Social and solidarity-based economy, Corporate social responsibility and territory in France

Competing practices and issues of legitimacy

Abstract

The article addresses the tension between the increase of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as an instrument for businesses to gain legitimacy on their territories, and historically grounded cooperative practices as developed by the Social and Solidarity-based Economy (SSE), struggling as well for legitimacy. Our claim is that the potential tensions between these two ways of institutionalization do not lead systematically to confrontation or avoidance, but rather to three kinds of interactions. Some sectors of SSE see CSR as a further threat of isomorphism and an alignment with the capitalistic model. Others SSE organizations adapt themselves and hybridize their norms and practices. A third option consists in developing alternative practices leading to a «CSR from below». This considerable diversity in the appropriation of CSR by SSE evidences the ability of SSE to grasp this new form of reporting in order to adapt it to its own pattern. This diversity is partly hidden by the dominant discourse on CSR. Paradoxically enough, CSR contributes thus to reveal the relevance of SSE while contributing to its poor visibility. The article is theoretically grounded on the economics of proximity, institutional logics, sociology of the political work and public problems. Findings are empirically grounded on the existing academic and institutional literature on CSR and SSE in France, as well as on the fieldwork conducted by the authors in two French regions (Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur, Nouvelle Aquitaine and French Basque Country).