IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/pra/mprapa/20772.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Reputation, corporate social responsibility and market regulation

Author

Listed:
  • Graafland, J.J.
  • Smid, H.

Abstract

The paper investigates the role of the government and self-regulatory reputation mechanisms to internalise externalities of market operation. If it pays off for companies to invest in a good reputation by an active policy of corporate social responsibility (CSR), external effects of the market will be (partly) internalised by the market itself. The strength of the reputation mechanism depends on the functioning of non governmental organisations (NGOs), the transparency of the company, the time horizon of the company, and on the behaviour of employees, consumers and investors. On the basis of an extensive study of the empirical literature on these topics, we conclude that in general the working of the reputation mechanism is rather weak. Especially the transparency of companies is a bottleneck. If the government would force companies to be more transparent, it could initiate a self-enforcing spiral that would improve the working of the reputation mechanism. We also argue that the working of the reputation mechanism will be weaker for smaller companies and for both highly competitive and monopolistic markets. We therefore conclude that government regulation is still necessary, especially for small companies.

Suggested Citation

  • Graafland, J.J. & Smid, H., 2004. "Reputation, corporate social responsibility and market regulation," MPRA Paper 20772, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:20772
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/20772/1/MPRA_paper_20772.pdf
    File Function: original version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kimberly Ann Elliott & Richard B. Freeman, 2004. "White Hats or Don Quixotes? Human Rights Vigilantes in the Global Economy," NBER Chapters, in: Emerging Labor Market Institutions for the Twenty-First Century, pages 47-97, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Frentrop, P., 2002. "Corporate Governance (1602-2002)," Other publications TiSEM faa3ecdd-d875-4147-99b9-9, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    3. Webley, Paul & Lewis, Alan & Mackenzie, Craig, 2001. "Commitment among ethical investors: An experimental approach," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 27-42, February.
    4. Richardson, Vernon J & Waegelein, James F, 2002. "The Influence of Long-Term Performance Plans on Earnings Management and Firm Performance," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 18(2), pages 161-183, March.
    5. Rondinelli, Dennis & Vastag, Gyula, 2000. "Panacea, common sense, or just a label?: The value of ISO 14001 environmental management systems," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 18(5), pages 499-510, October.
    6. Bizjak, John M. & Brickley, James A. & Coles, Jeffrey L., 1993. "Stock-based incentive compensation and investment behavior," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(1-3), pages 349-372, April.
    7. Badrinath, S G & Bolster, Paul J, 1996. "The Role of Market Forces in EPA Enforcement Activity," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 10(2), pages 165-181, September.
    8. George A. Akerlof, 1982. "Labor Contracts as Partial Gift Exchange," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 97(4), pages 543-569.
    9. Stuart L. Hart & Gautam Ahuja, 1996. "Does It Pay To Be Green? An Empirical Examination Of The Relationship Between Emission Reduction And Firm Performance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(1), pages 30-37, March.
    10. Patrick Francois & Joanne Roberts, 2003. "Contracting Productivity Growth," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 70(1), pages 59-85.
    11. J.J. Graafland & S.C.W. Eijffinger, 2004. "Corporate social responsibility of Dutch companies: Benchmarking, transparency and robustness," De Economist, Springer, vol. 152(3), pages 403-426, September.
    12. Koku, Paul Sergius & Akhigbe, Aigbe & Springer, Thomas M., 1997. "The Financial Impact of Boycotts and Threats of Boycott," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 15-20, September.
    13. Brown, Lawrence D. & Ngo Higgins, Huong, 2001. "Managing earnings surprises in the US versus 12 other countries," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 20(4-5), pages 373-398.
    14. Treviño, Linda Klebe & Butterfield, Kenneth D. & McCabe, Donald L., 1998. "The Ethical Context in Organizations: Influences on Employee Attitudes and Behaviors," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(3), pages 447-476, July.
    15. Spence, Laura J. & Jeurissen, Ronald & Rutherfoord, Robert, 2000. "Small Business and the Environment in the UK and the Netherlands: Toward Stakeholder Cooperation," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 10(4), pages 945-965, October.
    16. Kong, Nancy & Salzmann, Oliver & Steger, Ulrich & Ionescu-Somers, Aileen, 2002. "Moving Business/Industry Towards Sustainable Consumption:: The Role of NGOs," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 109-127, April.
