CSR as Corporate Political Activity: Observations on IKEA’s CSR Identity–Image Dynamics

Journal of Business Ethics

Volumn 128, Issue 2, 2015, Pages 395-409

  Morsing, Mette ^a   Roepstorff, Anne ^a  

^a Copenhagen Business School ^*  (Denmark)

Author keywords

Corporate social responsibility (CSR); CSR identity; IKEA; Organizational identity image relations; Political CSR

Indexed keywords

EID: 84895107379     PISSN: 01674544     EISSN: 15730697     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1007/s10551-014-2091-1     Document Type: Article

References (76)

1. Albert, S., & Whetten, D. A. (1985). Organizational identity. Research in Organizational Behavior,7, 263–295.
2. Amnesty (Sweden and UK). (2001). Bonded labour and child labour: IKEA in South Asia. Human rights—Is it any of your business? (pp. 27–30). Stockholm: SNS Förlag.
3. Andersen, M., & Skjoett-Larsen, T. (2009). Corporate social responsibility in global supply chains. Supply Chain Management,14(2), 75–86.
4. Banerjee, S. B. (2007). Corporate social responsibility: The good the bad and the ugly. London: Edward Elgar Publishing Inc.
5. Barter, C., & Renold, E. (2000). I wanna tell you a story: Exploring the application of vignettes in qualitative research with children and young people. International Journal of Social Research Methodology,3(4), 307–323.
6. Bartlett, J. L., & Devlin, B. (2011). Management, communication, corporate social responsibility. The handbook of communication and corporate social responsibility (pp. 47–66). Oxford: Wiley.
7. Bhattacharaya, C. B., Kroshun, D., & Sen, S. (2009). Strengthening stakeholder company relationships through mutually beneficial corporate social responsibility initiatives. Journal of Business Ethics,85(2), 257–272.
8. Blowfield, M. (2010). Corporate social responsibility—The failing discipline and why it matters for international relations. International Relations,19(3), 173–191.
9. Bolther, S. (2001). IKEA afskaffer julefrokosten: usmagleigt (1 Section). Ekstra Bladet, September 26 (p 18).
10. Brickson, S. (2007). Organizational identity orientation: The genesis of the role of the firm and distinct forms of social value. Academy of Management Review,32(3), 836–863.
11. Brickson, S. (2013). Athletes, best friends, and social activists: an integrative model accounting for the role of identity in organizational identification. Organization Science,24(1), 226–245.
12. Brown, A., & Humphrey, M. (2006). Organizational identity and place: A discursive exploration of hegemonyand resistance. Journal of Management Studies, 43(2), 231–257.
13. Campbell, J. (2007). Why would corporations behave in socially responsible ways? Academy of Management Review,32(3), 946–967.
14. Chreim, S. (2002). Influencing organizational identification during major change: A communication-based perspective. Human Relations,55(9), 1117–1137.
15. Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M., & Cheney, G. (2008). Corporate communications: Convention, complexity and critique. London: Sage Publications.
16. Cornelissen, J. (2008). Corporate communication: A guide to theory and practice. London: Sage Publications.
17. Crane, A., & Matten, D. (2008). Incorporating the corporation into citizenship: A response to Néron and Norman. Business Ethics Quarterly,18(1), 27–33.
18. Dansk Folkeparti. (2001). IKEA.
19. Detomasi, D. A. (2007). The political roots of corporate social responsibility. Journal of Business Ethics,82, 807–819.
20. Dukerich, J. M., Golden, B. R., & Shortell, S. M. (2002). Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder: the impact of organizational identification, identity and image on the corporate behaviours of physicians. Administrative Quarterly,47, 507–533.
21. Dutton, J. E., & Dukerich, J. M. (1991). Keeping an eye on the mirror: Image and identity in and countering the business week rankings. Administrative Science Quarterly,41, 442–476.
22. Elsing, J. (2003). Ikea tillader tørklæder. Berlingske Tidende, 25. februar 2003
23. Elsbach, K. D. (1994). Managing organizational legitimacy in the California cattle industry: The construction and effectiveness of verbal accounts. Administrative Science Quarterly,39(1), 57–88.
