**1. Introduction**

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been gaining heightened global interest and has become a key term in global economy discourse. The attention attributed to CSR escalated through globalization forces and increased international trade. It is an umbrella term encompassing multiple concepts regarding the role and impact of business on society. At its core,

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2019 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

the concept assumes a firm to be a social agent and part of a global setting where managerial decisions and actions create impacts and form relationships with society, economy and the environment. Due to the increased complexity of national systems and societies, governments are falling short on their roles in providing adequate attention to citizens' needs, living standards, and local developmental challenges. Therefore, the private sector is expected to take part and contribute to society on many fronts. This is also driven by increased public pressure, media criticism about corporate externalities, global competition, and the role of states [1].

CSR is understood and practiced [6]. In such contexts, CSR is increasingly entrenched by corporate strategies and institutional particularities. On the other hand, less developed nations have vastly heterogeneous institutional order logics that interfere with the way CSR is translated for local practice. For instance, research on CSR in developing contexts has outlined the different cultural and religious motivations to pursue CSR in the form of voluntary philanthropic contributions to local communities [4]. CSR logics in non-western contexts are therefore dependent on the merger of western assumptive logics of CSR with local socioeconomic, historical, cultural and political realities. These realities form the particular institutional order logics of a country; as highlighted in **Figure 1**, they include state, religion, market, corporate, family, and profession institutions. Each institutional order logics and their specific interactions with western assumptive logics, creates peculiar and unique CSR discourses and practices specific to each nation. For this chapter, the focus is on the main institutional order-CSR logics and how they influence CSR implementation in various contexts. Each country has a set of dominant logics pertaining to each institution which form the collective system of meaning that interacts with western assumptive logics of CSR. The various logics will also interrelate dynamically with each other to create particular expressions in local contexts. This dynamic translation and adaptation process of CSR leads to nuances in the ways it is understood and practiced and thus calls for a nuanced analysis of each local context and its salient institutional order logics at play. **Table 1** below outlines the understanding of institutional

Adaptations of CSR in the Context of Globalization the Case of the GCC

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orders and their functional roles in a particular nation, as outlined by [7].

**Figure 1.** Diffusion of generalized assumptive CSR logics with institutional logics [6].

CSR is an important differentiator in the current global business arena as companies are adamant about communicating their CSR contributions to gain legitimacy, enhanced brand image in the pursuit of higher financial performance and long-term profits. The global trend is therefore calling for firms to go beyond 'business as usual' and assimilate local and global societal and environmental challenges. The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) provides a definition of the concept as the integration of environmental and social values into core organizational processes and with stakeholder interactions for the purpose of sustainable economic development [2]. Other conceptual definitions of CSR outline a social responsibility pyramid with four paradigms of application spanning economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic patterns [3]. It is economic if companies pursue CSR for higher profits or to save brand image from public criticism. The legal paradigm constitutes following policies and regulations by taking managerial action to avoid legal issues. Ethical decision-making involves long-term planning for responsible behavior for its integration with all aspects of operations and stakeholder interaction. Philanthropic CSR is when companies provide a financial contribution for meaningful causes to address societal and environmental issues. It becomes clear that CSR is more than merely philanthropic; it involves a restructuring of managerial perspectives on the relationship of the business with its surroundings.

The practice of CSR started in highly developed nations, such as in USA and Europe, where corporations were responding to the increased public criticism and media pressure to avoid bad corporate image or legal lawsuits regarding harmful practices to society and the environment. As it caught traction in western contexts, and with globalization, the concept spread through multinational corporations (MNCs), their subsidiaries and international standardization, leading to the salience of global best practices of CSR and the importance accorded to environment in other parts of the world, including the Middle East [4]. Consequently, the CSR concept diffused from West to East, carrying western values, connotations, and practices that form its basic understanding. This is referred to as "western assumptive logics", as is evident in mainstream business literature and the theoretical inferences made by CSR studies. Research on CSR in non-western contexts has asserted its divergence in different political, cultural and socioeconomic settings [5]. Therefore, as western assumptive CSR logics spread, they get diffused and altered according to every unique national context. Each country has a set of institutional variables that define its collective political and cultural values, beliefs and practices. In light of each constellation of particular institutional order logics, CSR is invariably translated for local applicability.

