An Integrating Framework for Research in Business and Society: A Step Toward the Elusive Paradigm?

Abstract

According to some authors, the field of business and society has suffered because it apparently lacks a dominant paradigm. This paper (1) concludes that such a paradigm is unlikely to emerge soon and (2) offers an “integrating framework” based on an interpenetrating systems model and focusing on the social control of business. This framework may serve as a unifying mechanism for existing research in the field as well as an agenda for future research.