The Influence of Culture on Innovation and CSR Practices

Corporate Social Responsibility

Talking about CSR is far from being consensual since the topic is the subject of debate, opinions are divided, giving rise to different currents of thought. So, basically – despite the variety of existing classifications – we have on the one hand a more instrumental thinking and on the other a more substantive thinking. In line with the first current, the base is conservative, defending the idea that a company's social responsibility is nothing more than obtaining profit, in the sense of satisfying shareholders and generating efficiency in the search for resources that are often scarce. For the apologists of this current, the entrepreneur who generates profit and pays wages is already socially responsible. From this perspective, transforming a company's social responsibility into something that does not generate profit is negative for the company itself, as it creates a cost that does not benefit shareholders and, therefore, reduces the effectiveness and primary objective of that company (Barry, 2002; Friedman, 1962, 1970; Levitt, 1958; Marrewijk, 2003; McWilliam & Siegel, 2001; Zwetsloot, 2003).