한국기업의 자발적 국제인권규범 채택요인 분석에 관한 연구

Abstract

Profit, rather than human rights, is generally regarded as the first priority in business. If so, why have a number of companies voluntarily engaged themselves with human rights commitments? This article examines the motivations behind increased conformity to corporate human rights guidelines using the data from both listed and unlisted Korean companies from 2006 to 2014. Our multi-theoretical framework adopts the perspective of reputation and legitimacy for better business performance under new international economic, social, and political environments. Under this framework, our explanation is subject to empirical tests including multiple regression analysis. The results show that social visibility, government pressure, foreign share ownership, peer competition, and consumer proximity positively influence compliance levels, which suggests that companies preemptively legitimize their activities to counter rising public expectations and increasing vulnerability within international society.