The geography of corporate philanthropy

Hurd, Howard (1994) The geography of corporate philanthropy. University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.

Abstract

This thesis considers geographical variations in corporate philanthropy - the support that companies give, in a variety of forms, to the voluntary sector. In recent years there has been heightened interest in corporate philanthropy due to the adoption by business of the concept of 'social responsibility' at a time when the government is increasingly looking to non-statutory provision and funding of welfare. In particular, voluntary bodies are being expected to take on a greater burden in a pluralistic welfare system. When assessing the capabilities of the voluntary sector to play this important role, the nature and composition of its income require consideration because the future equity of welfare will depend, in part, upon patterns of charitable funding. Despite this key policy significance, both the voluntary sector and its income sources have been the subject of very little academic research, and this is particularly true of corporate philanthropy.

It is apparent from a review of existing literature that the support offered by companies to charities can only be considered 'philanthropic' in the loosest sense of the term, as they often anticipate some form of direct or indirect return. Individual firms vary markedly in the proportion of their resources they direct towards the voluntary sector, but these variations cannot be explained in terms of simple economic characteristics. Other influences are important, in particular localised factors that cause firms to donate at a higher or lower rate than they would do otherwise.

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