The Influence of Societal Structure and the Impact of Legal Regulation on Corporate Social Responsibility: A Comparative Perspective

Cross-national comparative work of corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a relatively novel concept, and has been regarded as an area of corporate law that remains largely “emergent”. While studies on comparative corporate governance and academic critiques on the notion of CSR have been advanced since the 1950s, corporations have only recently begun to employ comparative studies of CSR to develop their strategic management and improve their corporate social performance. This paper considers two phenomenon: first, countries are increasingly encouraged to pursue more CSR activities through practical changes in legal regulations; second, evolutions in the institutional framework of nations are also an emerging dynamic in determining the level of CSR adoption. This essay utilises comparative legal, institutional and agent-based analysis to assess how the exercise of CSR is influenced by legal regulation provisions and the societal structure of a nation. It subsequently considers whether divergences exist on a national level or whether variations are a result of global institutional differences.