THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GOVERNANCE MECHANISMS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY PRACTICES IN GAÚCHA COOPERATIVES

Abstract

Purpose: To analyze the relationship between Corporate Governance (GC) mechanisms and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices in cooperatives in Rio Grande do Sul. Theoretical framework: Grounded in stakeholder theory, social responsibility and corporate governance. Method/design/approach: The study is classified as descriptive, field and quantitative research. The sample consisted of 35 cooperatives from the state, from different areas of activity, who responded to the survey, containing questions about the 4 dimensions of CSR, proposed by Carroll's pyramid model (1991) and questions about the mechanisms of KM. For data analysis, Pearson's correlation was used. Results and conclusion: The results show that the KM mechanisms are positively associated with CSR practices in the studied cooperatives, regardless of their field of activity, indicating that the intensity of the CSR practices presented by the model of Carroll (1991), are shown to be more consistent as the intensity of application of the studied GC mechanisms increases. It is concluded that among the ten (10) hypotheses tested, the investigation indicates rejection of one of them, which was the association between the Board of Directors (CA) and the CSR, which despite having found a positive association, it was not significant. Research implications: The findings confirm the theoretical assumptions brought to this study that good Corporate Governance practices contribute to the establishment of Social Responsibility strategies and practices in cooperatives in Rio Grande do Sul. Originality/value: Expansion of knowledge about the importance of CSR practices, as well as the verification of the relationship with KM mechanisms in cooperative organizations, in order to understand whether or not they are associated and what type of association occurs.