**Author details**

The subject of world society requires of many sociological issues—such as class and social structure analyses, poverty and inequality research as well as research fields of cultural sociology or political sociology—an emergence from the analytical unit of a 'nationally organized society', which is often assumed to be self-evident. On the basis of sociology, questions about social change, inequality, culture, power and domination have not become obsolete, but they have been moved into a different perspective. In particular, their importance ratio changes at the moment when these questions are referred to at the

In this sense, 'the globe as a big idea' has transformed not only sociological theories, but also the form of sociology as a whole. Sociology, which entered the historical stage as a science of 'modern society', is on its way to constituting itself as the science of one 'social world' [78]. World society approaches to this end had already been preparing sociological discourses on the way that the discipline can enter the contemporary stage of a *social world as a unit* decades before globalization. They have set trendsetting signposts for the discipline with their theory designs which have the world as a reference framework for the *'global house of sociology'* to be established, which should openly and constructively address the social challenges of the

The discourse on world society can be viewed as a seismograph of the state of current social science discourses in the face of processes of globalization and transnationalism. This seismograph shows how long inter- and transnationalism in the analysis of *society* have had a minor role in the sociological research of the so-called First World. It may be a great merit for world society sociologists from recent decades to leave the Euro- and North American centrism and to choose the global as the reference frame for the analysis. This implies, not least, the realization that the traditional empirical methods of capturing *society* are doomed to failure in the context of the global; and the traditional theoretical approaches of sociology as well as their

In addition to the demonstration of theoretical and empirical challenges, the analysis of world society, themes of globalization and transnationalism, the issue of transnational social spaces and classes, the range of global inequality and questions about transnational citizenship and the extensive field of global justice are new and modern approaches of sociological research. The future will show to what extent, with this thematic selection of research approaches, the nation-state as a reference frame of analysis is abandoned and how a tension between questions of continuity and the discontinuity of sociological concepts to the analysis of globalization and transnationalization as well as world society approaches can

Sociology has, due to world society approaches, some social responsibility to put forward constructive plans in relation to the *global shift* of its scientific discipline. At the moment, both the merger and the implementation of the plans are important. For sociologists, this project will be a central challenge of the twenty-first century at the *construction site of* 

global reference level.

16 Social Responsibility

twenty-first century.

conceptual instruments require a thorough revision.

be drawn in a convincing way.

*sociology*.

#### Veronika Wittmann

Address all correspondence to: veronika.wittmann@jku.at

Global Studies, Department of Modern and Contemporary History, Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria

## **References**


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World Society: An Ice-Breaker for a Global Shift in Sociology?

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.75048

19

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18 Social Responsibility

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20 Social Responsibility


[71] Berking H. Globalisierung. In: Baur N, Korte H, Löw M, Schroer M, editors. Handbuch Soziologie. 1st ed. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften; 2008. p. 117-137. [here: see p. 120]

**Chapter 2**

Provisional chapter

**Social Responsibility among University Students: An**

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.75115

The Universidad Francisco de Vitoria (UFV) has developed an educational project that is unique in Europe which integrates social responsibility as an obligatory subject across all university courses. The goal of this course is to heighten university students' awareness of social commitment and responsibility so that all individuals gain an understanding of the ideas presented and subsequently adopt these values, making them their own and applying them in their future professional life. Our aim is to evaluate the impact of this education on our students. To do this, we used a valid, reliable tool that with a personal questionnaire, (sample size: 757 students) allowed the information to be collected at two different moments in time (pretest and posttest). The results show that the social responsibility module has a significant impact on students with the effect varying depending on

Keywords: university education, social responsibility, university students, social impact,

University education is more than just technical instruction to prepare students for a professional career; it should also contribute to students' overall personal development. Because of this, the syllabuses for the courses offered at the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria include a set of subjects with a humanist character aimed at fostering a series of values, attitudes and habits

> © 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 eproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

© 2018 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.

Social Responsibility among University Students: An

**Empirical Study of Spanish Samples**

Empirical Study of Spanish Samples

María Consuelo Valbuena Martínez and

María Consuelo Valbuena Martínez and

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.75115

the degree being studied.

construct validity

1. Introduction

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

José Manuel García Ramos, Carmen de la Calle Maldonado,

José Manuel García Ramos, Carmen de la Calle Maldonado,

Teresa de Dios Alija

Teresa de Dios Alija

Abstract


#### **Social Responsibility among University Students: An Empirical Study of Spanish Samples** Social Responsibility among University Students: An Empirical Study of Spanish Samples

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.75115

José Manuel García Ramos, Carmen de la Calle Maldonado, María Consuelo Valbuena Martínez and Teresa de Dios Alija José Manuel García Ramos, Carmen de la Calle Maldonado, María Consuelo Valbuena Martínez and Teresa de Dios Alija

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.75115

#### Abstract

[71] Berking H. Globalisierung. In: Baur N, Korte H, Löw M, Schroer M, editors. Handbuch Soziologie. 1st ed. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften; 2008. p. 117-137.