24. Elsbach, K. D., & Kramer, R. M. (1996). Members’ responses to organizational identity threats: encountering. Administrative Science Quarterly,41(3), 442–476.
25. Etzioni, A. (1998). A comparative analysis of complex organizations. New York: Free Press.
26. Fleming, P., & Jones, M. T. (2013). The end of corporate social responsibility: Crisis and critique. London: Sage Publications.
27. Fombrun, C. J., & Rindova, V. P. (2000). The road to transparency: Reputation management at Royal Dutch/Shell. In M. Schultz, M. J. Hatch, & M. H. Larsen (Eds.), The expressive organization: Linking identity, reputation and the corporate brand (pp. 77–98). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
28. Fombrun, C. J., & van Riel, C. B. M. (2004). Fame and fortune: How successful companies build winning reputations. New York: FT Prentice Hall.
29. Fooks, G., Gilmore, A., Collin, J., Holden, C., & Lee, K. (2013). The limits of corporate social responsibility: techniques of neutralization, stakeholder management and political CSR. Journal of Business Ethics,112, 283–299.
30. Franoy, L. (2001). Debat: Har de lært af Taleban? (1 Section). Ekstra Bladet, September 26 (p. 30).
31. Garriga, E., & Melé, D. (2004). Corporate social responsibility theories: Mapping the territory. Journal of Business Ethics,53, 51–71.
32. Ginzel, L., Kramer, R., & Sutton, R. (1993). Organizational impression management as reciprocal influence process: the neglected role of the organizational audience. Research in Organizational Behaviour,15, 227–266.
33. Gioia, D. A. (1998). From individual to organizational identity. In D. A. Whetten & P. C. Godfrey (Eds.), Identity in organizations: Building theory through conversations (pp. 17–31). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
34. Gioia, D. A., & Chittipeddi, K. (1991). Sensemaking and sensegiving in strategic change initiation. Strategic Management Journal,12(6), 433–448.
35. Gioia, D. A., & Thomas, J. B. (1996). Identity, image and issue interpretation: Sensemaking during strategic change in academia. Administrative Science Quarterly,41(3), 370–403.
36. Gond, J.-P., El Akremi, A., Igalens, J., & Swaen, W. (2010). A corporate social performance—Corporate financial performance behavioural model for employees. In C. B. Bhattacharaya, et al. (Eds.), Corporate responsibility and global business: Implications for corporate marketing strategy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
37. Guthey, E., Morsing, M., & Langer, R. (2006). CSR is a management fashion so what? In M. Morsing & S. C. Beckmann (Eds.), Strategic CSR communication (pp. 39–60). Copenhagen: DJØF.
38. Guthey, E. and Morsing, M. (2013). CSR and the mediated emergence of strategic ambiguity. Journal of Business Ethics. doi:10.1007/s10551-013-2005-7.
39. Hatch, M. J., & Schultz, M. (1997). Relations between organizational culture, identity and image. European Journal of Marketing,31(5/6), 356–365.
40. Hedegaard, L. (2001). Groft sagt (1 Section) Berlingske Tidende, September 26 (p. 9).
41. Held, D. (1996). Models of democracy. Cambridge: Polity Press.
42. IKEA, 2001. Det Gode Arbejdsliv. Personnel policy for IKEA Denmark
43. Jensen, P.B. (2001). Debat: Støt IKA: køb ingen julegaver hos dem (1 Section). Ekstra Bladet, September 26 (p. 30).
44. Kamprad. (1976). En møbelhandlers testamente. IKEA.
45. Kanter, R. M. (2011). How great companies think differently. Harvard Business Review,89(11), 66–78.
46. Karlsen, H. (2001). Debat: Diskrimination mod danskere (1 Section). Ekstra Bladet, September 27 (p. 28).
47. Kjaergaard, A., Morsing, M., & Ravasi, D. (2011). More than a mirror: A study of media influence on organizational identity construction in a celebrity Firm. Journal of Management Studies,48(3), 514–543.
48. Kling, K., & Goteman, I. (2003). IKEA CEO Anders Dahlvig on international growth and IKEA’s unique corporate culture and brand identity. Academy of Management Executive,17(1), 31–37.
49. Lasch, C. (1996). The revolt of the elites. New York: Pantheon.
