What does Confucius, a Chinese scholar born in 551 B.C. have to do with the 21st century concept of Corporate Social Responsibility? A lot, according to a recent paper co-written by CEIBS Professor of Economics Bala Ramasamy. The paper, entitled Values, Attitudes and Behaviour of Chinese Consumers towards Corporate Social Responsibility, was excepted in the March 31 edition of the EIU publication Business China and is under consideration now at a leading international journal.

In writing the paper, Prof. Ramasamy and co-authors Matthew Yeung, lecturer at the Open University of Hong Kong’s School of Business, and Yizhou Yuan, lecturer at Xian International Studies University’s Business School, studied data collected in the teeming metropolises of Shanghai and Hong Kong. The central finding from Prof. Bala and his colleagues, after surveying 258 employees from the financial industry, is this: people who have an inclination towards Confucian values will likely be supportive of CSR.

The paper refutes the widely held perception that, in developing countries, CSR usually takes a back seat to economic pursuits ? meaning that unethical behaviour is generally accepted.  In fact, consumers in mainland China gave themselves a 5.57 rating on a scale 7 in which the top score denoted high support for CSR. Meanwhile survey-takers in Hong Kong gave themselves an average score of 5.17, beating out France (4.95) and the U.S. (4.4) and comparable with Germany (5.19).

The study warns that this support for CSR is conditional, however. “When the Confucian values are mixed with other value systems, a Chinese consumer becomes quite unpredictable,” the article states. “Furthermore, we find that consumers with strong Confucian values behave differently, both in terms of CSR support as well as types of CSR, in different Chinese societies. Thus, one strategy may not fit all types of Chinese consumers within the chopstick economies.”

The paper is a must-read for anyone interested in gaining insight into the behaviour of Chinese consumers and the implications of CSR on corporations’ bottom line. As the authors write: “This finding is an opportunity and a challenge for CRM (customer relationship management) and CSR in the Chinese economies of Asia.”