[72] Wallerstein I. Die Sozialwissenschaft "kaputt denken". Weinheim: Beltz Athenäum

[73] Willke H. Atopia. Studien zur atopischen Gesellschaft. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp

[74] Beck U. Cosmopolitan Sociology: Outline of a Paradigm Shift. In: Rovisco M, Nowicka M, editors. The Ashgate Resarch Companion to Cosmopolitanism, Farnham: Ashgate

[75] Beck U. Kosmopolitisierung ohne Kosmopolitik. In: Berking H, editor. Die Macht des Lokalen in einer Welt ohne Grenzen, Frankfurt am Main: Campus; 2006. p. 252-270.

[76] Beck U. Vorwort, In: Beck U, editor. Perspektiven der Weltgesellschaft, Frankfurt am

[77] Pieterse JN. Der Melange-Effekt. In: Beck U, editor. Perspektiven der Weltgesellschaft.

[78] Berking H. Globalisierung. In: Baur N, Korte H, Löw M, Schroer M, editors. Handbuch Soziologie. 1st ed. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften; 2008. p. 117-137.

Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag; 1998. p. 87-124. [here: see p. 118]

[here: see p. 120]

22 Social Responsibility

[here: see p. 254]

[here: see p. 133]

Verlag; 1995. 356 p. [here: see p. 121]

Verlag; 2001. 262 p. [here: see p. 196]

Publishing; 2011. p.17-32. [here: see p. 18]

Main: Suhrkamp; 1998. p. 7-10. [here: see p. 10f.]

The Universidad Francisco de Vitoria (UFV) has developed an educational project that is unique in Europe which integrates social responsibility as an obligatory subject across all university courses. The goal of this course is to heighten university students' awareness of social commitment and responsibility so that all individuals gain an understanding of the ideas presented and subsequently adopt these values, making them their own and applying them in their future professional life. Our aim is to evaluate the impact of this education on our students. To do this, we used a valid, reliable tool that with a personal questionnaire, (sample size: 757 students) allowed the information to be collected at two different moments in time (pretest and posttest). The results show that the social responsibility module has a significant impact on students with the effect varying depending on the degree being studied.

Keywords: university education, social responsibility, university students, social impact, construct validity

#### 1. Introduction

University education is more than just technical instruction to prepare students for a professional career; it should also contribute to students' overall personal development. Because of this, the syllabuses for the courses offered at the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria include a set of subjects with a humanist character aimed at fostering a series of values, attitudes and habits

© 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 eproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2018 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.

in students that will in future enable them to think with rigour, comprehensively understanding and analysing reality and so also be able to take personal and professional decisions through the prism of ethical responsibility.

1.2. Subject matter

NGO.

established.

SREU construct [16].

• Opinion item

item.

• Personal discovery of values

• Education in social responsibility

Our goal with the Social Responsibility module is not to try to teach the value of social commitment but instead to help students "discover it themselves" [15] so that the value of

Social Responsibility among University Students: An Empirical Study of Spanish Samples

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.75115

25

In light of this, this module is approached from a broad perspective that integrates three different and complementary areas for development: the classroom, social practices and mentoring, with the idea that students will connect the theory from the classroom and their

The goal of the classroom-based lessons is to inspire students to reflect on the meaning of

The objective of the social practices is to provide personal experience of the possibility of doing something concrete to contribute to improving society. Therefore, each student is assigned a social project he or she must participate in throughout the whole year in cooperation with an

Through the mentoring, we aim to illuminate the students' personal experience from the

To measure the level of change the student underwent after taking this module we prepared a

The first step in constructing the scale to evaluate the level of SREU was to determine the features that define this variable. To do this, the information obtained through personal

Once the dimensions of the SREU concept were defined, the items on the scale were

The resulting survey instrument (ANNEXE 1) is structured around the four dimensions of the

This provides an overall evaluation of the student's level of social responsibility. This item is presented as an opinion variable. A good measurement of the level of commitment and social responsibility of university students must result in high and significant correlations between each of the items and the opinion item, as well as between average of the items and the opinion

practices to link it to their current university experience and professional future.

monitoring of students who had taken the module in previous years was used.

• Approaching my professional activity from a position of social commitment

SREU is not imposed from outside as something alien and external.

experience of social practices with their everyday lives.

scale to evaluate social responsibility.

• Commitment to others and my surroundings

social responsibility, starting with respect for human dignity.

Students cannot turn their backs on social problems that affect their surroundings. They must be prepared to provide specific, committed solutions for the common good through the exercise of their profession.

#### 1.1. Theoretical review

This study is based on an analysis of the impact of training in Social Responsibility for University Students (SREU) and not on the impact of what is known as University Social Responsibility (USR), which focusses more on corporate, institutional or business responsibility [1].

Regarding the former, we have found studies relating to the impact of ethics education, such as the works by Pascarella, Ethington and Smart [2] that analyse the influence of universities in training humanitarian values [3], the effects of volunteering during student years [4], the role of classes in education for personal and social responsibility [5], and the promotion of gifts and talents related to social support and humanitarian advocacy [6].

