License to critique: A communication perspective on sustainability standards
Open accessAbstract
Sustainability standards are important governance tools for addressing social and environmental challenges. Yet, such tools are often criticized for being either too open-ended or too restrictive, thereby failing to contribute significantly to the development of sustainable practices. Both dimensions of the critique, however, miss the point. While all standards in principle combine elements of openness and closure, both of which are necessary to keep the sustainability agenda relevant and adaptive, sustainability standards often operate in contexts that favor closure. In this article, we draw on a research tradition that views communication as constitutive of organization to emphasize the significance of communicative mechanisms that stimulate organizational openness in the application of standards. With the notion of “license to critique,” we present a managerial philosophy designed to involve managers and employees, mobilize and develop their knowledge about sustainability and bring it forward for the benefit of both the organization and the environment.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The conditions for organizational talk to become action involve elements of participation and processual transparency.
“The conditions for organizational talk to become action, accordingly, involves elements of participation (e.g., Deetz, 1992; see also Christensen et al., 2017) and processual transparency (Hood & Heald, 2006).”
From Timely hypocrisy? Hypocrisy temporalities in CSR communication (2020) · cites this paper as Christensen et al., 2017
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Austin, J. L. (1975) · doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198245537.001.0001 · Cited by 21,496 · see citing works
Gioia, D. A., Mehra, A., & Weick, K. E. (1996) · Academy of Management Review · doi:10.2307/259169 · Cited by 15,604 · see citing works
The Social Psychology of Organizations.
Hackman, J. R., Katz, D., & Kahn, R. L. (1979) · Administrative Science Quarterly · doi:10.2307/2989929 · Cited by 12,243 · see citing works
Searle, J. R. (1969) · doi:10.1017/cbo9781139173438 · Cited by 11,718 · cited 4× · see citing works
“If we consider talk as performative (Austin, 1962; Searle, 1969) and accept the notion that organizations emerge in communication (Taylor & Van Every, 2000), we are able to realize that spaces of dissent simultaneously allow participants to reimagine and recreate their organization, including their understanding of it…”
BackgroundInfluential(1969) · Virtual Defense Library (Ministerio de Defensa) · Cited by 10,735 · see citing works
A Three-Dimensional Conceptual Model of Corporate Performance
Carroll, A. B. (1979) · The Academy of Management Review · doi:10.2307/257850 · Cited by 10,480 · see citing works
Organizing and the process of sensemaking
Weick, K. E., Sutcliffe, K. M., & Obstfeld, D. (2005) · Organization Science · doi:10.1287/orsc.1050.0133 · Cited by 6,943 · see citing works
How corporate social responsibility is defined: an analysis of 37 definitions
Dahlsrud, A. (2008) · Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management · doi:10.1002/csr.132 · Cited by 4,092 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Combined with the fact that different definitions create confusion among practitioners and scholars (Carroll, 1979; Dahlsrud, 2006), this feature has led to characterizations of sustainability as an “opaque field” (Wijen, 2014) and an “essentially contested concept” (Okoye, 2009).”
BackgroundGoverning the soul: the shaping of the private self
(1990) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.27-6033 · Cited by 3,824 · see citing works
The Audit Society: Rituals of Verification
Quam, L. (1998) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.316.7133.787a · Cited by 3,608 · see citing works
The Audit Society: Rituals of VerificationPreprint
Power, M. (1999) · RePEc: Research Papers in Economics · Cited by 3,597 · see citing works
Halpern, J. Y. (1994) · Mathematical Social Sciences · doi:10.1016/0165-4896(94)90005-1 · Cited by 3,556 · see citing works
Delmas, M. A., & Burbano, V. C. (2011) · California Management Review · doi:10.1525/cmr.2011.54.1.64 · Cited by 3,441 · cited 1× · see citing works
“…responsibility and sustainability, where tight couplings between programs and action are regarded as a sign of ethical behavior (Christensen, Morsing, & Thyssen, 2013) and where inconsistencies between past promises and current behavior are described as “greenwashing” (Delmas & Burbano, 2011).”