    17. Graafland, J.J. & Ven van de, B. & Stoffele, N., 2003. "Strategies and instruments for organising CSR by small and large businesses in the Netherlands," MPRA Paper 20754, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Graafland, J.J., 2003. "Distribution of responsibility, ability and competition," MPRA Paper 20731, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Graafland, J.J., 2002. "Sourcing ethics in the textile sector: The case of C&A," MPRA Paper 20769, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    20. Graafland, J.J., 2001. "Profts and principles: Four perspectives," MPRA Paper 21134, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    21. Zahra, Shaker A. & Covin, Jeffrey G., 1995. "Contextual influences on the corporate entrepreneurship-performance relationship: A longitudinal analysis," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 10(1), pages 43-58, January.
    22. Oriol Amat & John Blake & Ester Oliveras, 2000. "The ethics of creative accounting: Some Spanish evidence," Economics Working Papers 455, Department of Economics and Business, Universitat Pompeu Fabra.
    23. Landon, Stuart & Smith, Constance, 1997. "The Use of Quality and Reputation Indicators by Consumers: The Case of Bordeaux Wine," MPRA Paper 9283, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    24. Graafland, J.J., 2002. "Modelling the trade-off between profits and principles," MPRA Paper 20752, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    25. Jesper Grolin, 1998. "Corporate legitimacy in risk society: the case of Brent Spar," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(4), pages 213-222, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. David Williamson & Gary Lynch-Wood & John Ramsay, 2006. "Drivers of Environmental Behaviour in Manufacturing SMEs and the Implications for CSR," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 67(3), pages 317-330, September.
    2. Johan Graafland & Corrie Mazereeuw-Van Der Duijn Schouten, 2007. "The Heavenly Calculus and Socially Responsible Business Conduct: An Explorative Study among Executives," De Economist, Springer, vol. 155(2), pages 161-181, June.
    3. Vaz Ogando, Natalia & Ruiz Blanco, Silvia & Fernandez-Feijoo Souto, Belen, 2018. "El mercado de verificación de las memorias de sostenibilidad en España: un análisis desde la perspectiva de la demanda," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(1), pages 48-62.
    4. Martin Hernani Merino & Enver Gerald Tarazona Vargas & Antonieta Hamann Pastorino & José Afonso Mazzon, 2014. "Validation of Sustainable Development Practices Scale Using the Bayesian Approach to Item Response Theory," Tržište/Market, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb, vol. 26(2), pages 147-162.
    5. Anne-Kathrin Ulke & Laura Marie Schons, 2016. "CSR as a Selling of Indulgences: An Experimental Investigation of Customers’ Perceptions of CSR Activities Depending on Corporate Reputation," Corporate Reputation Review, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(3), pages 263-280, October.
    6. Thomas Laudal, 2011. "Drivers and barriers of CSR and the size and internationalization of firms," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 7(2), pages 234-256, July.
    7. Maria Ángeles Alcaide González & Elena De La Poza Plaza & Natividad Guadalajara Olmeda, 2020. "The impact of corporate social responsibility transparency on the financial performance, brand value, and sustainability level of IT companies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(2), pages 642-654, March.
    8. Vicente Lima Crisóstomo & Priscila Azevedo Prudêncio & Isac Freitas Brandão, 2023. "Corporate Reputation in Brazil: The Effects of the Shareholding Control Configuration, Corporate Governance, and Corporate Social Responsibility," Corporate Reputation Review, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 26(4), pages 243-263, November.
    9. J. Graafland, 2010. "Do Markets Crowd Out Virtues? An Aristotelian Framework," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 91(1), pages 1-19, January.
    10. Nijhof, A. & Graafland, J.J. & Kuijer de, O., 2009. "Exploration of an agenda for transparency in the construction industry," MPRA Paper 20274, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Motchenkova, E. & Laan, R., 2005. "Strictness of Leniency Programs and Cartels of Asymmetric Firms," Discussion Paper 2005-74, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research.
    12. Yosra Makni Fourati & Mariam Dammak, 2021. "Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: International evidence of the mediating role of reputation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(6), pages 1749-1759, November.
    13. Zhu Zhu & Feifei Lu, 2020. "Family Ownership and Corporate Environmental Responsibility: The Contingent Effect of Venture Capital and Institutional Environment," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-18, June.
    14. Oded, Sharon, 2011. "Inducing corporate compliance: A compound corporate liability regime," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 272-283.
    15. María Ángeles Alcaide & Elena De La Poza & Natividad Guadalajara, 2019. "Assessing the Sustainability of High-Value Brands in the IT Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-20, March.
    16. Gary Lynch-Wood & David Williamson, 2014. "Civil Regulation, the Environment and the Compliance Orientations of SMEs," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 125(3), pages 467-480, December.
