Problem:
The project of this course (ORGL 3332) is to critically investigate the social responsibility of corporations in 21st century capitalist societies by focusing on the inevitable conflicts that the drive for profits will produce in the face of other pressing social concerns, like poverty, the push for diversity, and the exploitation of workers. In Competency 1, we have taken an important first step in this project by reviewing the dominant theory of corporate social responsibility (to increase profits), the nature of workplace conflicts and social problems, and the social problem of poverty. Think about the issue of poverty. The basic idea of the Social Problems textbook is that social problems, like poverty, are not primarily caused by or the result of personal decision-making or character. What are two social causes of poverty in our world? How do these factors end up causing or continuing to maintain an impoverished class of citizens? Nonetheless, we tend to fall into the commonly held view that poverty is the result of personal decision-making and character. How does this happen? What factors blind us to the social?