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Engaging Ethically: A Discourse Ethics Perspective on Social Shareholder Engagement

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  • Goodman, Jennifer
  • Arenas, Daniel

Abstract

The primacy of shareholder demands in the traditional theory of the firm has typically excluded marginalised stakeholder voices. However, shareholders involved in social shareholder engagement (SSE) purport to bring these voices into corporate decision-making. In response to ethical concerns about the legitimacy of SSE, we use the lens of discourse ethics to provide a normative analysis at both action and constitutional levels. By specifying three normative questions, we extend the analysis of SSE to identify a political role for shareholders in pursuit of the common good. We demonstrate the desirability for SSE to promote regulatory/institutional change to guarantee marginalised stakeholders a voice in corporate decisions that affect them. The theory of SSE we propose thus calls into question the stark separation of the political and economic spheres and reveals an underlying tension, often overlooked, within the responsible investment literature.

Suggested Citation

  • Goodman, Jennifer & Arenas, Daniel, 2015. "Engaging Ethically: A Discourse Ethics Perspective on Social Shareholder Engagement," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 25(2), pages 163-189, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:buetqu:v:25:y:2015:i:02:p:163-189_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Jennifer Goodman & Jukka Mäkinen, 2022. "Democracy in Political Corporate Social Responsibility: A Dynamic, Multilevel Account," Post-Print hal-04002327, HAL.
    2. Sisi Zheng & Shanyue Jin, 2023. "Can Enterprises in China Achieve Sustainable Development through Green Investment?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-25, January.
    3. Fabrizio Ferraro, 2019. "Going political? Towards deliberative corporate governance," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 23(1), pages 3-20, March.
    4. Mariusz Zieliński & Izabela Jonek-Kowalska, 2021. "Does CSR Affect the Profitability and Valuation of Energy Companies? An Example from Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-24, June.
    5. Cedric E. Dawkins, 2021. "An Agonistic Notion of Political CSR: Melding Activism and Deliberation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 170(1), pages 5-19, April.
    6. Francesco Gangi & Jérôme Méric & Rémi Jardat & Lucia Michela Daniele, 2019. "Business for society," Post-Print hal-02382307, HAL.
    7. Fabrizio Ferraro & Daniel Beunza, 2018. "Creating Common Ground: A Communicative Action Model of Dialogue in Shareholder Engagement," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(6), pages 1187-1207, December.
    8. Helen Mussell, 2019. "Elucidating Limited Shareholder Engagement: Identifying Ethical and Epistemological Factors in the Fiduciary," Working Papers wp516, Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge.
    9. Rachelle Belinga & Blanche Segrestin, 2016. "Proxy voting policies as tools for shareholder engagement in CSR: an exploratory study," Post-Print hal-01312918, HAL.
    10. Bimal Arora & Arno Kourula & Robert Phillips, 2020. "Emerging Paradigms of Corporate Social Responsibility, Regulation, and Governance: Introduction to the Thematic Symposium," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 162(2), pages 265-268, March.
    11. Mariusz Zieliński & Małgorzata Adamska, 2022. "ESG Assessment from the Perspective of the Management Board and Trade Unions on the Example of the Opole Power Plant," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(21), pages 1-21, October.
    12. William Rehg, 2023. "Business Firms as Moral Agents: A Kantian Response to the Corporate Autonomy Problem," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 183(4), pages 999-1009, April.
    13. Salome Zimmermann, 2019. "Same Same but Different: How and Why Banks Approach Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-20, April.
    14. Mariusz Zielinski & Izabela Jonek-Kowalska, 2020. "Profitability of Corporate Social Responsibility Activities from the Perspective of Corporate Social Managers," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(2), pages 264-280.

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