Proceedings of the International Association for Business and Society

Volume 24, 2013

Proceedings of the Twenty-Fourth Annual Meeting

Authenticity, Greenwashing, and Institutionalization of CSR Best Practices

This paper explores relationships among authenticity, greenwashing, and institutionalization of best practices for corporate social responsibility (CSR). The issue of authenticity versus greenwashing in CSR and stakeholder engagement practices has become an increasingly important topic of activist debate and scholarly inquiry. This paper identifies some relevant literature, defines authenticity and greenwashing, and seeks to connect the definitional distinction to institutionalization of CSR best practices. Connection involves definition and identification of “best” practices for CSR.