of an Industrial Corporate Social Responsibility Practices Index

“…In general, previous studies focus on analyzing the country as an institutional factor with greater explanatory capacity of CSR practices. Therefore, an area of research has emerged oriented toward the creation of composite indicators that allow us to observe the level of corporate sustainability at the country level in an aggregate manner (e.g., Gjølberg, ; Halkos & Skouloudis, ; Lenssen et al, ; Skouloudis et al, ).…”

“…Therefore, an area of research has emerged oriented toward the creation of composite indicators that allow us to observe the level of corporate sustainability at the country level in an aggregate manner (e.g., Gjølberg, 2009;Halkos & Skouloudis, 2016;Lenssen et al, 2006;Skouloudis et al, 2016).…”

“…In the last few decades, a stream of research has emerged—Gjølberg (), Halkos and Skouloudis (), Lenssen et al () and Skouloudis, Isaac, and Evaggelinos ()—oriented to the creation of composite indices at national level that combine the effect that the institutional context has on the corporate social responsibility (CSR) penetration. These aggregate indicators, called the National Corporate Social Responsibility Index (NCSRI), allow us to observe the aggregate variation of CSR explained by the nexus of institutions that determine the national identity of each country.…”

“…Although there are differences at the country level in the development of corporate sustainability, the effect that the business has on it cannot be ignored, because CSR information and activities are largely dependent on the type of industry in which a company operates (Waddock & Graves, 1997). The manufacturing sector shows high commitment to the community and to the health and safety of employees in relation to CSR categories, while in the oil and gas sector, higher levels of CSR are found in the environmental categories (Halkos & Skouloudis, 2016). In this regard, there are many findings in empirical studies that show a significant relationship between CSR and the type of industry (Branco & Rodrigues, 2008;Cowen, Ferreri, & Parker, 1987;Gray, 2002;Newson & Deegan, 2002;Parsa & Deng, 2008;Wanderley, Lucian, Farache, & de Sousa Filho, 2008), because of pressure from interest groups (Patten, 1991) and/or because of regulations imposed on certain industries (Dierkes & Preston, 1977).…”

An extension of the industrial corporate social responsibility practices index: New information for stakeholder engagement under a multivariate approach

“…Among the numerous institutional pressures that affect business decisions, those coming from the organizational field or sector of activity in which the companies operate stand out (Aerts, Cormier, & Magnan, ; Amor‐Esteban, Galindo‐Villardón, & García‐Sánchez, ; Halkos & Skouloudis, ; Salem, Shawtari, Shamsudin, & Hussain, ). These organizational pressures provoke a “mimetic isomorphism” that implies that companies operating in the same sector develop or adopt similar behavior with respect to CSR standards, because (a) organizations in uncertainty situations tend to imitate behaviors from other companies that are considered leaders in their sector of activity and (b) they face similar challenges, forcing a certain degree of convergence in CSR policies implemented by corporations (DiMaggio & Powell, ).…”