This article introduces a conceptualization of corporate social responsibility (CSR) that emphasizes the role and potential contribution of the marketing discipline. The proposed framework first depicts CSR initiatives as the acttions undertaken to display conformity to both organizational and stakeholder norms. Then, the article discusses the managerial processes needed to monitor, meet, and even exceed, stakeholder norms. Finally, the analysis explains how CSR initiatives can generate increased stakeholder support.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Ackerman, R.W. 1975. The Social Challenge to Business. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
2.
Agle, Bradley R., Ronald K. Mitchell, and Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld. 1999. “Who Matters to CEOs? An Investigation of Stakeholder Attributes and Salience, Corporate Performance, and CEOs Values.” Academy of Management Journal42 (5): 507-525.
3.
Andreasen, Alan R. 1994. “Social Marketing: Its Definition and Domain.” Journalof Public Policy and Marketing13(Spring): 108-114.
4.
Arnold, Stephen J., Robert V. Kozinets, and Jay Handelman. 2001. “Hometown Ideology and Retailer Legitimation: The Institutional Semiotics of Wal-Mart Flyers.” Journal of Retailing77: 243-271.
5.
Ashforth, Blake E. and Fred Mael. 1989. “Social Identity Theory and the Organization.” Academy of Management Review14 (1): 20-39.
6.
Babin, Barry J., James S. Boles, and Donald P. Robin. 2000. “Representing the Perceived Ethical Work Climate Among Marketing Employees.” Journalof the Academy of Marketing Science28(3): 345-358.
7.
Barbone, Carol. 1996. “The Battle for Brent Spar.” Communication World13 (1): 27.
8.
Barone, MichaelJ., Anthony D. Miyazaki, and KimberlyA. Taylor. 2000. “The Influence of Cause-Related Marketing on Consumer Choice: Does One Good Turn Deserve Another?” Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science28 (2): 248-262.
9.
Berger, Id a E. and Vinay Kanetkar. 1995. “Increasing Environmental Sensitivity Via Workplace Experiments.” Journal of Public Policy and Marketing14 (2): 205-215.
10.
Berman, Shawn L., Andrew C. Wicks, Suresh Kotha, and Thomas M. Jones. 1999. “Does Stakeholder Orientation Matter? The Relationship Between Stakeholder Management Models and Firm Financial Performance.” Academy of Manegement Journal42 (5): 488-506.
11.
Bhattacharya, C. B. and Kimberly D. Elsbach. 2002. “Us Versus Them: The Roles of Organizational Identification and Disidentification in Social Marketing Initiatives.” Journal of Public Policy and Marketing21 (Spring): 26-36.
12.
Bhattacharya, C. B., Kimberly D. Elsbach, Hayagreeva Rao, and Mary Ann Glynn. 1995. “Understanding the Bond of Identification: An Investigation of Its Correlates Among Art Museum Members.” Journal of Marketing59 (October): 46-57.
13.
Blodgett, Jeffrey G., Long-Chuan Lu, Gregory M. Rose, and Scott J. Vitell. 2001. “Ethical Sensitivity to Stakeholder Interests: A Cross-Cultural Comparison.” Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science29 (2): 190-202.
14.
Bowen, H. R. 1953. Social Responsibilities of the Businessman. New York: Harper & Row.
15.
Brown, Tom J. and Peter A. Dacin. 1997. “The Company and the Product: Corporate Associations and Consumer Product Responses.” Journal of Marketing61 (January): 68-84.
16.
Carroll, Archie B. 1979. “A Three-Dimensional Conceptual Model of Corporate Performance.” Academy of Management Review4 (4): 497-505.
17.
Clarkson, Max B. E. 1995. “A Stakeholder Framework for Analyzing and Evaluating Corporate Social Performance.” Academy of Management Review20 (1): 92-117.
18.
Creyer, Elizabeth H. and William T. Ross Jr. 1997. “The Influence of Firm Behavior on Purchase Intentions: Do Consumers Really Care About Business Ethics?” Journal of Consumer Marketing14 (6): 421-432.
19.
Day, George. 1994. “The Capabilities of Market-Driven Organizations.” Journal of Marketing58 (October): 37-52.
20.
Donaldson, Thomas and Thomas W. Dunfee. 1994. “Toward a Unified Conception of Business Ethics: Integrative Social Contracts Theory.” Academy of Management Review19 (2): 252-284.
21.
Donaldson, Thomas, Thomas W. Dunfee and Lee E. Preston. 1995. “The Stakeholder Theoryof the Corporation: Concepts, Evidence and Implications.” Academy of Management Review29 (January): 65-91.
22.
