On Corporate Social Responsibility: An Ethical Dimension

The theory of corporate social responsibility (CSR) originated in the West, which was firstly introduced by American scholar Shelton in 1924, and it was researched systematically in Europe, the United States and other developed countries in the 1960s and prevailed universally in the 1980s. The scope of its researching was very wide, involving politics, economics, sociology, management, law, ethics, philosophy and other fields, and the systematic, comprehensive and in-depth study was mainly based on economics, law and management. In China, academic circles were increasingly concerned about the important theory in the 1990s. Especially, after China became a member of WTO, the world economic integration trend appeared, and the world market was formed rapidly. Enterprises would face not only fierce competition from the domestic industry, but also more complex, changeable international situation and challenges. The traditional values of corporate was encountered with query that the single target of corporate profit maximization would lag behind the times, and enterprises should protect the interests of the community and play a positive role in activities of improving society while pursuing their own interests. Today, in the twenty-first century, the ethical consensus of corporate social responsibility is:CSR is a multidimensional and multi-level concept; it is a comprehensive responsibility, which contents economic, legal and ethical responsibilities, and highlights the sociality of enterprise. In addition to its own existence, development, expansion and profits, enterprises should bear more important, rational and noble social responsibility and value goals, which are comparatively vital to their image and income. Corporate social responsibility can be translated into several aspects of the specific ethical responsibilities:First, the enterprise must abide by the law, comply with the premise of moral responsibility to fulfill the economy; Second, the business owner must take on the responsibility for multiple stakeholder other than employees, customers, suppliers, competitors, governments and communities; Third, the business responsibility for the environment; Fourth, corporation should be responsible for sustainable development of society. Although it has made some achievements about studying on corporate social responsibility, there are many issues that still need to be researched further. Namely, what is the theoretic base of corporate social responsibility? At present, what are the main issues of corporate social responsibility in China? And why do the problems appear? Can we use the global standards to determine the position how the different countries fulfill their corporate social responsibility in different environments? Whether the present global social responsibility certification system, SA8000, is reasonable for the developing countries? How to set up an authentication system of corporate social responsibility that is fair and reasonable relatively for both the developed and developing countries in the whole world? How to establish the system of social responsibility is in line with our present situation and characteristics, etc.In this paper, after carding the historical evolution of the theory of corporate social responsibility at home and abroad from the ethical perspective, it not only analyzes the content and basis of corporate social responsibility but also shows fully that it is a kind of moral capital investment, which is conducive to the development and growth of the enterprises themselves, and receive social recognition and reputation gradually. And it will not collide to the basic objective of business, but enhance the company's long-term competitiveness, and urge the enterprise to reach a mutual trust, understanding, cooperation and win-win ideal condition with its various stakeholders. Despite there are many problems for many developing countries when they fulfill their corporate social responsibilities, I believe, if the society, enterprises and stakeholders are fully aware of its importance and necessity, they should take the initiative in finding causes of problems and solutions, construct a practical evaluation system of corporate social responsibility and strengthen all aspects of supervision, and the theory will be validated and perfected in practice so as to reach a consensus. Namely:the appropriate and reasonable implementation of social responsibility is the base of the common development for business and society, and it is the basic requirements of the concept of harmonious society and the best way to achieve the goal for the human freedom, comprehensive development and progress of society.This article is comprised as follows:Prologue and literature review describes the reason of topic selection, research status, basis, and the meaning of topics; Chapter one summarizes the evolution of corporate social responsibility home and abroad; The second chapter proposes the content and theoretical base of the corporate social responsibility in this research after carding the definition of the corporate social responsibility domestic and overseas; Chapter III analyzes the problems and summaries the reasons of the social responsibility issues objectively at present; Chapter four puts forward the solutions to the issues as effective as possible. v...