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1 – 10 of 614David Crowther and Hiba Hamdan
This paper aims to challenge the fashion of ubiquitous artificial intelligence (AI) and the effects which it will have upon society. In doing so it argues that the effects of AI…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to challenge the fashion of ubiquitous artificial intelligence (AI) and the effects which it will have upon society. In doing so it argues that the effects of AI will be minimal but important.
Design/methodology/approach
This argument is based upon the Socratic method and explores the Utilitarian background in which AI is based while drawing upon classical literature and other examples to illustrate the argument.
Findings
The findings are encompassed in the argument and show that we need to be more open and careful when considering AI and its effects. We also need to be more realistic when considering potential benefits.
Practical implications
This argument has significant implications for the adoption of AI.
Social implications
The social implications are equally profound and will impact upon our application of AI solutions to current problems and upon humanity more generally.
Originality/value
This is the first paper which relates AI to human successes.
Details
Keywords
This paper provides an argument to consider in more detail the development and application of technology in the context of sustainability. It argues the need to go beyond economic…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper provides an argument to consider in more detail the development and application of technology in the context of sustainability. It argues the need to go beyond economic benefit and that timescale is significant.
Design/methodology/approach
This argument is based upon Socratic argument and focuses upon the historiography of technology with particular references to agricultural developments. It then proceeds to apply the same arguments to artificial intelligence (AI) and to climate change.
Findings
The findings are encompassed in the argument and show the need to be more open and careful when considering the development, and especially, the implementation of technology to address problems.
Practical implications
This argument has significant implications for the adoption of technological developments.
Social implications
The social implications are equally profound and will impact upon the application of technological solutions to current problems.
Originality/value
Such a historiographical approach to this problem has not previously been applied to this.
Details
Keywords
Rute Abreu, Fátima David and David Crowther
The purpose of this research is to explore corporate social responsibility (CSR) evidence and, especially, the experience and practice of enterprises in Portugal.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to explore corporate social responsibility (CSR) evidence and, especially, the experience and practice of enterprises in Portugal.
Design/methodology/approach
As a generally accepted principle, the corporate social report is a communication and measurement object. But there are limitations concerning availability and accuracy of the data that could create constraints and diminish the scope of this report. Thus, the methodology for this paper is subdivided into two different aspects of research: First, an individual perspective about each enterprise studied and second, a general perspective applied to CSR in Portugal. The sample used was based on the survey developed by the Instituto ETHOS, applied to a sample of enterprises carried out in Portugal, during the year 2002. It was published by Exame in a special edition – “The guide of socially responsible enterprises”. So, the authors analyze and present the results that are of interest in the area of CSR activity. In order to do so the authors develop a principal component analysis to sort and group the original data.
Findings
The preliminary analysis generated three components of CSR: the external influence (CSR external), the market influence (CSR market) and the operative influence (CSR operative) of the enterprises in Portugal.
Originality/value
This research shows cultural differences and helps to highlight the importance of more research in this area in the newly expanded European Community. It also highlights the relationship between CSR activity and corporate image and performance.
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Keywords
Menatallah Darrag and David Crowther
The purpose of this paper is to review the corporate social responsibility (CSR) concept in Egypt via six sub-purposes which are the operational definition, activities…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review the corporate social responsibility (CSR) concept in Egypt via six sub-purposes which are the operational definition, activities, corporations’ strategic direction, budgeting and drivers for and obstacles against CSR alongside the implications of the January 25th 2011’s revolution on the concept.
Design/methodology/approach
This research is a perception study adopting a mixed methodology. A sample of 20 corporate managers undertaking CSR activities had been interviewed. Results are analyzed using content analysis and non-parametric z-tests.
Findings
The research identified the prevalent hands-on definitions of CSR which highlight an identification problem, as well as the leading two activities undertaken that are highly linked to the lack of a corporate strategic direction. Also, it showed that budgeting was a vague undisclosed aspect and further highlighted the drivers for and obstacles against CSR before and in transition post January 25th 2011, revolution.
Practical implications
This overview serves as a building block for practitioners to identify the CSR build-up in Egypt, to guide further current or future endeavors undertaken.
Originality/value
This paper provides a genuine contextualized review of CSR in Egypt that had been a reported gap in literature by identifying its operational definition, activities, budgeting, corporations’ strategic direction and drivers for and obstacles against the concept in light of the timeline pre and in-transition post the January 25th 2011 revolution.
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Keywords
Satish Kumar, Nitesh Pandey and Jaspreet Kaur
The Social Responsibility Journal (SRJ) celebrates 15 years of publication in 2019. The purpose of this study is to map the development in the publication, citation and themes of…
Abstract
Purpose
The Social Responsibility Journal (SRJ) celebrates 15 years of publication in 2019. The purpose of this study is to map the development in the publication, citation and themes of SRJ articles between 2005 and 2019.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses the Scopus database to analyze the highest contributing authors, institutions and countries published in SRJ. It also identifies the most cited SRJ articles, journals citing SRJ and journals cited by SRJ. This study conducts a performance analysis using bibliometric indicators to analyze the publication and citation structure of SRJ, in addition to science mapping using bibliographic coupling to analyze the themes of SRJ. Further, this study provides a temporal analysis of SRJ publishing across three different time periods over its 15-year run.
Findings
From 2005 to 2019, SRJ increased its annual publication from 23 to 63 articles. The citations have followed a similar trend, with an increase from zero citations in 2005 to more than 1,200 citations in 2019. Authors from all around the world have contributed to the journal on themes like business ethics, corporate social responsibility, corporate governance, firm outcomes and stakeholders. Attention to themes related to corporate social responsibility, corporate governance and their influence on firm outcomes has increased across different time periods, while themes related to business ethics and stakeholders have garnered continuous – if not increasing – attention across different time periods.
Research limitations/implications
This study is limited to data acquired from the Scopus database.
Originality/value
This study provides the first overview of SRJ’s publication and citation trends alongside its thematic structure.
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Keywords
The purpose of this paper is to argue that the main ontological position of modern capitalism, founded on the philosophy of utilitarianism, derived of course from the work of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to argue that the main ontological position of modern capitalism, founded on the philosophy of utilitarianism, derived of course from the work of Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, is fundamentally flawed as it ignores power inequalities and assumes that the economic fiction of perfect competition can actually exist.
Design/methodology/approach
Nevertheless it provides a legitimating mechanism for modern capitalism and the operation of firms within a market economy. More significantly, from the viewpoint of this paper, is the problem caused by the naïve assumption that the firm as nexus of treaties is sufficient to negotiate the contracts between the various stakeholders. This is significantly inadequate because it ignores the aspect of trust between the parties – the focus of the paper.
Findings
In this paper it is argued that the sustainability of a firm is not predicated in the negotiated contracts it enacts but rather in the underlying trust which is implied and that one of the problems of the modern firm is that this trust has been negated in the drive for efficiency and shareholder value. The purpose of this paper therefore is to explore the nature of trust between the various stakeholders to the social contract which the firm enacts, paying particular attention to the involuntary stakeholders. In doing so, the role of trust in each aspect of sustainability identified in a previous paper is analysed and consider whether it is necessary for each stakeholder or just they key ones, or whether it is different for each aspect? In doing so, particular attention is paid to involuntary stakeholders.
Originality/value
This argument has implications for every business in managing its stakeholder relations.
Details