Interpretation of, and commitment to, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) differs from country to country, resulting in variances in implementation. It is theorised that these variances originate from organisational and cultural context. There is limited research dedicated to contextual variances of CSR in the meetings industry. As such, the objective of this paper is twofold: first, to understand whether Meeting Planners in America and Western Europe differ in their current and future motives for engaging with CSR. Second, to establish whether the differences in motivation are influenced by their conceptual understanding of CSR or the wider socio-economic and political. The authors analysed over one thousand self-reporting questionnaires from Meeting Planners across the two continents. Results were analysed using un-related t-tests in order to establish if the two groups differ in their underlying motives to engage with CSR. An exploratory factor analysis was used to determine how Meeting Planners conceptualised CSR across the two continents. Results suggests similar strategic motives to engage in CSR. European Meeting Planners identify egoistic motives to engage in CSR. In contrast to America, CSR practice in Europe will change in the future as value-driven motives become prevalent. The paper provides evidence of context as a defining factor in CSR, where ubiquitous constructs of CSR cannot be easily applied to Meeting Planners. The findings demonstrate the incongruent nature of CSR practice. The results advance the application of CSR to Meeting Planner’s practice in both America and Western Europe, re-igniting the definitional debate of CSR within the meetings industry.
Original abstracts from the 2021 European Meeting of ISMPP