In 2013 an extensive review of literature of the role of higher education in tutoring personal and social responsibility [5] was presented from which interesting conclusions can be drawn about the impact of learning about social responsibility and personal development of students in the context of the change they encounter in higher education [7].

Regarding the evaluation of students' training in social responsibility, it is necessary to cite the analysis of the efficacy of the Social Responsibility module at the UFV in relation to the students' overall development [8], the works by Larrán and others on the availability and impact of social responsibility and business ethics modules in certain courses from the field of organisation management [9], development cooperation as a methodology for teaching engineers social responsibility [10], and the analysis of challenges and opportunities that Gordon and Doyle [11] present concerning the teaching of personal and social responsibility and the transfer of education and research in the validation of the Social Responsibility for University Students construct.

In 2015, Buyolo [12] noted that of the 71 Spanish universities that had implemented the Business Management course, only 24 offered some sort of module relating to corporate social responsibility, and of this 32%, only the UFV had established continuous evaluation including the internalisation of values and aptitudes, as Echainiz Barrondo states "The important thing is not to know what is good, but to do what is good".

Other pieces of research provide models for analysing the impact of using active methodologies, like our social practices on students' learning [13], or processes for validating instruments for evaluating cooperative work, which is one of the methods we use in the social responsibility module at the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria [14].

#### 1.2. Subject matter

in students that will in future enable them to think with rigour, comprehensively understanding and analysing reality and so also be able to take personal and professional decisions

Students cannot turn their backs on social problems that affect their surroundings. They must be prepared to provide specific, committed solutions for the common good through the

This study is based on an analysis of the impact of training in Social Responsibility for University Students (SREU) and not on the impact of what is known as University Social Responsibility (USR), which focusses more on corporate, institutional or business responsibility [1].

Regarding the former, we have found studies relating to the impact of ethics education, such as the works by Pascarella, Ethington and Smart [2] that analyse the influence of universities in training humanitarian values [3], the effects of volunteering during student years [4], the role of classes in education for personal and social responsibility [5], and the promotion of gifts and

In 2013 an extensive review of literature of the role of higher education in tutoring personal and social responsibility [5] was presented from which interesting conclusions can be drawn about the impact of learning about social responsibility and personal development of students

Regarding the evaluation of students' training in social responsibility, it is necessary to cite the analysis of the efficacy of the Social Responsibility module at the UFV in relation to the students' overall development [8], the works by Larrán and others on the availability and impact of social responsibility and business ethics modules in certain courses from the field of organisation management [9], development cooperation as a methodology for teaching engineers social responsibility [10], and the analysis of challenges and opportunities that Gordon and Doyle [11] present concerning the teaching of personal and social responsibility and the transfer of education and research in the validation of the Social Responsibility for University

In 2015, Buyolo [12] noted that of the 71 Spanish universities that had implemented the Business Management course, only 24 offered some sort of module relating to corporate social responsibility, and of this 32%, only the UFV had established continuous evaluation including the internalisation of values and aptitudes, as Echainiz Barrondo states "The important thing is

Other pieces of research provide models for analysing the impact of using active methodologies, like our social practices on students' learning [13], or processes for validating instruments for evaluating cooperative work, which is one of the methods we use in the social responsibil-

talents related to social support and humanitarian advocacy [6].

in the context of the change they encounter in higher education [7].

not to know what is good, but to do what is good".

ity module at the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria [14].

through the prism of ethical responsibility.

exercise of their profession.

1.1. Theoretical review

24 Social Responsibility

Students construct.

Our goal with the Social Responsibility module is not to try to teach the value of social commitment but instead to help students "discover it themselves" [15] so that the value of SREU is not imposed from outside as something alien and external.

In light of this, this module is approached from a broad perspective that integrates three different and complementary areas for development: the classroom, social practices and mentoring, with the idea that students will connect the theory from the classroom and their experience of social practices with their everyday lives.

The goal of the classroom-based lessons is to inspire students to reflect on the meaning of social responsibility, starting with respect for human dignity.

The objective of the social practices is to provide personal experience of the possibility of doing something concrete to contribute to improving society. Therefore, each student is assigned a social project he or she must participate in throughout the whole year in cooperation with an NGO.

Through the mentoring, we aim to illuminate the students' personal experience from the practices to link it to their current university experience and professional future.

To measure the level of change the student underwent after taking this module we prepared a scale to evaluate social responsibility.

The first step in constructing the scale to evaluate the level of SREU was to determine the features that define this variable. To do this, the information obtained through personal monitoring of students who had taken the module in previous years was used.

Once the dimensions of the SREU concept were defined, the items on the scale were established.

The resulting survey instrument (ANNEXE 1) is structured around the four dimensions of the SREU construct [16].


This provides an overall evaluation of the student's level of social responsibility. This item is presented as an opinion variable. A good measurement of the level of commitment and social responsibility of university students must result in high and significant correlations between each of the items and the opinion item, as well as between average of the items and the opinion item.