BackgroundCorporate Social Responsibility: Strategic Implications*
McWilliams, A., Siegel, D. S., & Wright, P. M. (2006) · Journal of Management Studies · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6486.2006.00580.x · Cited by 3,154 · see citing works
A Behavioral Theory of the Firm
Baumöl, W. J., Cyert, R. M., & March, J. G. (1964) · Journal of Marketing Research · doi:10.2307/3150326 · Cited by 3,009 · see citing works
Miller, P., & Rose, N. (1990) · Economy and Society · doi:10.1080/03085149000000001 · Cited by 2,877 · cited 1× · see citing works
“…& Waddock, 2011), sustainability standards such as UN Global Compact and SA8000 are assumed to stimulate, guide, and help organizations account for socially and environmentally desirable behavior and to support different constituencies in governing organizations at a distance (Miller & Rose, 1990).”
BackgroundStrathern, M. (2003) · Routledge eBooks · doi:10.4324/9780203449721 · Cited by 2,665 · see citing works
Maximizing business returns to corporate social responsibility (CSR): The role of CSR communication
Du, S., Bhattacharya, C. B., & Sen, S. (2010) · International Journal of Management Reviews · doi:10.1111/j.1468-2370.2009.00276.x · Cited by 2,633 · see citing works
Fagin, R., Halpern, J. Y., Moses, Y. O., & Vardi, M. Y. (1995) · The MIT Press eBooks · doi:10.7551/mitpress/5803.001.0001 · Cited by 2,612 · see citing works
Brokerage and Closure: An Introduction to Social Capital
Burt, R. S. (2005) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780199249145.001.0001 · Cited by 2,203 · see citing works
Luhmann, N. (2000) · doi:10.1007/978-3-322-97093-0 · Cited by 1,971 · see citing works
Brokerage and Closure: An Introduction to Social Capital
Burt, R. S. (2005) · Cited by 1,859 · see citing works
From smoke and mirrors to walking the talk: Decoupling in the contemporary world
Bromley, P., & Powell, W. W. (2012) · Academy of Management Annals · doi:10.5465/19416520.2012.684462 · Cited by 1,656 · see citing works
Legal Ambiguity and Symbolic Structures: Organizational Mediation of Civil Rights Law
Edelman, L. B. (1992) · American Journal of Sociology · doi:10.1086/229939 · Cited by 1,584 · see citing works
Tackling Grand Challenges Pragmatically: Robust Action Revisited
Ferraro, F., Etzion, D., & Gehman, J. (2015) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840614563742 · Cited by 1,338 · see citing works
(1993) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.31-2392 · Cited by 1,250 · see citing works
Single-Loop and Double-Loop Models in Research on Decision Making
Argyris, C. (1976) · Administrative Science Quarterly · doi:10.2307/2391848 · Cited by 1,226 · see citing works
A world of standards but not a standard world: Toward a sociology of standards and standardization
Timmermans, S., & Epstein, S. (2010) · Annual Review of Sociology · doi:10.1146/annurev.soc.012809.102629 · Cited by 1,226 · see citing works
Luhmann, N. (1978) · VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-322-91079-0_1 · Cited by 1,083 · see citing works
Weaver, G. R., Treviño, L. K., & Cochran, P. L. (1999) · Academy of Management Journal · doi:10.2307/256975 · Cited by 928 · see citing works
The Business of Talk: Organizations in Action.
Grimshaw, A. D., & Boden, D. (1995) · Contemporary Sociology A Journal of Reviews · doi:10.2307/2077403 · Cited by 878 · see citing works
MADE TO FIT: HOW PRACTICES VARY AS THEY DIFFUSE.
