The Role of Purchasing in Corporate Social Responsibility: A Structural Equation Analysis

Researchers in the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) have examined a broad array of activities including environmental management, ethical issues, the advancement of a diverse workplace, safety, human rights, philanthropic donations, and community involvement. Yet despite over 30 years of inquiry in this field, there has been no holistic, empirical investigation of the particular dimensions or sets of activities that are encompassed by CSR and the relationship between ethics and CSR. In the purchasing and supply management literature, similar sets of activities have been investigated, but generally as separate, standalone streams of research with little recognition of their potential inter‐relatedness. The current study empirically identified the dimensions of purchasing's involvement in CSR and applied the label purchasing social responsibility (PSR).