Re-Thinking the CSP-CFP Linkage: Analyzing the Mechanisms Involved in Translating Socially-Responsible Behavior to Financial Performance
Advances in Strategic Management, Volume 38, Forthcoming
55 Pages Posted: 10 Mar 2018 Last revised: 19 Jun 2018
Date Written: March 1, 2018
Abstract
In this paper, we re-examine the notion that socially-responsible behavior by firms will lead to increased financial performance. By identifying the underlying processes, institutional settings and actors involved, we present a framework that is more attentive to the multiplicity and conditionality of the mechanisms operating in the often-tenuous connection between firms’ social behavior and financial performance. Building and expanding upon existing analyses of the CSP-CFP linkage, our model helps explain the mixed results from a wide range of empirical studies which examine this link. It also provides a novel theoretical account to help guide future research that is more attentive to conditionalities and contextual contingencies.
Keywords: Business Ethics, Corporate Social Performance, Corporate Financial Performance, Corporate Social Responsibility, Mechanisms
JEL Classification: M14
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