CONCEPTUAL FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY OF CORPORATE STRUCTURES: HISTORICAL ASPECT

Abstract

The article considers the evolution of the social responsibility of business in the historical period up to the XXI century. The study shows that in its development, corporate social responsibility in countries with developed market economies has passed a series of hysterical stages. In the period from the 1900’s ­to the 1930’s the first stage of emergence and theoretical understanding of social responsibility of business in the countries of the developed capitalism passed. The second stage (from the 1930’s to the 1950’s) was the stage of institutionalization of corporate social responsibility. The third stage (from the 1950’s to the middle of 1970’s) was characterized by the flourishing of traditional philanthropy (or charity). Companies tried to maximize business and social activity, focusing on helping the most vulnerable categories of population (children and people with disabilities) or cultural institutions. At the fourth stage (from the middle of 1970’s to the 1980’s), the strategic philanthropy of business which is characterized by readiness to get optimum profit instead of maximum and also by the focal approach to the solution of social problems  (aiming at the solution of the problem, but not on fight against its results) was created. The desire of business to coordinate the solution of social problems with strategic goals of the company is the base of this approach. From the middle of 1980’s to the early 2000’s, the concept of corporate citizenship was created. At the local level, the corporate citizenship is manifested in the form of social investments of business, which means the joint work of the commercial, non-profit and public sectors for the purpose of solving the urgent social and economic problems of local communities.