Ansari, S. M., Fiss, P. C., & Zajac, E. J. (2010) · Academy of Management Review · doi:10.5465/amr.2010.45577876 · Cited by 877 · see citing works
King, A. A., Lenox, M. J., & Terlaak, A. (2005) · Academy of Management Journal · doi:10.5465/amj.2005.19573111 · Cited by 875 · see citing works
The emergent organization : communication as its site and surface
Taylor, J. R., & Every, E. J. V. (1999) · Cited by 855 · see citing works
(1992) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.30-0726 · Cited by 793 · see citing works
Austin, J. L. (1979) · doi:10.1093/019283021x.001.0001 · Cited by 756 · see citing works
1 Constitutional Amendments: “Materializing” Organizational Communication
Ashcraft, K. L., Kuhn, T. R., & Cooren, F. (2009) · Academy of Management Annals · doi:10.1080/19416520903047186 · Cited by 755 · see citing works
Christmann, P., & Taylor, G. (2006) · Journal of International Business Studies · doi:10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400231 · Cited by 745 · see citing works
Lockett, A., Moon, J., & Visser, W. (2006) · Journal of Management Studies · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6486.2006.00585.x · Cited by 715 · see citing works
Textual Agency: How Texts Do Things in Organizational Settings
Cooren, F. (2004) · Organization · doi:10.1177/1350508404041998 · Cited by 636 · see citing works
Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M., & Thyssen, O. (2013) · Organization · doi:10.1177/1350508413478310 · Cited by 591 · see citing works
Self-citationHumphries, M., & Deetz, S. A. (1993) · Administrative Science Quarterly · doi:10.2307/2393379 · Cited by 589 · see citing works
Maon, F., Lindgreen, A., & Swaen, V. (2008) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-008-9804-2 · Cited by 585 · see citing works
Communication, Organizing and Organization: An Overview and Introduction to the Special Issue
Cooren, F., Kuhn, T., Cornelissen, J. P., & Clark, T. (2011) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840611410836 · Cited by 585 · see citing works
Reinecke, J., Manning, S. D., & von Hagen, O. (2012) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840612443629 · Cited by 511 · see citing works
Organizations as Discursive Constructions
Fairhurst, G. T., & Putnam, L. L. (2004) · Communication Theory · doi:10.1111/j.1468-2885.2004.tb00301.x · Cited by 466 · see citing works
Wijen, F. (2014) · Academy of Management Review · doi:10.5465/amr.2012.0218 · Cited by 459 · see citing works
Applying organizational routines in understanding organizational change
Becker, M. C., Lazaric, N., Nelson, R. R., & Winter, S. G. (2005) · Industrial and Corporate Change · doi:10.1093/icc/dth071 · Cited by 422 · see citing works
The Debate Over Corporate Social Responsibility
May, S., Cheney, G. E., & Roper, J. (2007) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780195178838.001.0001 · Cited by 399 · see citing works
Okoye, A. (2009) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-008-0021-9 · Cited by 399 · see citing works
The dynamics of standardization: Three perspectives on standards in organization studies
Brunsson, N., Rasche, A., & Seidl, D. (2012) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840612450120 · Cited by 392 · see citing works
Grant, D. S., Keenoy, T., & Oswick, C. (1998) · SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks · doi:10.4135/9781446280270 · Cited by 370 · see citing works
Accountability in a Global Economy: The Emergence of International Accountability Standards
Gilbert, D. U., Rasche, A., & Waddock, S. A. (2011) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.5840/beq20112112 · Cited by 360 · see citing works
Clegg, S. R., Kornberger, M., & Rhodes, C. (2006) · British Journal of Management · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8551.2006.00493.x · Cited by 344 · see citing works
Morhardt, J. E., Baird, S., & Freeman, K. (2002) · Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management · doi:10.1002/csr.26 · Cited by 340 · see citing works
Measuring the Unmeasured: An Institutional Entrepreneur Strategy in an Emerging Industry
Déjean, F., Gond, J., & Leca, B. L. (2004) · Human Relations · doi:10.1177/0018726704044954 · Cited by 317 · see citing works
ISO 9000: Outside the Iron Cage
Boiral, O. (2003) · Organization Science · doi:10.1287/orsc.14.6.720.24873 · Cited by 314 · see citing works
Haack, P., Schoeneborn, D., & Wickert, C. (2012) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840612443630 · Cited by 303 · see citing works
