Corporate Social Responsibility : A Critical Examination about Free Market Theory

Yoon, Hye-jin

Korean Journal of General Education 2017;11(2):91-120.
Published online April 30, 2017.

Hye-jin Yoon

기업의 사회적 책임

윤혜진

Abstract

The major aim of this paper is to explain the ethical debate points of corporate social responsibility. Accordingly, this paper is to resolve following questions. That is, What is the proper role of business managerial practice in social environment? Do business managers have an overriding social responsibility to serve the interests of stockholders before corporate social responsibility? Do business manager serve social interests by serving the interests of stakeholder relating business managerial practice? This paper is to explain such questions by examining the ethical debate points of corporate social responsibility. First, this paper is to examine that we call the utilitarian defense. What we shall call the utilitarian defense has its reason in free market economic theory of corporate social responsibility. And then, this paper is to examine that we call the private property defense. What we shall call the private property defense has its reason in individual rights to property theory of corporate social responsibility. And this paper is to try significant challenges to this two defense of utilitarianism and defense of private property theory. And then, finally, this paper is to examine an ethical justification of business managerial social responsibility. This ethical justification of corporate social responsibility will try by examining what we call ‘the stakeholder theory’. This stakeholder theory of corporate social responsibility begins with the recognition that every business affects a wide variety of people benefiting and costing, that is, every consumers, every competitors, every employees, and the natural environment around this people besides stockholders. Therefore now, under the stakeholder theory, business managers should have the duty to recognize the corporate social responsibility.

Key Words: corporate social responsibility, free market theory, utilitarian defense, private property defense, stakeholder theory