Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

8-2017

Abstract

This paper examines how the domestic reception of global corporate responsibility is significantly shaped by institutionalized differences among state, business and civil society actors in the domestic context. In the global diffusion of ideas and practices, the decoupling of global policies and domestic practice is endemic, a process that this paper argues results from competing domestic interests and orientations. I examine this process of ‘lateral decoupling’ in a case study of the reception of the United Nations Global Compact among corporate responsibility practitioners in the city-state of Singapore. Differences in ceremonial, pragmatic and non-adversarial orientations towards global corporate responsibility generated significant uncertainty for businesses around how to apply corporate responsibility principles. In response, businesses constructed distinct narratives: large transnational and domestic companies emphasized values, community and tradition, while small businesses focused on the competitive advantages of corporate responsibility. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of domesticinstitutions for mediating global principles and local outcomes.

Keywords

corporate responsibility, decoupling, domestic institutions, globalization

Discipline

Social Psychology and Interaction | Work, Economy and Organizations

Research Areas

Sociology

Publication

Economy and Society

Volume

46

Issue

2

First Page

1

Last Page

26

ISSN

0308-5147

Identifier

10.1080/03085147.2017.1359439

Publisher

Taylor & Francis (Routledge): SSH Titles

Additional URL

https://doi.org./10.1080/03085147.2017.1359439

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