Corporate social responsibility and marketing: An integrative framework

This article introduces a conceptualization of corporate social responsibility (CSR) that emphasizes the role and potential contribution of the marketing discipline. The proposed framework first depicts CSR initiatives as the actions undertaken to display conformity to both organizational and stakeholder norms. Then, the article discusses the managerial processes needed to monitor, meet, and even exceed, stakeholder norms. Finally, the analysis explains how CSR initiatives can generate increased stakeholder support. Isabelle Maignan (imaignan@feweb.vu.nl) is an assistant professor of marketing at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Her research focuses on corporate social responsibility and its marketing dimensions in an international setting. Her work has appeared in theJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science, theJournal of International Business Studies, theJournal of Business Research, theJournal of Advertising, among other journals and conference proceedings. O. C. Ferrell (oc.ferrell@colostate.edu) is chair and a professor of marketing at Colorado State University. His research focuses on marketing ethics and corporate social responsibility. His work has appeared in theJournal of Marketing, theJournal of Marketing Research, theJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science, theJournal of Public Policy and Marketing, as well as other leading journals. In addition, he is the coauthor ofMarketing: Concepts and Strategies, Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases, Business and Society: A Strategic Approach to Corporate Citizenship, Marketing Strategy, and other textbooks.