Corporate Social Reporting in India—A View from the Top

Abstract

The role of business in society has undergone a sea change. From the exhortation that there are no social obligations for business to the understanding that being socially responsible is critical, corporate social responsibility (CSR) has come a long way. A set of studies has explored the multiple aspects of this concept both theoretically and empirically. Corporate social reporting has been one of the features that has received extensive attention from scholars. However, most of these studies are embedded in the economic and organizational contexts of Europe and the United States of America. Hardly a few studies have looked at CSR or social reporting in developing countries like India. Given this scenario, scholars have consistently called for more research in this area. This study aims to address this gap by conducting an exploratory study on how top management perceives and reports CSR. Using the technique of content analysis this study looks at the chairman's message section in the annual reports of the top 50 companies in India to identify the extent and nature of social reporting.