Thinking Outside the Box : Taking Contextualization and Interpretation of Corporate Social Responsibility to the Next Level

Abstract: Globalizationhas lead to a condition of an ever increasing role of the Multinational Corporations(MNCs) acting on the global arena. This development has further resulted in thecreation and wide recognition of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). WhileCSR is thought to enhance quality of life and promote human rights, at timesthe norms which is often referred to as universal and that are building up thefoundation of CSR clashes with culturally manifested practices. This study aimsat providing a discussion of how we can address CSR and thus norms consideredas universal when they clashes with practices regarded as culturally embedded.This study will conduct the practice of guanxi – a Chinese custom oftenconfused with corruption – and explore the possibility to think outside the boxby making use of postcolonial theory when approaching the problem of culturalrelativism, ethnocentrism and moral dilemmas.