Skip to main content
Log in

Corporate Social Responsibility as Argument on the Web

  • Published:
Journal of Business Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper critically examines the language drawn on to describe socially responsible activities (CSR) in the context of the corporate web page. I argue that constructions of CSR are made plausible and legitimised according to the context of the expression. The web site is a genre of communication which addresses a broad and discerning audience; hence fractures in the institutionalised nature of argument may be apparent. The focus of this paper is to examine how the rhetoric of CSR is legitimised and to develop a framework of argumentation repertoires that operate in this context

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • P Alasuutari (1995) Researching Culture Sage London

    Google Scholar 

  • M Alvesson D Karreman (2000) ArticleTitleTaking the Linguistic Turn in Organizational Research: Challenges, Responses, Consequences Journal of Applied Behavioural Science 36 136–158

    Google Scholar 

  • K. A Appiah (1994) Identity, Authenticity, Survival: Multicultural Societies and Social Reproduction C Taylor (Eds) Multiculturalism Princeton University Press Princeton, New Jersey 149–163

    Google Scholar 

  • Armstrong, A. and J. Hagel III: 1996, ‘The Real Value of On-line Communities’, Harvard Business Review, May–June, pp. 134–141.

  • C. E Arrington A. G Puxty (1991) ArticleTitleAccounting, Interests and Rationality: A Communicative Relation Critical Perspectives on Accounting 2 31–58

    Google Scholar 

  • J Austin (1962) How to do Things with Words Oxford University Press London

    Google Scholar 

  • P. L Berger T Luckmann (1966) The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge Penguin Books London

    Google Scholar 

  • C Bullis (1997) ArticleTitleBusiness Communication and the Natural Environment: Using Traditional and Contemporary Perspectives to Understand the Connections Journal of Business Communication 34 IssueID4 455–477

    Google Scholar 

  • A Carroll (1999) ArticleTitleCorporate Social Responsibility – Evolution of a Definitional Construct Business and Society 38 IssueID3 268–295

    Google Scholar 

  • G Cheney (1991) Rhetoric in an Organizational Society University of South Carolina Press Columbia South Carolina

    Google Scholar 

  • S Correll (1995) ArticleTitleThe Ethnography of an Electronic Bar: The Lesbian Café Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 24 270–298

    Google Scholar 

  • C Coupland (2003) Corporate Identities on the Web: An Exercise in the Construction and Deployment of ‘Morality’ Academy of Management Conference, Organizations and the Natural Environment Stream Seattle, U..S.A

    Google Scholar 

  • A Crane (2000) ArticleTitleCorporate Greening as Amoralization Organization Studies 21 IssueID4 673–696

    Google Scholar 

  • B Czarniawska (2000) Identity Lost or Identity Found? Celebration and Lamentation Over the Postmodern View of Identity in Social Science and Fiction M Schultz M. J Hatch M. H Larsen (Eds) The Expressive Organization Oxford University Press Oxford 271–284

    Google Scholar 

  • C Deegan (2002) ArticleTitleThe Legitimising Effect of Social and Environmental Disclosures – A Theoretical Foundation Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal 15 282–311

    Google Scholar 

  • S Deetz (1992) Democracy in an Age of Corporate Colonization University of New York Press Albany

    Google Scholar 

  • A Dillon B. A Gushrowski (1999) ArticleTitleGenres and the Web: Is the Personal Home Page the First Uniquely Digital Genre? Journal of the American Society for Information Science 51 IssueID2 202–205

    Google Scholar 

  • Dowling, J. and J. Pfeffer: 1975: `Organizational Legitimacy: Social Values and Organizational Behaviour’, Pacific Sociological Review, January, 122-136.