Drumwright, Minette E. 1994. “Socially Responsible Organizational Buying: Environmental Concern as a Noneconomic Buying Criterion.” Journal of Marketing58 (July): 1-19.
23.
Drumwright, Minette E.. 1996. “Company Advertising With a Social Dimension: The Role of Noneconomic Criteria.” Journal of Marketing60 (October): 71-87.
24.
Dunfee, Thomas W., N. Craig Smith, and William T. Ross Jr. 1999. “Social Contracts and Marketing Ethics.” Journal of Marketing63 (July): 14-32.
25.
Dutton, Jane M., Janet M. Dukerich, and Celia V. Harquael. 1994. “Organizational Images and Member Identification.” Administrative Science Quarterly39 (34): 239-263.
26.
Elsbach, K. D. and C. B. Bhattacharya. 2001. “Defining Who You Are by What You’re Not: A Study of Organizational Disidentification and the NRA.” Organizational Science12 (4): 393-413.
27.
Etzioni, Amitai. 1996. The New Golden Rule. New York: Basic Books.
28.
Etzioni, Amitai. 2000. “Epilogue.” In Autonomy and Order. Ed. Edward W. Lehman. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 219-236.
29.
Ferrell, O. C. and Larry Gresham. 1985. “A Contingency Framework for Understanding Ethical Decision Making in Marketing.” Journal of Marketing49 (Summer): 87-96.
30.
Fombrun, C. J., N. A. Gardberg, and J. Sever. 2000. “The Reputation Quotient: A Multi-Stakeholder Measure of Corporate Reputation.” Journal of Brand Management7 (4): 241-255.
31.
Frazier, Gary L. and John O. Summers. 1986. “Perceptions of Interfirm Power and Its Use Within a Franchise Channel of Distribution.” Journal of Marketing Research23 (May): 169-178.
32.
Frederick, William C. 1991. “The Moral Authority of Transnational Corporate Codes.” Journal of Business Ethics10 (30): 165-177.
33.
Frooman, Jeff. 1999. “Stakeholder Influence Strategies.” Academy of Management Review24 (2): 191-205.
34.
Garrett, Dennis E. 1987. “The Effectiveness of Marketing Policy Boycotts: Environmental Opposition to Marketing.” Journal of Marketing51 (April): 46-57.
35.
Goolsby, Jerry R. and Shelby D. Hunt. 1992. “Cognitive Moral Development and Marketing.” Journal of Marketing56 (January): 55-68.
36.
Grewal, Rajdeep and Ravi Dharwadkar. 2002. “The Role of the Institutional Environmentin Marketing Channels.” Journal of Marketing66 (3): 82-97.
37.
Griffin, Jennifer J. 2000. “Corporate Social Performance: Research Directions for the 21st Century.” Business & Society39 (4): 479-491.
38.
Handelman, Jay M. and Stephen J. Arnold.1999. “The Role of Marketing Actions With a Social Dimension: Appeals to the Institutional Environment.” Journal of Marketing63 (July): 33-48.
39.
Harker, Debra and Michael Harker. 2000. “The Role of Codes of Conduct in the Advertising Self-Regulation Framework.” Journal of Macromarketing20 (2): 155-166.
40.
Henriques, Irene and Perry Sadorsky. 1999. “The Relationship Between Environmental Commitment and Managerial Perceptions of Stakeholder Importance.” Academy of Management Journal42(1): 89-99.
41.
Hill, Charles W. L. and Thomas M. Jones. 1992. “Stakeholder-Agency Theory.” Journal of Management Studies29 (2): 131-154.
42.
Holt, Douglas B. 2002. “Why do Brands Cause Trouble? A Dialectical Theory of Consumer Culture and Branding.” Journal of Consumer Research29 (June): 70-90.
43.
Jawahar, I. M. and Gary L. McLaughlin. 2001. “Toward a Descriptive Stakeholder Theory: An Organizational Life Cycle Approach.” Academy of Management Review26 (3): 397-414.
44.
Jones, Thomas M. 1995. “Instrumental Stakeholder Theory: A Synthesis of Ethics and Economics.” Academy of Management Review20 (2): 404-437.
45.
Kimery, M. Kathryn and Shelley M. Rinehart. 1998. “Markets and Constituencies: An Alternative View of the Marketing Concept.” Journal of Business Research43: 117-124.
46.
Kohli, Ajay K. and Bernard J. Jaworski. 1990. “Market Orientation: The Construct, Research Propositions, and Managerial Implications.” Journal of Marketing54 (April): 1-18.
47.
Kohli, Ajay K., Bernard J. Jaworski, and Ajith Kumar. 1993. “MARKOR: A Measure of Market Orientation.” Journal of Marketing Research30 (November): 467-477.