In western contexts, CSR is organized based on coherent systems of governance and national business systems that form western institutional realities and have implications for the way CSR is understood and practiced [6]. In such contexts, CSR is increasingly entrenched by corporate strategies and institutional particularities. On the other hand, less developed nations have vastly heterogeneous institutional order logics that interfere with the way CSR is translated for local practice. For instance, research on CSR in developing contexts has outlined the different cultural and religious motivations to pursue CSR in the form of voluntary philanthropic contributions to local communities [4]. CSR logics in non-western contexts are therefore dependent on the merger of western assumptive logics of CSR with local socioeconomic, historical, cultural and political realities. These realities form the particular institutional order logics of a country; as highlighted in **Figure 1**, they include state, religion, market, corporate, family, and profession institutions. Each institutional order logics and their specific interactions with western assumptive logics, creates peculiar and unique CSR discourses and practices specific to each nation. For this chapter, the focus is on the main institutional order-CSR logics and how they influence CSR implementation in various contexts. Each country has a set of dominant logics pertaining to each institution which form the collective system of meaning that interacts with western assumptive logics of CSR. The various logics will also interrelate dynamically with each other to create particular expressions in local contexts. This dynamic translation and adaptation process of CSR leads to nuances in the ways it is understood and practiced and thus calls for a nuanced analysis of each local context and its salient institutional order logics at play. **Table 1** below outlines the understanding of institutional orders and their functional roles in a particular nation, as outlined by [7].

the concept assumes a firm to be a social agent and part of a global setting where managerial decisions and actions create impacts and form relationships with society, economy and the environment. Due to the increased complexity of national systems and societies, governments are falling short on their roles in providing adequate attention to citizens' needs, living standards, and local developmental challenges. Therefore, the private sector is expected to take part and contribute to society on many fronts. This is also driven by increased public pressure, media criticism about corporate externalities, global competition, and the role of states [1].

CSR is an important differentiator in the current global business arena as companies are adamant about communicating their CSR contributions to gain legitimacy, enhanced brand image in the pursuit of higher financial performance and long-term profits. The global trend is therefore calling for firms to go beyond 'business as usual' and assimilate local and global societal and environmental challenges. The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) provides a definition of the concept as the integration of environmental and social values into core organizational processes and with stakeholder interactions for the purpose of sustainable economic development [2]. Other conceptual definitions of CSR outline a social responsibility pyramid with four paradigms of application spanning economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic patterns [3]. It is economic if companies pursue CSR for higher profits or to save brand image from public criticism. The legal paradigm constitutes following policies and regulations by taking managerial action to avoid legal issues. Ethical decision-making involves long-term planning for responsible behavior for its integration with all aspects of operations and stakeholder interaction. Philanthropic CSR is when companies provide a financial contribution for meaningful causes to address societal and environmental issues. It becomes clear that CSR is more than merely philanthropic; it involves a restructuring of

managerial perspectives on the relationship of the business with its surroundings.

ably translated for local applicability.

124 Globalization

The practice of CSR started in highly developed nations, such as in USA and Europe, where corporations were responding to the increased public criticism and media pressure to avoid bad corporate image or legal lawsuits regarding harmful practices to society and the environment. As it caught traction in western contexts, and with globalization, the concept spread through multinational corporations (MNCs), their subsidiaries and international standardization, leading to the salience of global best practices of CSR and the importance accorded to environment in other parts of the world, including the Middle East [4]. Consequently, the CSR concept diffused from West to East, carrying western values, connotations, and practices that form its basic understanding. This is referred to as "western assumptive logics", as is evident in mainstream business literature and the theoretical inferences made by CSR studies. Research on CSR in non-western contexts has asserted its divergence in different political, cultural and socioeconomic settings [5]. Therefore, as western assumptive CSR logics spread, they get diffused and altered according to every unique national context. Each country has a set of institutional variables that define its collective political and cultural values, beliefs and practices. In light of each constellation of particular institutional order logics, CSR is invari-

In western contexts, CSR is organized based on coherent systems of governance and national business systems that form western institutional realities and have implications for the way

**Figure 1.** Diffusion of generalized assumptive CSR logics with institutional logics [6].


**Table 1.** Institutional orders of state, market, corporate, religion, and family [6].

This book chapter will focus on a particular context in the Middle East, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Business activities are embedded in Middle Eastern history as the region has a strategic geographical positioning for trade across three continents. The current Middle Eastern business arena has witnessed a proliferation of CSR practices due to globalization and global sharing of best practices. The translation and adaptation of western assumptive CSR logics was also driven by social media attention, awareness and education in the area of CSR, and greater local demands for accountability and sustainable development [1]. Businesses are now accountable not only for their economic performance but also for their social responsibility and corporate citizenship as these concepts become more embedded in mainstream business practices across the region.