  • N Fairclough (1995) Media Discourse Oxford University Press New York

    Google Scholar 

  • N Fairclough (2001) The Discourse of New Labour: Critical Discourse Analysis M Wetherell S Taylor S. J Yates (Eds) Discourse as Data: A Guide for Analysis Sage London 229–266

    Google Scholar 

  • S Fineman (1996) ArticleTitleEmotional Subtexts in Corporate Greening Organisation Studies 17 IssueID3 479–495

    Google Scholar 

  • S Fineman (1997) ArticleTitleConstructing the Green Manager British Journal of Management 81 31–38

    Google Scholar 

  • S Fineman (1998) The Natural Environment, Organization and Ethics A Parker (Eds) Ethics and Organizations Sage London 238–252

    Google Scholar 

  • C. J Fombrun V. P Rindova (2000) The Road to Transparency: Reputation Management at Royal Dutch/Shell M Schultz M. J Hatch M. H Larsen (Eds) The Expressive Organization Oxford University Press Oxford 77–96

    Google Scholar 

  • D Grant T Keenoy C Oswick (1998) Discourse and Organization Sage London

    Google Scholar 

  • C Hardy (2002) ArticleTitleResearching Organizational Discourse International Studies of Management and Organization 31 IssueID3 25–47

    Google Scholar 

  • S. L Hart (1995) ArticleTitleA Natural-resource-based View of the Firm Academy of Management Review 20 IssueID4 986–1014

    Google Scholar 

  • S. C Herring (1996) Computer Mediated Communication John Benjamin Amsterdam

    Google Scholar 

  • M Horton-Salway (2001) The Construction of M.E.: The Discursive Action Model M Wetherell S Taylor S Yates (Eds) Discourse as Data Open University Press Milton Keynes 147–188

    Google Scholar 

  • M Kaptein (2004) ArticleTitleBusiness Codes of Multi-national Firms: What Do they Say? Journal of Business Ethics 50 IssueID1 13–31 Occurrence Handle10.1023/B:BUSI.0000021051.53460.da

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • T Keenoy C Oswick D Grant (1997) ArticleTitleOrganizational Discourses: Text and Context Organization 2 147–158

    Google Scholar 

  • D. A Kernisky (1997) ArticleTitleProactive Crisis Management and Ethical Discourse: Dow Chemical’s Issues Management Bulletins 1979–1990 Journal of Business Ethics 16 IssueID8 843–853 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1017901501108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindblom, C. K.: 1994, `The Implications of Organizational Legitimacy for Corporate Social Performance and Disclosure’, paper presented at the Critical Perspectives on Accounting Conference, New York.

  • S. M Livesey K Kearins (2002) ArticleTitleTransparent and Caring Corporations? A Study of Sustainability Reports by The Body Shop and Royal Dutch Shell Organization and Environment 15 IssueID3 229–254

    Google Scholar 

  • S. M Livesey (2001) ArticleTitleEco-identity as Discursive Struggle: Royal Dutch/Shell, Brent Spar and Nigeria Journal of Business Communication 38 IssueID1 58–91

    Google Scholar 

  • S. M Livesey (2002) ArticleTitleThe Discourse of the Middle Ground: Citizen Shell Commits to Sustainable Development Management Communications Quarterly 15 IssueID3 309–343

    Google Scholar 

  • H. W Love (1992) ArticleTitleCommunication, Accountability and Professional Discourse: The Interaction of Language Values and Ethical Values Journal of Business Ethics 11 IssueID11 883–895 Occurrence Handle10.1007/BF00872369

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • D Matten A Crane W Chapple (2003) ArticleTitleBehind the Mask: Revealing the True Face of Corporate Citizenship Journal of Business Ethics 45 109–120 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1024128730308

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • M Miles A Huberman (1994) Qualitative Data Analysis Sage London

    Google Scholar 

  • D Neu H Warsame K Pedwell (1998) ArticleTitleManaging Public Impressions: Environmental Disclosures in Annual Reports Accounting, Organizations and Society 23 IssueID3 265–282 Occurrence Handle10.1016/S0361-3682(97)00008-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • G O’Donovan (2002) ArticleTitleEnvironmental Disclosures in the Annual Report: Extending the Applicability and Predictive Power of Legitimacy Theory Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal 15 344–371

    Google Scholar 

  • C Oswick T Keenoy D Grant (2000) ArticleTitleDiscourse, Organizations and Organizing: Concepts, Objects and Subjects Human Relations 52 IssueID9 1115–1124

