Corporate social responsibility of large family-owned companies in Germany

Abstract

German family-owned companies are not only important protagonists in an economical sense, but also function as an essential group of CSR actors in respect of their engagement for environment, stakeholders and society. This article is based on a survey sample among owners, respectively managers, of companies achieved an annual sales turnover of more than 50 Mio. Euros. The analysis revealed a variety of CSR activities and projects of German family-owned companies. However, some general characteristics of the engagement and the understanding of social responsibility in family-owned companies were detected. Focusing on motives for CSR engagement, two motive dimensions were investigated in detail by using principal component analysis and regression models.