48.
Kotler, Philip and Sidney Levy. 1969. “Broadening the Concept of Marketing.” Journal of Marketing33 (January): 10-15.
49.
Lazer, William. 1969. “Marketing’s Changing Social Relationships.” Journal of Marketing33 (January): 3-9.
50.
Luce, Rebecca A., Alison E. Barber, and Amy J. Hillman. 2001. “Good Deeds and Misdeeds: A Mediated Model of the Effect of Corporate Social Performance on Organizational Attractiveness.” Business & Society40 (4): 397-415.
51.
MacKenzie, Scott B., Philip M. Podsakoff, and Richard Fetter. 1993. “The Impact of Organizational Citizenship Behavior on Evaluations of Salesperson Performance.” Journal of Marketing57 (January): 70-80.
52.
Maignan, Isabelle and O. C. Ferrell. 2001. “Corporate Citizenship as a Marketing Instrument: Concepts, Evidence, and Research Directions.” European Journal of Marketing35 (3/4): 457-484.
53.
Maignan, Isabelle and O. C. Ferrell. 2003. “Nature of Corporate Responsibilities: Perspectives From American, French, and German Consumers.” Journal of Business Research56 (1): 55-67.
54.
Maignan, Isabelle, O. C. Ferrell, and G. Tomas M. Hult. 1999. “Corporate Citizenship: Cultural Antecedents and Business Benefits.” Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science27 (4): 455-469.
55.
Maignan, Isabelle, O. C. Ferrell, G. Tomas M. Hult, Bas Hillebrand, and Debbie McAlister. 2002. “Managing Socially Responsible Buying.” European Journal of Management20 (6): 641-648.
56.
Maignan, Isabelle, O. C. Ferrell, G. Tomas M. Hult, Bas Hillebrand, Debbie McAlister and David A. Ralston. 2002. “Corporate Social Responsibility in Europe and the U.S.: Insights from Businesses’ Self-Presentations.” Journal of International Business Studies33 (3): 497-514.
Matsuno, Ken and John T. Mentzer. 2000. “The Effects of Strategy Type on the Market Orientation-Performance Relationship.” Journal of Marketing64 (October): 1-16.
59.
McGrath, Mary Ann, John F. Sherry Jr., and Deborah D. Heisley. 1993. “An Ethnographic Study of an Urban Periodic Marketplace: Lessons From the Midville Farmer’s Market.” Journal of Retailing69 (Fall): 280-319.
60.
McWilliams, Abgail and Donald Siegel. 2001. “CSR: A Theory of the Firm Perspective.” Academy of Management Review26(1): 117-127.
61.
Menon, Ajay and Anil Menon. 1997. “Enviropreneurial Marketing Strategy: The Emergence of Corporate Environmentalism as Marketing Strategy.” Journal of Marketing61 (January): 51-67.
62.
Mohr, Lois A., Deborah J. Webb, and Katherine E. Harris. 2001. “Do Consumers Expect Companies to Be Socially Responsible? The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Buying Behavior.” Journal of Consumer Affairs35 (1): 45-72.
63.
Muniz, Albert M. Jr. and Thomas C. O’Guinn. 2001. “Brand Community.” Journal of Consumer Research27 (March): 412-432.
64.
Murphy, Patrick E. 1988. “Implementing Business Ethics.” Journal of Business Ethics7: 907-915.
65.
Narver, John C. and Stanley F. Slater. 1990. “The Effect of Market Orientation on Business Profitability.” Journal of Marketing54 (October): 20-35.
66.
Oliver, Christine. 1991. “Strategic Responses to Institutional Processes.” Academy of Management Review16 (1): 145-179.
67.
O’Reilly, Charles, III and Jennifer Chatman. 1986. “Organizational Commitment and Psychological Attachment: The Effects of Compliance, Identification, and Internalization on Prosocial Behavior.” Journal of Applied Psychology71 (3): 492-499.
68.
Parasuraman, A. andDhruvGrewal. 2000. “The Impact of Technology on the Quality-Value-Loyalty Chain: A Research Agenda.” Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science28 (1): 168-174.
69.
Pfeffer, J. 1982. Organizations and Organizational Theory. Marshfield, MA: Pitman.
70.
Pfeffer, J. and G. R. Salancik. 1978. The External Control of Organizations. New York: Harper & Row. “
71.
Qwest Officials Plead Not Guilty.” 2003. Wall Street Journal, March 6, Eastern Edition, p. B5.
72.
Rindfleisch, Aric and Christine Moorman. 2001. “The Acquisition and Utilization of Information in New Product Alliances: A Strength-of-Ties Perspective.” Journal of Marketing65 (2): 1-18.