Breaking down the Wall of Codes: Evaluating Non-Financial Performance Measurement
Chatterji, A., & Levine, D. I. (2006) · California Management Review · doi:10.2307/41166337 · Cited by 292 · see citing works
Small Business Social Responsibility
Spence, L. J. (2014) · Business & Society · doi:10.1177/0007650314523256 · Cited by 288 · see citing works
Metatheoretical perspectives on sustainability journeys: Evolutionary, relational and durational
Garud, R. B., & Gehman, J. (2012) · Research Policy · doi:10.1016/j.respol.2011.07.009 · Cited by 278 · see citing works
Aravind, D., & Christmann, P. (2011) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.5840/beq20112114 · Cited by 273 · see citing works
Discourse ethics and social accountability: The ethics of SA 8000
Gilbert, D. U., & Rasche, A. (2007) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.5840/beq200717230 · Cited by 270 · see citing works
The Organizing Property of Communication
Cooren, F. (2000) · Pragmatics & beyond. New series · doi:10.1075/pbns.65 · Cited by 257 · see citing works
Delmas, M. A., & Montes-Sancho, M. J. (2011) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.5840/beq20112115 · Cited by 249 · see citing works
The Discourse of the Middle Ground
Livesey, S. M. (2002) · Management Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1177/0893318902153001 · Cited by 236 · see citing works
An Analysis of the Relationship between Environmental Motivations and ISO14001 Certification
Benito, J. G., & González‐Benito, Ó. (2005) · British Journal of Management · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8551.2005.00436.x · Cited by 233 · see citing works
Language and Organization: The Doing of Discourse
Bøje, D. M., Oswick, C., & Ford, J. D. (2004) · Academy of Management Review · doi:10.5465/amr.2004.14497609 · Cited by 232 · see citing works
General Strategy Concepts and the Ecology of Strategy Discourses: A Systemic-Discursive Perspective
Seidl, D. N. (2006) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840606067994 · Cited by 232 · see citing works
Corporate Communications: Convention, Complexity, and Critique
Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M., & Cheney, G. E. (2008) · SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks · doi:10.4135/9781446214466 · Cited by 224 · see citing works
Self-citationDistinguishing Adoption and Entrenchment of Management Practices: A Framework for Analysis
Zeitz, G., Mittal, V., & McAulay, B. J. (1999) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840699205003 · Cited by 213 · see citing works
Bitzer, V., Francken, M., & Glasbergen, P. (2008) · Global Environmental Change · doi:10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2008.01.002 · Cited by 212 · see citing works
United Nations Global Compact: The Promise–Performance Gap
Sethi, S. P., & Schepers, D. H. (2013) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-013-1629-y · Cited by 207 · see citing works
Organizational Communication In An Age Of Globalization: Issues, Reflections, Practices
Christensen, L. T., Cheney, G. E., Zorn, T. E., & Ganesh, S. (2004) · University of Southern Denmark Research Portal (University of Southern Denmark) · Cited by 203 · see citing works
Self-citationSchoeneborn, D. (2011) · Management Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1177/0893318911405622 · Cited by 190 · see citing works
Terlaak, A. (2007) · Academy of Management Review · doi:10.5465/amr.2007.25275685 · Cited by 184 · see citing works
Where Is the Accountability in International Accountability Standards?: A Decoupling Perspective
Behnam, M., & MacLean, T. L. (2011) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.5840/beq20112113 · Cited by 183 · see citing works
Explaining Compliance: Business Responses to Regulation
Parker, C., & Nielsen, V. L. (2012) · Cited by 178 · see citing works
The organisation of integrated communications: toward flexible integration
Christensen, L. T., Fırat, A. F., & Torp, S. M. (2008) · European Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1108/03090560810853002 · Cited by 167 · see citing works
Self-citationCommunicative Dynamics and the Polyphony of Corporate Social Responsibility in the Network Society
Castelló, I., Morsing, M., & Schultz, F. (2013) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-013-1954-1 · Cited by 164 · see citing works
Self-citationWhat makes communication ‘organizational’?
