Does the Use of Social Media Tools in Classrooms Increase Student Commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility?

There is an increasing demand for ethical and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices by companies. This competence has to be introduced in students’ training in business degree programs, and a check must then be done to determine if the students have come to appreciate the importance of CSR commitments. Using the framework of Stakeholders Theory, this work aims to examine students’ perceptions of ethical and CSR practices and commitment to different stakeholders, as well as the factors that lead students to act in a socially responsible way. Furthermore, we hope to identify how the perception of CSR can be improved when Web 2.0 and social media tools that have proven effective in transmitting emotions and values are used in classrooms to teach these ideas. To this end, a survey was carried out in the year 2019 with 1,030 first-year students; it was administered at the beginning of the semester and also at the end of the semester after the training activities had been carried out. The main finding of the research is that students start with the belief that ethics and CSR are developed for reasons of image and legitimacy; however, after receiving training on these topics through tools that take into account emotions and values, they start to value the importance of the company as an agent of social change. The main practical and managerial implication is that methods based on Web 2.0 and social media tools are useful to teach ethics and CSR; the theoretical contribution is that students take into account the welfare of others. This finding contributes to Stakeholder Theory in a higher education context.

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Corporate Social Responsibility Engagement through Social Media. Evidence from the University of Salerno

Administrative Sciences ◽

10.3390/admsci11040147 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 147

Author(s):

Benedetta Esposito ◽

Maria Rosaria Sessa ◽

Daniela Sica ◽

Ornella Malandrino

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Online Communication ◽

Csr Strategies ◽

Online Communication Tools ◽

Use Of Social Media ◽

Csr Disclosure ◽

Corporate Social ◽

The University

Over the last few decades, stakeholders’ growing attention towards social and environmental issues has challenged universities’ traditional accountability boundaries, imposing the adoption of innovative reporting tools that facilitate stakeholders’ engagement in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices and performances. Against this backdrop, online communication tools, such as websites and social media platforms, have gained momentum as a pivotal means to increase dialogue with the myriad of stakeholders, especially during the pandemic period, as it has dramatically reduced physical interactions. Based on these premises, this study aims to dive deep into the use of social media to communicate CSR strategies in the university context by exploring the case of the University of Salerno. To this end, all posts published by the University of Salerno’s official Twitter account from 2015 to 2021 have been extracted and analyzed. Accordingly, the degree of interactions with stakeholders and the communication direction and balance level have been examined based on Carroll’s pyramid. Findings show a higher level of engagement for CSR posts and, in particular, for the philanthropic dimension. Results also highlight that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Salerno has empowered CSR disclosure through Twitter. The methodology adopted could be replicated for other universities to understand better how public universities use social media to involve a broader range of stakeholders in their CSR practices.

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The perception of using social media – a comparison of entrepreneurs implementing CSR in managerial practice and other entrepreneurs in selected V4 countries

Marketing and Management of Innovations ◽

10.21272/mmi.2021.2-16 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 191-203

Author(s):

Zdenko Metzker ◽

Jaroslav Belas ◽

John Amoah

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Business Environment ◽

Socially Responsible ◽

Corporate Growth ◽

Statistical Hypotheses ◽

Potential Benefits ◽

Use Of Social Media ◽

Corporate Social

The article aims to identify the perception of issues related to the use of social media in the business environment of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland. The authors chose the concept of comparing entrepreneurs who implement corporate social responsibility with other interviewed entrepreneurs. An interesting comparison was made from the collected data. The article is based on a questionnaire survey of 1217 respondents. The study was conducted from September 2019 to January 2020. The chi-quadrat test and z-score were used to evaluate statistical hypotheses. The results showed that Czech entrepreneurs implementing corporate social responsibility have more negative answers than the surveyed entrepreneurs in other countries. Thus, less than 28% of Czech corporate social responsibility entrepreneurs agree that social media helps increase corporate growth, while in Poland – up to 49%. As many as 53% of corporate social responsibility entrepreneurs in Hungary and Poland agreed that social media could respond more flexibly to market developments. Czech entrepreneurs were lagging behind 35% of them. The results showed no statistically significant differences in all research questions regarding entrepreneurs without the implemented CSR concept. The article results suggested that Czech CSR entrepreneurs did not see the potential benefits of social media use. Although the study focuses only on 3 central European countries, the results are not generalizable. However, they are useful for those who promote positive impacts on companies through the social networks and organizations that promote corporate social responsibility. One of the tools for transparent communication with customers/suppliers could be by communication via social media. The study's findings could further help other entrepreneurs consider the benefits of social media in doing socially responsible business.

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Understanding Historical Background of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Realizing Social Media as a New Horizon in CSR Communication

Corporate Social Responsibility and Strategic Market Positioning for Organizational Success - Advances in Marketing, Customer Relationship Management, and E-Services ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-5409-7.ch003 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 59-85

Author(s):

Melis Kaytaz Yiğit ◽

Özge Kirezli

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

New Media ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Market Competition ◽

Historical Background ◽

Dimensional Structure ◽

Globalizing World ◽

Social Media Tools ◽

Corporate Social

With globalizing world, formal and the dimensional structure of market competition has been changing dramatically. In such a rapidly changing environment, companies should not just meet unlimited consumer needs, but also adopt a certain social responsibility philiosophy towards the society. In that sense, corporate social responsibility is one of the important concepts that play a role in formation of positive perceptions of the target groups. The purpose of this chapter is to understand the changing nature of corporate social responsibility (CSR) over years, and also find the effect of social media on communicating corporate social responsibility. In that sense, firstly the need for CSR is to be discussed in different perspectives. Alternative definitions are provided over years to sense the evolving nature of the concept. Then in the last part, new media and social media's impact on CSR, as of benefits/challenges provided and alternative social media tools to be used in communication, are discussed.