73.
Robin, Donald P. and R. Eric Reidenbach. 1987. “Social Responsibility, Ethics, and Marketing Strategy: Closing the Gap Between Concept and Application.” Journal of Marketing51 (January): 44-58.
74.
Rowley, Timothy J. 1997. “Moving Beyond Dyadic Ties: A Network Theory of Stakeholder Influences.” Academy of Management Review22 (4): 887-910. “
75.
Saints and Sinners.” 1995. The Economist335 (June 24): 15.
76.
Scott, Susanne G. and Vicki R. Lane. 2000. “A Stakeholder Approach to Organizational Identity.” Academy of Management Review25 (1): 43-62.
77.
Sen, Sankar and C. B. Bhattacharya. 2001. “Does Doing Good Always Lead to Doing Better? Consumer Reactions to Corporate Social Responsibility.” Journal of Marketing Research38 (May): 225-243.
78.
Sen, Sankar, C. B. Bhattacharya, Zeynep Gürhan-Canli, and Vicki Morwitz. 2001. “Withholding Consumption: A Social Dilemma Perspective on Consumer Boycotts.” Journal of Consumer Research28 (December): 399-417.
79.
Singhapakdi, Anusorn, Scott J. Vitell, Kumar C. Rallapalli, and Kenneth L. Kraft. 1996. “The Perceived Role of Ethics and Social responsibility: A Scale Development.” Journalof Business Ethics15: 1131-1140.
80.
Slater, Stanley F. and John C. Narver. 1999. “Market-Oriented Is More Than Being Customer-Led.” Strategic Management Journal20: 1165-1168.
81.
Stafford, Edwin R., Michael Jay Polonsky, and Cathy L. Hartman. 2000. “Environmental NGO-Business Collaboration and Strategic Bridging: A Case Analysis of the Greenpeace-Foron Alliance,” Business Strategy and the Environment9: 122-135.
82.
Strand, Rich. 1983. “A Systems Paradigm of Organizational Adaptations to the Social Environment.” Academy of Management Review8 (1): 90-96.
83.
Swanson, Diane L. 1995. “Addressing a Theoretical Problem by Reorienting the Corporate Social Performance Model.” Academy of Management Review20 (1): 43-64.
84.
Tajfel, Henri and John C. Turner. 1985. “The Social Identity Theory of Group Behavior.” In Psychology of Intergroup Relations, Vol. 2. Eds. Steven Worchel and William G. Austin. Chicago: Nelson-Hall,7-24.
85.
Truini, Joe. 2001. “Upon Further Review—Staples Adjusts Recycled-Content Offerings in Response to Groups’ Protest Campaign.” Waste News6 (44): 1.
86.
Turban, Daniel B. and Daniel W. Greening. 1996. “Corporate Social Performance and Organizational Attractiveness to Prospective Employees.” Academy of Management Journal40 (3): 658-672.
87.
Varadarajan, P. Rajan and Anil Menon. 1988. “Cause-Related Marketing: A Coalignment of Marketing Strategy and Corporate Philanthropy.” Journal of Marketing52 (July): 58-74.
88.
Wartick, Steven L. and Philip L. Cochran. 1985. “The Evolution of the Corporate Social Performance Model.” Academy of Management Review10 (4): 758-769.
89.
Wasserman, S. and J. Galaskiewicz. 1994. Advances in Social Network Analysis: Research in the Social and Behavioral Sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
90.
Webb, DeborahJ. and Lois A. Mohr. 1998. “A Typology of Consumer Responses to Cause-Related Marketing: From Skeptics to Socially Concerned.” Journal of Public Policy and Marketing17 (2): 226-238.
91.
Welsch, Catherine and Ian Wilkinson. 2002. “Idea Logics and Network Theory in Business Marketing.” Journal of Business to Business Marketing9 (3): 27-48.
92.
Whetten, D. A. and P. Godfrey, eds. 1998. Identity in Organizations: Developing Theory Through Conversations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
93.
Williamson, Oliver E. 1985. The Economic Institutions of Capitalism. New York: Free Press.
94.
Wood, Donna J. 1991. “Corporate Social Performance Revisited.” Academy of Management Review16 (4): 691-718.
95.
Wood, Donna J. and Raymond E. Jones. 1995. “Stakeholder Mismatching: A Theoretical Problem in Empirical Research on Corporate Social Performance.” The International Journal of Organizational Analysis3 (3): 229-267.
96.
Zeithaml, Carl P. and Valarie A. Zeithaml. 1984. “Environmental Management: Revising the Marketing Perspective.” Journal of Marketing48 (Spring): 46-53.