Taylor, J. R., & Cooren, F. (1997) · Journal of Pragmatics · doi:10.1016/s0378-2166(96)00044-6 · Cited by 163 · see citing works
Talk of change: Temporal contrasts and collective identities
Ybema, S. B. (2010) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840610372205 · Cited by 163 · see citing works
Introduction to Special Topic Forum: Language and Organization: The Doing of Discourse
Bøje, D. M., Oswick, C., & Ford, J. D. (2004) · Academy of Management Review · doi:10.2307/20159071 · Cited by 161 · see citing works
Toward a model to compare and analyze accountability standards – the case of the UN Global Compact
Rasche, A. (2009) · Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management · doi:10.1002/csr.202 · Cited by 160 · see citing works
Kjaergaard, A., Morsing, M., & Ravasi, D. (2011) · Journal of Management Studies · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6486.2010.00954.x · Cited by 149 · see citing works
Self-citationPainter‐Morland, M. (2008) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511488641 · Cited by 143 · see citing works
Global Policies and Local Practice: Loose and Tight Couplings in Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives
Rasche, A. (2012) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.5840/beq201222444 · Cited by 138 · see citing works
Humanising the Cut Flower Chain: Confronting the Realities of Flower Production for Workers in Kenya
Hale, A., & Opondo, M. (2005) · Antipode · doi:10.1111/j.0066-4812.2005.00494.x · Cited by 136 · see citing works
Visionary Ambiguity and Strategic Change
Gioia, D. A., Nag, R., & Corley, K. G. (2012) · Journal of Management Inquiry · doi:10.1177/1056492612447229 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Costas, J., & Grey, C. (2014) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840613502768 · Cited by 117 · see citing works
The limits of corporate responsibility standards
Rasche, A. (2010) · Business Ethics A European Review · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8608.2010.01592.x · Cited by 106 · see citing works
“Discursive Opening” and Closing in Organisational Self-Study
Thackaberry, J. A. (2004) · Management Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1177/0893318903259402 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
Bres, L. P., & Gond, J. (2014) · Human Relations · doi:10.1177/0018726713519278 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
CSR and the Mediated Emergence of Strategic Ambiguity
Guthey, E., & Morsing, M. (2013) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-013-2005-7 · Cited by 92 · see citing works
Self-citationIs Decoupling Becoming Decoupled from Institutional Theory? A Commentary on Wijen
Haack, P., & Schoeneborn, D. (2014) · Academy of Management Review · doi:10.5465/amr.2014.0344 · Cited by 79 · see citing works
A study of compliance with environmental regulations of ISO 14001 certified companies in Korea
Kwon, D.-M., Seo, M.-S., & Seo, Y. (2002) · Journal of Environmental Management · doi:10.1006/jema.2002.0570 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Voluntary Environmental Programs in the United States
Steelman, T. A., & Rivera, J. E. (2006) · Organization & Environment · doi:10.1177/1086026606296393 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Corporate Governance, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Communication
Deetz, S. A. (2007) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780195178838.003.0019 · Cited by 55 · see citing works
The Effectiveness of Market-Based Social Governance Schemes: The Case of Fair Trade Coffee
Schuler, D. A., & Christmann, P. (2011) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.5840/beq20112116 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
A study of compliance with environmental regulations of ISO 14001 certified companies in Korea
Kwon, D. (2002) · Journal of Environmental Management · doi:10.1016/s0301-4797(02)90570-0 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
Performing Sustainable Development Through Eco-Collaboration: The Ricelands Habitat Partnership
Livesey, S. M., Hartman, C. L., Stafford, E. R., & Shearer, M. (2009) · Journal of Business Communication · doi:10.1177/0021943609338664 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Offentlig ledelse i managementstaten
Pedersen, D. A. (2004) · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Business Ethics and Organizational Values
Thyssen, O. (2009) · Palgrave Macmillan UK eBooks · doi:10.1057/9780230250932 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Self-citationMedia, Organizations and Identity
Chouliaraki, L., & Morsing, M. (2010) · Palgrave Macmillan UK eBooks · doi:10.1057/9780230248397 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Self-citation6. The Organizing Property of Communication
(2000) · Pragmatics & beyond. New series · doi:10.1075/pbns.65.11the · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Managerial Struggles during Practice Implementation: The Case of Corporate Social Responsibility
Wickert, C. M. J., & de Bakker, F. G. A. (2015) · Academy of Management Proceedings · doi:10.5465/ambpp.2015.62 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Managing for Compliance and Integrity in PracticePreprint
Rasche, A., & Esser, D. E. (2007) · SSRN Electronic Journal · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Implementing the United Nations Global Compact
Woo, C. Y. (2010) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511762642.010 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Kjærgaard, A., & Morsing, M. (2010) · Palgrave Macmillan UK eBooks · doi:10.1057/9780230248397_5 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Self-citation
Flagged first, then by citations
3 of the 112 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Research works printed but not linked: 9
- Brummans, B. H. J. M., Cooren, F., Robichaud, D., & Taylor, J. R. 2014. Approaches to the communicative constitution of organizations. In L. Putnam & D. K. Mumby (Eds.), The sage handbook of organizational communication (3 rd ed.): 173-194.
- Christensen, L. T., Fırat, F., & Torp, S. 2008. The organization of integrated communica- tions: Toward flexible integration. European Journal of Marketing, 42(3/4): 423-452.
- Fransen, L. W., & Kolk, A. 2007. Global rule-setting for business: A critical analysis of multi-stakeholder standards. Organization, 14(5): 667-684.
