CSR in times of crisis: a systematic literature review

Dejan Glavas () and Giovanni Visentin ()
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Dejan Glavas: ESSCA School of Management
Giovanni Visentin: INCAE Business School

Management Review Quarterly, 2025, vol. 75, issue 3, No 22, 2675-2707

Abstract: Abstract This study assesses the strategic value of corporate social responsibility (CSR) investments and their impact on corporate resilience during financial crises. We examine three main hypotheses—“Doing well by doing good,” “Delegated philanthropy,” and “Insider-initiated philanthropy”—to understand what motivates companies to participate in CSR activities in times of economic turmoil. Using a systematic literature review of peer-reviewed journal articles within social sciences, extracted from Scopus and Web of Science, we adhered to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines to screen 1022 studies, ultimately yielding a final sample of 33 key high-quality studies. Our analysis reveals that a significant number of studies support the “Doing well by doing good” hypothesis, which suggests that CSR investments not only sustain financial performance but also serve as a crucial resilience mechanism in tumultuous economic times. Our findings reveal that investment in CSR enables firms to build social capital that pays off during financial crises by fostering trust between the firm and its stakeholders.

Keywords: Corporate social responsibility; Economic crises; PRISMA; Systematic review (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G1 G32 M14 M21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s11301-024-00445-w

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