A Cross-cultural Study Of Different Perceptions Of Chinese And The U.S. Companies On CSR Issues

With the development of global economy, corporate social responsibility (CSR)has become one of the main issues in business. According to Carroll's definition,social responsibility of business encompasses the economic, legal, ethical, and discretionary(philanthropic) expectations that society has of organizations at a given point in time. Moreand more companies have realized that CSR is the overall social performance of acompany instead of only an issue concerning social philanthropy. In terms of CSR,"corporate citizenship" is more important for the development of a company.This thesis focuses on the different perceptions of Chinese and American Peopleon CSR issues from a cross-cultural analysis, based on comprehensive understandingof western cultural dimensions by famous scholars like Hofstede, ethical thoughts inChinese Confucianism, and CSR model by Carroll. American culture valuesindividualism, utilitarianism, equality and freedom, with a sound framework of law asthe social foundation. Chinese culture values collectivism and deeply influenced byConfucianism, which is virtue-based and advocates harmony. The ethical thoughtsreflected in Confucianism and other traditional cultures in China serve as a guide forsocial performance of Chinese companies. The cultural difference fosters differentperceptions of Chinese and the U.S. companies on some CSR issues.The author uses the quantitative analysis to test the four hypotheses put forwardby himself, draws the conclusion through the survey results, and raises the limitationsand the direction of future research.At present, the study of CSR is still underdeveloped in China. The author isopen-armed to suggestions and comments from experts of all circles to deepen thisstudy.