- Grant, D., Keenoy, T., & Oswick, C. (Eds.). 1998. Discourse + organization. London: Sage Publications.
- ---. 1995. Social systems. J. Bednarz, Jr. & D. Baeker (Trans.). Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. (Original work published 1984).
- March, J. G., & Simon, H.A. 1958. Organizations. Oxford: Blackwell.
- Rasche, A. 2009. Toward a model to compare and analyze accountability standards. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 16(4): 192-205.
- Searle, J. R. 1969. Speech acts: An essay in the philosophy of language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Wickert, C., & de Bakker, F. 2015. Selling social issues: Uncovering managerial struggles during corporate social responsibility implementation. Paper presented at IABS Conference, Guanacaste, Costa Rica.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
The Impact of Voluntary Sustainability Reporting on Firm Value: Insights from Signaling Theory
Friske, W., Hoelscher, S. A., & Nikolov, A. N. (2023) · Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science · doi:10.1007/s11747-022-00879-2 · Cited by 249 · see citing works
Schoeneborn, D., Morsing, M., & Crane, A. (2020) · Business & Society · doi:10.1177/0007650319845091 · Cited by 230 · see citing works
Self-citationFrom Greenwashing to Machinewashing: A Model and Future Directions Derived from Reasoning by Analogy
Seele, P., & Schultz, M. D. (2022) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-022-05054-9 · Cited by 175 · see citing works
Sustainability leadership: An integrative review and conceptual synthesis
Sajjad, A., Eweje, G., & Raziq, M. M. (2023) · Business Strategy and the Environment · doi:10.1002/bse.3631 · Cited by 148 · see citing works
Morsing, M., & Spence, L. J. (2019) · Human Relations · doi:10.1177/0018726718804306 · Cited by 135 · see citing works
Self-citationTimely hypocrisy? Hypocrisy temporalities in CSR communication
Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M., & Thyssen, O. (2020) · Journal of Business Research · doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.020 · Cited by 105 · see citing works
Self-citationEffective Disclosure in the Fast-Fashion Industry: from Sustainability Reporting to Action
Garcia‐Torres, S., Rey‐García, M., & Albareda, L. (2017) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su9122256 · Cited by 98 · see citing works
Talk–Action Dynamics: Modalities of aspirational talk
Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M., & Thyssen, O. (2019) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840619896267 · Cited by 96 · see citing works
Self-citationGuest Editors’ Introduction:Corporate Sustainability Management and Environmental Ethics
Schuler, D. A., Rasche, A., Etzion, D., & Newton, L. H. (2017) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.1017/beq.2016.80 · Cited by 91 · see citing works
Sustainability Engagement and Earnings Management: The Italian Context
Grimaldi, F., Caragnano, A., Zito, M., & Mariani, M. (2020) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su12124881 · Cited by 84 · see citing works
Cooren, F. (2018) · Business & Society · doi:10.1177/0007650318791780 · Cited by 81 · see citing works
Vicious and Virtuous Circles of Aspirational Talk: From Self-Persuasive to Agonistic CSR Rhetoric
Winkler, P., Etter, M. A., & Castelló, I. (2019) · Business & Society · doi:10.1177/0007650319825758 · Cited by 68 · see citing works
Supply chain corruption practices circumventing sustainability standards: wolves in sheep's clothing
Silvestre, B. S., Viana, F. L. E., & Monteiro, M. D. S. (2020) · International Journal of Operations & Production Management · doi:10.1108/ijopm-06-2019-0454 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Penttilä, V. (2020) · Business & Society · doi:10.1177/0007650319825825 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
From Compliance to Progress: A Sensemaking Perspective on the Governance of Corruption
Schembera, S., Haack, P., & Scherer, A. G. (2022) · Organization Science · doi:10.1287/orsc.2022.1614 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
Reactivity to Sustainability Metrics: A Configurational Study of Motivation and Capacity
Slager, R. C., Gond, J., & Crilly, D. (2020) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.1017/beq.2020.20 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Sustainability Beyond Instrumentality: Towards an Immanent Ethics of Organizational Environmentalism
Johnsen, C. G. (2020) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-019-04411-5 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Confidential Gossip and Organization Studies
Fan, Z., Grey, C., & Kärreman, D. (2020) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/0170840620954016 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Standardization: Research Trends, Current Debates, and Interdisciplinarity
Grillo, F., Wiegmann, P. M., de Vries, H. J., Bekkers, R., Tasselli, S., Yousefi, A., & van de Kaa, G. (2024) · Academy of Management Annals · doi:10.5465/annals.2023.0072 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
The magical language of un-realistic venture ideas in social entrepreneurship
Barton, M., & Muñoz, P. (2022) · Entrepreneurship and Regional Development · doi:10.1080/08985626.2022.2158492 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Mapping corporate climate change ethics: Responses among three Danish energy firms
Toft, K. H., & Rüdiger, M. (2019) · Energy Research & Social Science · doi:10.1016/j.erss.2019.101286 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Dark Sides of Data Transparency: Organized Immaturity After GDPR?
