Corporate Responsibility

Debates on corporate responsibility or corporate social responsibility are based on variations of the [Page 300]argument about how far a free market economy can cater to everyone’s needs and achieve the best possible development, or if active control and regulation by state institutions and other actors are needed to prevent extreme social injustice, such as widespread poverty. Corporate responsibility focuses, however, on the potential role of corporate actors, beyond both market orientation and external control. Corporate responsibility was developed as a self-regulatory element, which includes ecological, social, and ethical aspects into corporate decision making. It began as social responsibility in the 1950s, appeared more often in the 1960s and 1970s with the emergence of numerous multinational corporations, and grew immensely in importance with increased devolution ...