AMSTERDAM -- In Europe, Dutch companies are widely considered to be the front runners along with British companies in addressing the need for corporate social responsibility.
However, most Dutch companies, nongovernmental organizations, and even the Dutch government, are still in the midst of determining how to instill this concept in their corporate behavior.
Corporate social responsibility, or CSR, is an element of corporate behavior that promotes long-term contribution to the development of society. Companies that look down on this concept and engage in such practices as bribery, child labor or environmental degradation are usually punished with boycotts and plunging stock prices when discovered.