Schade, F. (2023) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.1017/beq.2022.30 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Friske, W., Nikolov, A. N., & Morgan, T. A. (2023) · Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management · doi:10.1002/csr.2686 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
An attention-based view on managing information processing channels in organizations
Holm, D. B., Drogendijk, R. H., & Haq, H. U. (2020) · Scandinavian Journal of Management · doi:10.1016/j.scaman.2020.101106 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Nava, L., & Tampe, M. (2022) · Business Ethics Quarterly · doi:10.1017/beq.2022.1 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Paliwoda-Matiolańska, A., Lozano, E. S., & Nakayama, A. (2020) · El Profesional de la Informacion · doi:10.3145/epi.2020.may.33 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Shao, K., & Janssens, M. (2021) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/01708406211044891 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
The Role and Expectations of Stakeholders in the New Non-financial Disclosure Regulations
Vallone, C. (2022) · SIDREA series in accounting and business administration · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-90355-8_22 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Handbook of Research on Global Aspects of Sustainable Finance in Times of Crises
Moreno García, M., Mañas Alcón, E., Montes Pineda, Ó. R., & Fernández Olit, B. R. (2021) · Advances in finance, accounting, and economics book series · doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-8501-6 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Power and Play: Investigating "License to Critique" in Teams' AI Ethics Discussions
Widder, D. G., Dabbish, L., Herbsleb, J. D., & Martelaro, N. (2024) · Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction · doi:10.1145/3686938 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Dialogics of strategic communication
Christensen, E. L., & Christensen, L. T. (2018) · Corporate Communications An International Journal · doi:10.1108/ccij-08-2017-0073 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Self-citationAtif, M., Bottura, M., & Yasin, R. (2023) · European Management Journal · doi:10.1016/j.emj.2023.07.008 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Dialog und Polyphonie in Unternehmen
Winkler, P., & Rußmann, U. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-23152-1_7 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Organisationstheoretische Aspekte der Unternehmenskommunikation
Winkler, P., & Schoeneborn, D. (2019) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-03894-6_18-1 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Organisationstheoretische Aspekte der Unternehmenskommunikation
Winkler, P., & Schoeneborn, D. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-22933-7_18 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Poroli, A., & Cooren, F. (2023) · Human Relations · doi:10.1177/00187267231158497 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Sustainable Communication? Media and Communication Responsibility in Global Transformation Processes
Weder, F., Rademacher, L., & Schmidpeter, R. (2023) · CSR, sustainability, ethics & governance · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-18976-0_1 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Reppmann, M., Maibaum, F., Edinger‐Schons, L. M., & Foege, J. N. (2025) · Journal of Business Research · doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115188 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Online reputation of agri-food companies and determining factors: an empirical investigation
Uclés, D. F., Moral, A. M., Bernal, E., & Poyatos, R. P. (2023) · Review of Managerial Science · doi:10.1007/s11846-023-00639-8 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Ethische Herausforderungen von Public Affairs und Lobbying
Thummes, K. (2020) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-23391-4_15-1 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
CEO narcissism and CSR: role of organizational virtue orientation
Agnihotri, A., & Bhattacharya, S. (2023) · Society and Business Review · doi:10.1108/sbr-03-2023-0080 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Public Relations und die ‚Communication Constitutes Organization‘-Perspektive (CCO)
Winkler, P., & Schoeneborn, D. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-28149-6_9-1 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Elite status talks, but how loudly and why? Exploring elite CSR micro-politics
Heath, R. L., & Waymer, D. (2019) · Corporate Communications An International Journal · doi:10.1108/ccij-11-2017-0113 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Siaw, C. A., Lie, D. S., & Govind, R. (2022) · European Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1108/ejm-08-2021-0636 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Capturing the dynamic tension in CSR discourses: Toward an integrative circuit of culture model
