Toward a Political Conception of Corporate Responsibility - Business and Society Seen from a Habermasian Perspective

Academy of Management Review, Vol. 32, pp. 1096-1120, 2007

57 Pages Posted: 16 Dec 2006 Last revised: 30 Oct 2010

See all articles by Andreas Georg Scherer

Andreas Georg Scherer

University of Zurich - IBW Department of Business Administration

Guido Palazzo

University of Lausanne

Abstract

We review two important schools within business and society research, which we label positivist and post-positivist corporate social responsibility (CSR). The former is criticized because of its instrumentalism and normative vacuity, and the latter because of its relativism, foundationalism, and utopianism. We propose a new approach, based on J¿rgen Habermas's theory of democracy, and define the new role of the business firm as a political actor in a globalizing society.

Keywords: Business and society, corporate social responsibility, critical theory

Suggested Citation

Scherer, Andreas Georg and Palazzo, Guido, Toward a Political Conception of Corporate Responsibility - Business and Society Seen from a Habermasian Perspective. Academy of Management Review, Vol. 32, pp. 1096-1120, 2007, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=952013

Andreas Georg Scherer (Contact Author)

University of Zurich - IBW Department of Business Administration ( email )

Plattenstrasse 14
Zurich, 8032
Switzerland
+41 44-63 45302 (Phone)
+41 44-63 45301 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.business.uzh.ch/professorships/as.html

Guido Palazzo

University of Lausanne ( email )

Quartier Chambronne
Lausanne, Vaud CH-1015
Switzerland

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