CORPORATE SOCIAL PERFORMANCE IN EMERGING MARKETS: EXTRINSIC VERSUS INTRINSIC DRIVERS

March 11, 2008
Faculty and Doctoral Seminar
Dr. Alan Muller, University of Amsterdam Business School

SFU’s CIBC Centre for Corporate Governance and Risk Management was host to Alan Muller from the University of Amsterdam. Alan presented to SFU faculty members and post-graduate students the findings of research that he and Ans Kolk conducted on corporate social performance (CSP) among auto parts suppliers in Mexico. Their research looked at the drivers of CSP among 121 foreign-owned and local firms. While previous research showed that external drivers (i.e. trade-related pressures) were the main influencers of socially responsible corporate behavior, these authors found that internal drivers (i.e. managerial values) are essential, causing an interaction effect without which CSP would be far less effective.

Alan and Ans’s research was interesting from a number of perspectives. Firstly, their methodology –conducting an internet-based survey – presented challenges as well as unique data collection and analysis opportunities. Secondly, the response rate was lower for multinationals than for local suppliers, which presented both theoretical and empirical dilemmas. Third, the importance of internal ethics and values in the determination of CSP had not previously been measured in an emerging market context. The statistical evidence of an interaction between intrinsic and extrinsic drivers of CSP found by the authors was a significant step forward for the field of corporate social responsibility and international business research.

Alan Muller’s approach to research on MNE strategy has been widely recognized as groundbreaking. As senior researcher with the Expert Center for Sustainable Business and Development Cooperation he has played a leading role in projects for the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a Dutch NGO on public-private partnerships in developing countries and conducted research into transfer pricing issues.