CSR: Definitions and Theories

CSR has a rich history of academic theories and research

While corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) is intended to be “practiced” by businesses as they develop and execute their strategies and conduct their daily operations, CSR has a rich history of academic theories and research which should be reviewed to understand the perspectives of various stakeholders and the challenges to implementing CSR.

In this chapter, we explore the wide range of definitions for CSR and related concepts such as corporate social performance; theories of CSR, which have been classified into four groups: instrumental, political, integrative and ethical; and research on CSR that has been conducted in various disciplines including environmental sciences, economics, management, sociology, psychology and law.