Corporate Communication of CSR in China: Characteristics and Regional Differences

Abstract

This article investigates CSR issues publicized by websites, annual reports, and social responsibility reports by companies in mainland China from the perspective of corporate communication. The empirical study is surrounded by issues about the motives of CSR, the content of CSR, and the applications of stakeholders. Empirical tests are distinguished by CSR motives, characteristics, and stakeholder issues for companies from Eastern, Central, and Western regions. Our research results indicate that although corporate social responsibility implementation and communication in China have made great progress compared with the past, there are still problems, such as the incomplete implementation of CSR, unbalanced communication of CSR, and lack of integrity and pertinence. Enterprises in different regions are affected by the degree of local economic development, social development environment, and government intervention, which leads to obvious differences in geographical and political attributes of enterprises in different regions in communicating social responsibility. This article focuses on the impact of institutional (consists formal and informal) and regional influencing factors on CSR communication. Therefore, political, cultural, and regional differences are expected to be conducted by corporate culture and government policy in future CSR activities.