40
3 Literature Review: Social Investment …
communities. The literature that does address guideline documents in the O&G sector
(Lozano, 2013; Raufflet, Cruz, & Bres, 2014) appears to focus on annual reporting
and not on the ways in which the guidelines construct social investment. Further
research about the role of O&G social investment guidelines in the implementation
of O&G social investment is necessary; hence the focus of this research on the
discourses is evident in guideline documents that refer to social investment.
3.4 Summary
A critical review of the current literature on social investment in the O&G sector
suggests that social investment may fail, or succeed, depending on its capacity
to address communities’ needs through listening to community stakeholders and
respecting communities’ unique cultural characteristics (Ahmad, 2006; Anderson &
Bieniaszewska, 2005; Hess, Rogovsky, & Dunfee, 2002; Newell & Muro, 2006).
In this sense, O&G social investment can be seen as a social construct. This means
that it should vary according to a region’s historical, political, social, economic and
cultural contexts, and business systems. The way social investment is conceptualised
and developed in a specific locale should be different from other locales. In this
sense, social investment based on universal designs may be irrelevant and harmful to
communities. It may disrupt communities’ social, political and economic dynamics,
and the relationships between governments and communities. It may also increase
communities’ dependency upon O&G resources, which may reduce communities’
capacity to solve their own challenges.
This chapter has identified some existing gaps in the research literature on O&G
social investment. My research aimed to address these by analysing social investment
experts’ understandings of social investment and the practicality and impacts of
guideline documents on social investment practices. My research also examined how
social investment experts viewed the role of government in O&G social investment
and how government personnel understood social investment in the O&G sector. In
the next chapter, I describe the theoretical framework that informed my research.
References
Ackah-Baidoo, A. (2012). Enclave development and ‘offshore corporate social responsibility’:
Implications for oil-rich sub-Saharan Africa. Resources Policy, 37(2), 152–159.
Ahmad, S. J. (2006). From principles to practice. Journal of Corporate Citizenship, 24, 115–129.
Anderson, C. L., & Bieniaszewska, R. L. (2005). The role of corporate social responsibility in an oil
company’s expansion into new territories. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental
Management, 12(1), 1–9.
Anderson, L. E., & Park, W. H. (2018). International contributions to Nicaraguan democracy:
The role of foreign municipal donations for social development. Foreign Policy Analysis, 14(2),
276–297.
3 Literature Review: Social Investment …
communities. The literature that does address guideline documents in the O&G sector
(Lozano, 2013; Raufflet, Cruz, & Bres, 2014) appears to focus on annual reporting
and not on the ways in which the guidelines construct social investment. Further
research about the role of O&G social investment guidelines in the implementation
of O&G social investment is necessary; hence the focus of this research on the
discourses is evident in guideline documents that refer to social investment.
3.4 Summary
A critical review of the current literature on social investment in the O&G sector
suggests that social investment may fail, or succeed, depending on its capacity
to address communities’ needs through listening to community stakeholders and
respecting communities’ unique cultural characteristics (Ahmad, 2006; Anderson &
Bieniaszewska, 2005; Hess, Rogovsky, & Dunfee, 2002; Newell & Muro, 2006).
In this sense, O&G social investment can be seen as a social construct. This means
that it should vary according to a region’s historical, political, social, economic and
cultural contexts, and business systems. The way social investment is conceptualised
and developed in a specific locale should be different from other locales. In this
sense, social investment based on universal designs may be irrelevant and harmful to
communities. It may disrupt communities’ social, political and economic dynamics,
and the relationships between governments and communities. It may also increase
communities’ dependency upon O&G resources, which may reduce communities’
capacity to solve their own challenges.
This chapter has identified some existing gaps in the research literature on O&G
social investment. My research aimed to address these by analysing social investment
experts’ understandings of social investment and the practicality and impacts of
guideline documents on social investment practices. My research also examined how
social investment experts viewed the role of government in O&G social investment
and how government personnel understood social investment in the O&G sector. In
the next chapter, I describe the theoretical framework that informed my research.
References
Ackah-Baidoo, A. (2012). Enclave development and ‘offshore corporate social responsibility’:
Implications for oil-rich sub-Saharan Africa. Resources Policy, 37(2), 152–159.
Ahmad, S. J. (2006). From principles to practice. Journal of Corporate Citizenship, 24, 115–129.
Anderson, C. L., & Bieniaszewska, R. L. (2005). The role of corporate social responsibility in an oil
company’s expansion into new territories. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental
Management, 12(1), 1–9.
Anderson, L. E., & Park, W. H. (2018). International contributions to Nicaraguan democracy:
The role of foreign municipal donations for social development. Foreign Policy Analysis, 14(2),
276–297.