Beyond Good Intentions: Designing CSR Initiatives for Greater Social Impact

Brief Abstract

Despite decades of research, the effectiveness of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives in delivering real societal benefits remains unclear. This article reviews the evolution of CSR literature and finds that most studies focus on inputs and firm-level outcomes, while largely ignoring whether CSR efforts actually produce positive social or environmental impact. The authors introduce a logic model to assess CSR performance and reveal that impact assessment is virtually absent in the field. They argue for a fundamental shift: reframing CSR as a science of design, where researchers actively formulate, test, and iterate CSR initiatives to achieve measurable societal goals. Emphasizing small-scale, field-based research and impact evaluation methods, the paper calls for a more action-oriented, outcomes-driven approach to CSR scholarship.

Key Findings

• CSR research rarely measures actual social impact, with most centering on firm-centric outcomes like financial performance or stakeholder satisfaction.

• CSR research predominantly focuses on inputs and outputs, not long-term outcomes, impact, or causality.

• The availability of large databases has caused an overreliance on public secondary data, causing a focus on what is easily measurable, and often obscuring what is most meaningful in social or environmental progress.

• CSR researchers should formulate, test, and iterate CSR initiatives to achieve specific social outcomes—similar to an engineer designing a solution.

• The focus of CSR research data and experimentation should be on specific initiatives and beneficiary-level impacts.

• CSR scholars should approach the subject as a problem-solving science, evaluating initiative impact through baseline comparisons, selection bias control, etc.

• The approach to CSR research is in need of a shift from explaining CSR existence to designing, testing, and refining initiatives for real-world social impact.

Opportunities for Further Research

• Researchers can explore whether and how CSR initiatives truly provide social impact through the lives of communities, employees, or environments.

• Future research should develop or adopt impact evaluation methods to allow for causal inference, as opposed to mere correlations. Examples of potential methods include:

  • Baseline comparisons

  • Control groups

  • Randomized trials

  • Counterfactual analysis

• Evaluation frameworks and metrics should focus on decentering the firm and recentering the beneficiary, such as:

  • Impacts on communities

  • Quality of life improvements

  • Environmental changes

  • Influence on systemic issues

• CSR research can adopt collaborative and polycentric governance methods, examining how multiple firms, industries, and civil society actors collaborate on shared CSR goals, and investigating cross-sector partnerships and community-level CSR coalitions.

• Examining how CSR initiative design choices (scale, duration, stakeholder involvement, etc.) affect impact and lead to scalable and transferable CSR practices.

Definitions

• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): CSR includes voluntary initiatives in areas like environment, employee relations, diversity, and community engagement. It reflects a stakeholder-oriented approach rather than a shareholder-only focus.

• CSR Logic Model: An operational model including four primary stages:

  • Activities: Actions undertaken by firms (e.g., philanthropy, sustainability programs).

  • Outputs: Immediate results (e.g., number of beneficiaries, tax deductions).

  • Outcomes: Correlated changes (e.g., improved quality of life, reduced emissions).

  • mpacts: Causal changes directly attributable to CSR initiatives (e.g., regional air quality improvement due to CSR).

• Social Impact: The final step in the logic model, which includes measurable, causal effects on society or the environment.

• Design Science: Inspired by Herbert Simon, design science is described as the scholarly approach of “turning existing situations into preferred ones.” In the context of CSR, this means designing initiatives aimed at specific societal or environmental goals and testing them through rigorous impact evaluation.

• Impact Evaluation: Drawn from development economics, impact evaluation refers to methods for determining whether observed outcomes are causally linked to a program or initiative. This includes defining counterfactuals and using control groups or randomized assignments.

• Selection Bias (in Impact Evaluation): The distortion that occurs when participants in CSR initiatives are not randomly selected, potentially confounding the ability to isolate the CSR initiative's true effect.

About the Authors

Michael Barnett, Professor, Rutgers Business School (USA), is an expert in corporate social responsibility, stakeholder theory, and business ethics. His research explores how firms balance profitability with social and environmental responsibilities. He has published widely in top management journals and is known for critically examining the assumptions underlying CSR strategies. Barnett also co-authored Salvaging Corporate Sustainability, a book analyzing the challenges of aligning CSR with real-world outcomes.

Irene Henriques, Professor of Sustainability and Economics, Schulich School of Business, York University (Canada), is a leading scholar in sustainability, environmental strategy, and the economics of corporate responsibility. Her work focuses on the relationship between firms' environmental performance and strategic behavior. She has published in top journals in both business and economics and often collaborates on interdisciplinary research that bridges environmental economics and business ethics.

Bryan W Husted, Professor of Management and Business Ethics, EGADE Business School, Tecnológico de Monterrey (Mexico), is internationally recognized for his work in business ethics, social responsibility, and corporate governance. He holds a Ph.D. from the Wharton School and has spent his career examining how businesses contribute to social development and environmental sustainability, especially in emerging markets. His research frequently addresses the strategic design and evaluation of CSR initiatives.