50. Marsden, C. (2000). The new corporate citizenship of big business: Part of the solution to sustainability. Business and Society Review,105(1), 9–25.
51. Matten, D., & Crane, A. (2005). Corporate citizenship: Toward an extended theoretical conceptualization. Academy of Management Review,30, 166–179.
52. Matten, D., Crane, A., & Chapple, W. (2003). Behind the mask: Revealing the true face of corporate citizenship. Journal of Business Ethics,45, 109–120.
53. Matten, D., & Moon, J. (2008). “Implicit” and “explicit” CSR: A conceptual framework for a comparative understanding of corporate social responsibility. Academy of Management Review,33(2), 404–424.
54. McIntosh, M., Leipziger, D., Jones, K., & Coleman, G. (1998). Corporate citizenship: successful strategies for responsible companies. London: Financial Times/Pitman.
55. Miles, M. B. (1990). New methods for qualitative data collection and analysis: Vignettes and pre-structured cases. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education,3(1), 37–51.
56. Moon, Y. (2009). IKEA invades America. Harvard Business School case study (p. 13). Boston: Harvard Business School.
57. Moon, J., Crane, A., & Matten, D. (2005). Can corporations be citizens? Business Ethics Quarterly,15(3), 429–453.
58. Newell, P. (2005). Citizenship, accountability and community: The limits of the CSR agenda. International Affairs,81(3), 541–557.
59. Nilsson, K. (2001). IKEA lokker medarbejderne (1. sektion side 14). Politiken, 6 September 2001 (InfoMedia artikel-id: Y1307216).
60. Okoye, A. (2009). Theorising corporate social responsibility as an essentially contested concept: Is a definition necessary? Journal of Business Ethics, 89(4), 613–627
61. Palazzo, G., & Scherer, A. (2006). Corporate legitimacy as deliberation: A communicative framework. Journal of Business Ethics,66, 71–88.
62. Pedersen, E. R., & Andersen, M. (2006). Safeguarding corporate social responsibility (CSR) in global supply chains: how codes of conduct are managed in buyer-supplier relationships. Journal of Public Affairs,6, 228–240.
63. Porter, M., & Kramer, M. (2006). Strategy and society: The link between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility. Harvard Business Review,84(12), 78–92.
64. Porter, M., & Kramer, M. (2011). Creating shared value. Harvard Business Review,89(1/2), 62–77.
65. Poulsen, T.R. (2001). Debat: De render mig i traditionerne (1 Section). Ekstra Bladet, September 26 (p. 30).
66. Prahalad, C. K., & Hammond, A. (2002). Serving the world’s poor profitably. Harvard Business Review,80(9), 48–57.
67. Ravasi, D., & Schultz, M. (2006). Responding to organizational identity threats: exploring the role of organizational culture. Academy of Management Journal,49(3), 433–458.
68. Roepstorff, A. (2007). Handling for holding: En etnologisk undersøgelse af virksomheders sociale ansvar/CSR (PhD dissertation, Copenhagen Business School and National Research for Social Research, Copenhagen, 2007).
69. Scherer, A., & Palazzo, G. (2007). Towards a political conception or corporate responsibility: Business and society seen from a Habermasian perspective. Academy of Management Review,32(4), 1096–1120.
70. Scherer, A., & Palazzo, G. (2010). The new political role of business in a globalized world? A review of a new perspective of CSR and its implications for the firm, governance and democracy. Journal of Management Studies,48(4), 899–931.
71. Schultz, F., Castello, I., & Morsing, M. (2013). The construction of corporate social responsibility in network society: a communication view. Journal of Business Ethics,115(4), 681–692.
72. Sen, S., & Bhattacharaya, C. B. (2001). Does doing good always lead to doing better? Consumer reactions to corporate social responsibility. Journal of Marketing Research,XXXVIII, 225–243.
73. Sletberg, K. (2001). Debat: lefler for Islam (1 Section). Ekstra Bladet, September 26 (p. 30).
74. Strand, R. (2009). Corporate responsibility in Scandinavian supply chain. Journal of Business Ethics,85, 179–185.
75. Weick, K. (1995). Sensemaking in organizations. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
76. Yin, R. K. (2003). Case study methods: Research and design. London: Sage Publications.