    17. Haylee Uecker-Mercado & Matthew Walker, 2012. "The Value of Environmental Social Responsibility to Facility Managers: Revealing the Perceptions and Motives for Adopting ESR," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 110(3), pages 269-284, October.
    18. Suman Sen & James Cowley, 2013. "The Relevance of Stakeholder Theory and Social Capital Theory in the Context of CSR in SMEs: An Australian Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 118(2), pages 413-427, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. J. Graafland, 2010. "Do Markets Crowd Out Virtues? An Aristotelian Framework," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 91(1), pages 1-19, January.
    2. Ven van de, B. & Graafland, J.J., 2006. "Strategic and moral motivation for corporate social responsibility," MPRA Paper 20278, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Graafland, J.J., 2003. "Distribution of responsibility, ability and competition," MPRA Paper 20731, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Graafland, J.J. & Eijffinger, S.C.W. & Smid, H., 2004. "Benchmarking of corporate social responsibility: Methodological problems and robustness," MPRA Paper 20771, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Jung-Fa Tsai & Phi-Hung Nguyen & Ming-Hua Lin & Duy-Van Nguyen & Hsu-Hao Lin & Anh-Tuan Ngo, 2021. "Impacts of Environmental Certificate and Pollution Abatement Equipment on SMEs’ Performance: An Empirical Case in Vietnam," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-17, August.
    6. Patrizia Fanasch, 2019. "Survival of the fittest: The impact of eco‐certification and reputation on firm performance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 611-628, May.
    7. Geoff Moore & Laura Spence, 2006. "Editorial: Responsibility and Small Business," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 67(3), pages 219-226, September.
    8. Francesco Perrini & Angeloantonio Russo & Antonio Tencati, 2007. "CSR Strategies of SMEs and Large Firms. Evidence from Italy," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 74(3), pages 285-300, September.
    9. Francesca Di Pillo & Massimo Gastaldi & Nathan Levialdi & Michela Miliacca, 2017. "Environmental Performance Versus Economic-financial Performance: Evidence from Italian Firms," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 7(2), pages 98-108.
    10. Paolo Maccarrone & Anna Maria Contri, 2021. "Integrating Corporate Social Responsibility into Corporate Strategy: The Role of Formal Tools," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-20, November.
    11. Gielissen, R. & Dutilh, C.E. & Graafland, J.J., 2008. "Perceptions of price fairness: An empirical research," MPRA Paper 20275, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Gonzalo Maldonado-Guzman & Sandra Yesenia Pinzon-Castro & Gabriela Citlalli Lopez-Torres, 2016. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Performance: The Role of Mexican SMEs," International Journal of Asian Social Science, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 6(10), pages 568-579, October.
    13. Nuttaneeya Torugsa & Wayne O’Donohue & Rob Hecker, 2013. "Proactive CSR: An Empirical Analysis of the Role of its Economic, Social and Environmental Dimensions on the Association between Capabilities and Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 115(2), pages 383-402, June.
    14. Angeloantonio Russo & Antonio Tencati, 2009. "Formal vs. Informal CSR Strategies: Evidence from Italian Micro, Small, Medium-sized, and Large Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 85(2), pages 339-353, April.
    15. Pablo Sánchez & Sonia Benito-Hernández, 2015. "CSR Policies: Effects on Labour Productivity in Spanish Micro and Small Manufacturing Companies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(4), pages 705-724, June.
    16. Judd H. Michael & Ann E. Echols & Steve Bukowski, 2010. "Executive perceptions of adopting an environmental certification program," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(7), pages 466-478, November.
    17. Graafland, J.J. & Ven van de, B. & Stoffele, N., 2003. "Strategies and instruments for organising CSR by small and large businesses in the Netherlands," MPRA Paper 20754, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Muddassar Sarfraz & Wang Qun & Muhammad Ibrahim Abdullah & Adnan Tariq Alvi, 2018. "Employees’ Perception of Corporate Social Responsibility Impact on Employee Outcomes: Mediating Role of Organizational Justice for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-19, July.
    19. repec:eme:srjpps:v:6:y:2010:i:2:p:490-508 is not listed on IDEAS
    20. Krisztina Szegedi & Tamás Németh & Dorina Körtvési, 2023. "Employer Branding in the Fashion Industry: CSR Actions by Fashion SMEs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-18, January.
    21. Chaigneau, Pierre, 2010. "The optimal timing of executive compensation," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 119081, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate social responsibility; market regulation;

    JEL classification:

    • M14 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Corporate Culture; Diversity; Social Responsibility
    • C49 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods: Special Topics - - - Other

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:20772. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joachim Winter (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vfmunde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.