Lessons from the Third Wave: A reflection on the rediscovery of Corporate Social Responsibility by the mainstream accounting research community

In this paper, I reflect on what I, as a long-time member of the social and environmentalaccounting community, see as both the positive and negative aspects ofwhat I refer to as the ‘third wave’ of corporate social responsibility (CSR) researchby more mainstream accounting researchers. I note that CSR-themed articles havebeen published in the primary mainstream journals, in waves (and a ripple), sincethe 1960s, and I review those contributions. More importantly, I attempt to assesswhat the newest wave of research adds to the body of knowledge, and how thatmight have implications for the social and environmental accounting community.

Keywords: Social and environmental accounting; corporate social responsibilityreporting; mainstream accounting.

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Dennis M. Patten, Lessons from the Third Wave: A reflection on the rediscovery of Corporate Social Responsibility by the mainstream accounting research community in "FINANCIAL REPORTING" 2/2013, pp 9-26, DOI: 10.3280/FR2013-002002