CSR and related terms in SME owner-managers' mental models in six European countries: national context matters

Article


Fassin, Y., Werner, A., Van Rossem, A., Signori, S., Garriga, E., Von Weltzien Hoivik, H. and Schlierer, H. 2015. CSR and related terms in SME owner-managers' mental models in six European countries: national context matters. Journal of Business Ethics. 128 (2), pp. 433-456. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2098-7
TypeArticle
TitleCSR and related terms in SME owner-managers' mental models in six European countries: national context matters
AuthorsFassin, Y., Werner, A., Van Rossem, A., Signori, S., Garriga, E., Von Weltzien Hoivik, H. and Schlierer, H.
Abstract

As a contribution to the emerging field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) cognition, this article reports on the findings of an exploratory study that compares SME owner–managers’ mental models with regard to CSR and related concepts across six European countries (Belgium, Italy, Norway, France, UK, Spain). Utilising Repertory Grid Technique, we found that the SME owner–managers’ mental models show a few commonalities as well as a number of differences across the different country samples. We interpret those differences by linking individual cognition to macro-environmental variables, such as language, national traditions and dissemination mechanisms. The results of our exploratory study show that nationality matters but that classifications of countries as found in the comparative capitalism literature do not exactly mirror national differences in CSR cognition and that these classifications need further differentiation. The findings from our study raise questions on the universality of cognition of academic management concepts and warn that promotion of responsible business practice should not rely on the use of unmediated US American management terminology.

KeywordsBusiness ethics; Cognition; Corporate social responsibility (CSR); Cross-national study; Repertory Grid Technique; Small to medium sized enterprises
Research GroupCorporate Social Responsibility and Business Ethics group
PublisherSpringer
JournalJournal of Business Ethics
ISSN0167-4544
Electronic1573-0697
Publication dates
Online11 Mar 2014
PrintMay 2015
Publication process dates
Deposited12 Mar 2014
Accepted04 Feb 2014
Submitted21 Jan 2013
Output statusPublished
Publisher's version
License
File Access Level
Open
Copyright Statement

© The Author(s) 2014. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com.
Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits any use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and the source are credited.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2098-7
Web of Science identifierWOS:000352712400014
LanguageEnglish
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