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CSR and the Neoliberal Imagination

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Book cover Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Change

Part of the book series: Ethical Economy ((SEEP,volume 57))

Abstract

This chapter challenges stereotypical depictions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a neoliberal discourse and argues that there is a need for greater awareness of the ‘varieties of liberalism’ at play in CSR. It shows how the work of Michel Foucault and post-Foucauldian studies on neoliberalism can be used to disentangle ideological strands in the CSR debate that are often jumbled together, but which differ from each other in important ways. While the chapter distinguishes between four varieties of liberalism, its main analytical focus is how understandings of CSR informed by classical liberalism are different from understandings embodying a neoliberal mindset. It argues that the foremost exemplars of a neoliberal imagination in the broad field of CSR are Michael Porter and Mark Kramer, who, with their work on strategic CSR/creating shared value, are explicitly turning social responsibility into an economic value proposition. Overall, the chapter makes a contribution toward clarifying the political language with which we can speak about different approaches to CSR.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    We should mention that Friedman (1970) also speaks of ‘shared values’. He does, however, attribute a very different meaning to the term. He argues that there are no ‘social’ responsibilities in any other sense than the shared values and responsibilities of individuals. In other words, he uses this term to argue for the primacy of the individual over the social, not to argue for the prospects of economic value creation.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Copenhagen Business School, Frederiksberg, Denmark

    Steen Vallentin

  2. ESADE Business School, Ramon Llull University, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

    David Murillo

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  1. Steen Vallentin
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  2. David Murillo
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Correspondence to David Murillo .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Arnaud Sales

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Vallentin, S., Murillo, D. (2019). CSR and the Neoliberal Imagination. In: Sales, A. (eds) Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Change. Ethical Economy, vol 57. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15407-3_2

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