Corporate social responsibility in East Asia: a comparative approach

Abstract

Asian countries have increasingly adopted the ideas of socially responsible businesses in order to identify innovative solutions for societal problems that governments are otherwise unable to provide alone. Nonetheless, corporate social responsibility (CSR) remains relatively unknown in Asian countries compared to the Western world. This article provides a comparative analysis of CSR development in three East Asian countries: South Korea, China, and Japan. These three countries are at different stages of CSR development and serve as examples to explain and predict future directions of private firms striving to be socially responsible businesses and how governments react to the emerging interest in CSR. The results suggest that CSR varies according to political and institutional settings, but converges over time regarding mode of CSR. Governments should develop bridging capacity to connect areas of CSR development and reduce governance deficits.