CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: CHANGES IN PERCEPTION OF THE CONCEPT IN THEORY AND PRACTICE

Abstract

The aim of the article is to recognize the evolution of the concept of “corporate social responsibility”. For its implementation, existing definitions of this construct in the scientific literature and other references will be reviewed. This approach will show how corporate social responsibility is understood by both researchers and practitioners. Therefore, this will make it possible to answer the important question about how changes in the perception of CSR by practitioners affect its definition by scientists and vice versa – whether changes in the scientific approach to CSR generate the evolution of this construct in practice. The analysis of the available definitions revealed a common feature of all approaches, which is the need to establish a relationship between the company and the environment in which it operates, as well as the fact that CSR is the interest of a growing group of stakeholders. The article
also brought the conclusion that easier and easier access to information and growing social awareness will make the dialogue conducted within the framework of socially responsible business cover an ever-wider spectrum of issues.