Mak, A. K. Y., Chaidaroon, S. S., Poroli, A., & Pang, A. (2023) · Public Relations Review · doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102308 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Ethische Herausforderungen von Public Affairs und Lobbying
Thummes, K. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-22931-3_15 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Communicating Green Governance
Andriani, A. D., & Siripipatthanakul, S. (2026) · IGI Global eBooks · doi:10.4018/979-8-3373-6736-1.ch007 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Mitra, R. (2018) · Management Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1177/0893318918755971 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Measuring What Matters: Standardized Versus Customizable impact Measurement Tools
Tharani, A. (2019) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-16810-0_4 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Dialog und Polyphonie in Unternehmen
Winkler, P., & Rußmann, U. (2019) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-23390-7_7-1 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Determinants of online reputation: An fsQCA to wine cooperative societies
Poyatos, R. P., Jurado, E. B., Hernández‐Perlines, F., & Mozas-Moral, A. (2026) · European Research on Management and Business Economics · doi:10.1016/j.iedeen.2026.100311 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Food and Morality: Deconstruction of Value Judgments in Sustainability Documentary Films
Gottwald, F.-T., & Weder, F. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-31883-3_11 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
استخدام معايير محاسبة الاستدامة في تعزيز جودة الإفصاح البيئي بالتطبيق على دائرة صحة نينوى
الدباغ, ل. م. أ., & السعدون, م. ح. ع. (2020) · Tikrit Journal of Administrative and Economic Sciences · doi:10.25130/tjaes.16.52.1.5 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Choudhary, S., Mishra, K., & Budhwar, P. S. (2025) · Journal of Business Research · doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115905 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Worthington-Smith, M. D., & Giamporcaro, S. (2021) · Advances in finance, accounting, and economics book series · doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-8501-6.ch011 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Developing Integrated Thinking: Best Practices from the Financial Services Industry
Roszak, S. (2024) · Palgrave studies in accounting and finance practice · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-58273-8_6
Public Relations und die CCO-Perspektive
Winkler, P., & Schoeneborn, D. (2024) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-28034-5_9
From Global to Local: Communication of, About, and for Sustainability in the Local Are(n)as
Dernbach, B. (2025) · CSR, sustainability, ethics & governance · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-89486-2_14
The Strategic Making of Sustainable Venice
Porzionato, M. (2025) · CSR, sustainability, ethics & governance · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-89486-2_15
de Pedro, J. M. L. (2026) · Organization Studies · doi:10.1177/01708406261432819
The roles of multinational enterprises in governing the sustainability of global supply chains
Leone, C., Picone, P. M., & Destri, A. M. L. (2026) · International Journal of Management Reviews · doi:10.1111/ijmr.70023
Chen, S., He, L., & Chand, P. (2026) · Finance research letters · doi:10.1016/j.frl.2026.110414
Thurairajah, U. (2026) · INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND ANALYTICAL REVIEWS · doi:10.56975/ijrar.v13i3.337336
Anarbaeva, A., Pesci, C., & Soobaroyen, T. (2026) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-026-06388-4
Expanding a performative perspective on sustainability communication
Winkler, P., & Weder, F. (2026) · Journal of Language and Politics · doi:10.1075/jlp.25210.wed
Ratkai, M., & Zimmermann, L. (2026) · Administrative Sciences · doi:10.3390/admsci16090426
- Authors
- Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M., & Thyssen, O.
- Affiliations
- Copenhagen Business School (DK)
- Venue
- Business Ethics Quarterly
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2017-02-13
- Volume
- 27
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 239-262
- ISSN
- 1052-150X (ISSN-L)
- 2153-3326
- OpenAlex
- W2588342175
- Cited by
- 66
- References
- 112
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 2
- FWCI
- 12.86
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Business Ethics Quarterly (publishedVersion)
- CBS Research Portal (Copenhagen Business School) (acceptedVersion, other-oa)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Environmental Sustainability in Business
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting
- Keywords
- sustainability standards, organizational communication, organizational openness, standards governance, management philosophy, knowledge mobilization, sustainable practices
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review