    Google Scholar 

  • N Phillips C Hardy (1997) ArticleTitleManaging Multiple Identities: Discourse, Legitimacy and Resources in the UK Refugee System Organization 4 IssueID2 159–185

    Google Scholar 

  • N Phillips C Hardy (2002) Discourse Analysis: Investigating Processes of Social Construction Sage London

    Google Scholar 

  • J Potter M Wetherell (1987) Discourse & Social Psychology: Beyond Attitudes & Behaviour Sage London

    Google Scholar 

  • J Potter (1996) Representing Reality: Discourse, Rhetoric and Social Construction Sage London

    Google Scholar 

  • P Ricoeur (1981) Hermeneutics and the Human Sciences: Essays on Language, Action and Interpretation Edited and Translated J. B. Thompson Cambridge University Press Cambridge and New York

    Google Scholar 

  • D. C Robertson N Nicholson (1996) ArticleTitleExpressions of Corporate Social Responsibility in U.K. firms Journal of Business Ethics 15 1095–1996 Occurrence Handle10.1007/BF00412050

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • P. D Schultz (1996) ArticleTitleThe Morally Accountable Corporation: A Postmodern Approach to Organizational Responsibility Journal of Business Communication 33 IssueID2 165–178

    Google Scholar 

  • A. H Segars G. F Kohut (2001) ArticleTitleStrategic Communication Through the World Wide web: An Empirical Model of Effectiveness in the CEO’s Letter to Shareholders Journal of Management Studies 38 IssueID4 535–577 Occurrence Handle10.1111/1467-6486.00248

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • P Shrivastava (1995) ArticleTitleThe Role of Corporations in Achieving Ecological Sustainability Academy of Management Review 20 IssueID4 936–960

    Google Scholar 

  • J. A. A Sillince (1999) ArticleTitleThe Organizational Setting, Use and Institutionalization of Argumentation Repertoires Journal of Management Studies 36 IssueID6 795–830 Occurrence Handle10.1111/1467-6486.00159

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • R. R Sims J Brinkmann (2003) ArticleTitleEnron Ethics (Or: Culture Matters More than Codes) Journal of Business Ethics 45 243–256 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1024194519384

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spar, D., J. J. Bussgang: 1996, ‘The Net’, Harvard Business Review May–June, pp. 125–133.

  • C Taylor (1994) Multiculturalism Princeton University Press Princeton, New Jersey

    Google Scholar 

  • E Tseelon (1991) ArticleTitleThe Method is the Message: On the Meaning of Methods as Ideologies Theory and Psychology 1 IssueID3 299–316

    Google Scholar 

  • H Tsoukas (1999) ArticleTitleDavid and Goliath in the Risk Society: Making Sense of the Conflict between Shell and Greenpeace in the North Sea Organization 6 IssueID3 499–528

    Google Scholar 

  • T. A Van Dijk (1997) Discourse as Social Interaction Sage London

    Google Scholar 

  • K Weick (1995) Sensemaking in Organisations Sage Thousand Oaks

    Google Scholar 

  • M Wetherell (1998) ArticleTitlePositioning and Interpretative Repertoires: Conversation Analysis and Post-Structuralism in Dialogue Discourse and Society 9 IssueID3 387–412

    Google Scholar 

  • L Winner (1995) ArticleTitleAristotle Needs a Web Page Technology Review 98 IssueID8 66–68

    Google Scholar 

  • L Wittgenstein (1967) Philosophical Investigations EditionNumber3 Blackwell Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • D. J Wood (1991) ArticleTitleCorporate Social Performance Revisited Academy of Management Review 16 IssueID4 691–718

    Google Scholar 

  • E Wynn J. E Katz (1997) ArticleTitleHyperbole over Cyberspace: Self-presentation and Social Boundaries in Internet Home Pages and Discourse The Information Society 13 297–327

    Google Scholar 

  • R.K Yin (1994) Case Study Research, Design and Methods EditionNumber2 Sage Publications Newbury Park

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to C Coupland.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Coupland, C. Corporate Social Responsibility as Argument on the Web. J Bus Ethics 62, 355–366 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-1953-y

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-1953-y

Keywords

Navigation