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Framing Non-Formal Education through CSR 2.0

Social Media and the New Academic Environment ◽

10.4018/978-1-4666-2851-9.ch006 ◽

2013 ◽

pp. 115-142

Author(s):

Bogdan Pătruţ ◽

Monica Pătruţ ◽

Camelia Cmeciu

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Web 2.0 ◽

Formal Education ◽

Financial Education ◽

Organizational Discourse ◽

Visual Framing ◽

Corporate Social ◽

The Web

Schools and universities are not the only providers of knowledge any longer. Other types of organizations have become aware that a solid public-serving reason should lie beyond the firm-serving motive. “Doing well by doing good” has been the syntagm that prevails nowadays in the organizational discourse focused on corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaigns. This chapter has a twofold aim: to highlight two paradigmatic shifts (CSR 1.0 --> CSR 2.0 & formal education --> non-formal education), and to provide an analysis of the Web 2.0 practices and items and of the verbal and visual framing devices used in a CSR 2.0 campaign on non-formal financial education. Social media have provided the applications to put into practice the concept of edutainment specific to non-formal education since educators get a multifold identity, being, at the same time, generators and receivers of knowledge.

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Twitter and corporate social responsibility

Strategic Direction ◽

10.1108/sd-05-2015-0076 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 31 (7) ◽

pp. 35-37

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Social Network ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Relationship Management ◽

News Medium ◽

Full Potential ◽

Content Type ◽

Use Of Social Media ◽

Corporate Social

Purpose – To examine the use of Twitter by companies for corporate social responsibility (CSR) communications and the management of relationships with stakeholders. Design/methodology/approach – Defines three communication strategies for one-way or two-way communication and assesses their value for relationship management. Uses social network analysis to evaluate Twitter use for CSR communication. Findings – Isn’t technology marvelous? Once upon a time – a decade or so ago – companies mainly talked to stakeholders as a whole, usually about the things they wanted to tell them. Now social media have given each of us the opportunity to have individual discussions with them about things that matter to us. But just because the technology’s available, doesn’t mean companies have to use it – and some seem strangely reluctant to engage in one-to-one dialogue, particularly in areas like CSR. Practical implications – Concludes that companies remain cautious in their use of social media to communicate their CSR activities and that few exploit Twitter’s full potential for relationship management. Social implications – Asks if more corporations will use social media for interactive dialogue and relationship management or if they will continue to treat Twitter as a news medium rather than a social network. Originality/value – Presents empirical evidence showing how – and how intensively – companies are using Twitter to communicate with stakeholders interested in CSR.

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The communication of corporate social responsibility practices through social media channels

Corporate Board role duties and composition ◽

10.22495/cbv14i1art3 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

pp. 34-49 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Silvia Testarmata ◽

Fabio Fortuna ◽

Mirella Ciaburri

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Corporate Disclosure ◽

Socially Responsible ◽

Social Media Platforms ◽

Use Of Social Media ◽

Media Channels ◽

Corporate Social ◽

Social And Environmental Impacts

Corporations are rapidly expanding their use of social media in corporate disclosure, and many firms are now entering into a virtual dialogue with stakeholders to communicate their economic, social and environmental impacts on society. However, the use of social media as a form of dissemination in communicating corporate social responsibility still remains an under-investigated research topic. Stemming from these considerations, the purpose of the paper is to analyse how companies are using social media platforms to disclose the corporate social responsibility practices in order to engage stakeholders in compelling and on-going virtual dialogs, comparing how Socially Responsible and Not Socially Responsible companies use social media platforms to communicate their corporate social responsibility initiatives and interventions. The analysis supports the current calls for innovative forms for corporate disclosure and provides empirical evidence on the corporate use of social media for communicating CSR practices, using a sample of Italian Listed companies.

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The influence of social media on stakeholder engagement and the corporate social responsibility of small businesses

Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management ◽

10.1002/csr.2169 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ananda Khanal ◽

Muhammad Akhtaruzzaman ◽

Indrapriya Kularatne

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Stakeholder Engagement ◽

Small Businesses ◽

Corporate Social

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Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure: Responding to Investors’ Criticism on Social Media

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18147396 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (14) ◽

pp. 7396

Author(s):

Yuming Zhang ◽

Fan Yang

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Corporate Social Responsibility ◽

Social Responsibility ◽

Social Issues ◽

Media Criticism ◽

Csr Communication ◽

Depth Analysis ◽

Csr Disclosure ◽

Corporate Social ◽

The Impact

Companies use corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosures to communicate their social and environmental policies, practices, and performance to stakeholders. Although the determinants and outcomes of CSR activities are well understood, we know little about how companies use CSR communication to manage a crisis. The few relevant CSR studies have focused on the pressure on corporations exerted by governments, customers, the media, or the public. Although investors have a significant influence on firm value, this stakeholder group has been neglected in research on CSR disclosure. Grounded in legitimacy theory and agency theory, this study uses a sample of Chinese public companies listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange to investigate CSR disclosure in response to social media criticism posted by investors. The empirical findings show that investors’ social media criticism not only motivates companies to disclose their CSR activities but also increases the substantiveness of their CSR reports, demonstrating that companies’ CSR communication in response to a crisis is substantive rather than merely symbolic. We also find that the impact of social media criticism on CSR disclosure is heterogeneous. Non-state-owned enterprises, companies in regions with high levels of environmental regulations, and companies in regions with local government concern about social issues are most likely to disclose CSR information and report substantive CSR activities. We provide an in-depth analysis of corporate CSR strategies for crisis management and show that crises initiated by investors on social media provide opportunities for corporations to improve their CSR engagement.

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