THE CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY DEBATE: UNANSWERED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES OF MORAL REFORM

According to the traditional theory of corporate responsibility, the overriding obligation of corporate managers is to maximize corporate profits within the boundaries imposed by laws and customary moral rules. However, corporate critics have called for moral reforms that demand a new idea of corpor...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:American business law journal 1987-09, Vol.25 (3), p.443-466
Main Author: RODEWALD, RICHARD A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Corporate responsibility
Investors
Law
Managers
Morality
Reforms
Roles
Social responsibility
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:According to the traditional theory of corporate responsibility, the overriding obligation of corporate managers is to maximize corporate profits within the boundaries imposed by laws and customary moral rules. However, corporate critics have called for moral reforms that demand a new idea of corporate responsibility. Moral reformers argue that corporate managers should have social responsibilities to avoid significant human and environmental harm and to help solve some persistent societal problems. An attempt is made to construct a clear, consistent, and cohesive analysis of these opposing views. Logical structures of the arguments are considered, as are the empirical and normative claims that they presuppose or imply. It is argued that moral reformers have not provided an adequate defense of their conception of the moral responsibilities of corporate managers. It is concluded that, under the current circumstances, if corporate managers take moral responsibility for trying to help resolve societal problems, they are not likely to produce the kinds of consequences reformers want.
ISSN:0002-7766
1744-1714
DOI:10.1111/j.1744-1714.1987.tb00511.x