Acts that matter – an analysis of Kiva

Abstract

2013),"A comparative picture of corporate social responsibility approaches by leading companies in the United Kingdom and Brazil", Social Responsibility Journal, Vol. 9 Iss 4 pp. 571-588 http://dx.If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/ authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The goal of this paper is to provide insight into how global social responsibility is performed through economic, mental and even physical investment and engagement by consumers and organisations.Design/methodology/approach -An illustrative analysis from the corporate website and blogs of an ethical organisation is undertaken. The analytical approach is communicative and inspired by discourse and legitimation studies and more particularly based on the framework of legitimation in discourse and communication developed by Theo van Leeuwen. Findings -The paper claims that new forms of value creation and a new relational logic of ethics -a so-called ''logic of matter'' -are emerging. From the three types of relational logic of matter ethics -an ethics of care, an ethics of reversibility and an ethics of activism -the ethics of activism plays the most important role in our material. Research limitations/implications -The analytical examples presented in this paper demonstrate how the new relational ethics seem to transcend the dichotomy of self-interest and the interests of the other. Practical implications -The paper provides insights into understanding how new forms of relational and reversible relationships are constructed. Originality/value -To the authors' knowledge, similar studies on the emergence of new relational studies in light of the new economy have not previously been undertaken.

Crowdsourcing for a better world

“…Charitable crowdfunding campaigns transform the way in which charity has traditionally operated. While few sources are available in the literature on other forms of charitable crowdfunding (Wheat et al, 2013), a number of recent studies have examined peer-to-peer lending on the well-known charitable crowdfunding platform Kiva (Desai and Kharas, 2009;Galak et al, 2011;Heller and Badding, 2012;Knudsen and Nielsen, 2013;McKinnon et al, 2013;Riggins and Weber, 2011;Shen et al, 2010). Knudsen and Nielsen (2013) argue that charitable crowdfunding platforms, such as Kiva, organise "social production" in an effective way.…”

“…While few sources are available in the literature on other forms of charitable crowdfunding (Wheat et al, 2013), a number of recent studies have examined peer-to-peer lending on the well-known charitable crowdfunding platform Kiva (Desai and Kharas, 2009;Galak et al, 2011;Heller and Badding, 2012;Knudsen and Nielsen, 2013;McKinnon et al, 2013;Riggins and Weber, 2011;Shen et al, 2010). Knudsen and Nielsen (2013) argue that charitable crowdfunding platforms, such as Kiva, organise "social production" in an effective way. In social production, participants are not motivated by tangible rewards but rather are by altruism, peer recognition, respect or esteem (Arvidsson, 2009;Benkler, 2011).…”

A typology of disintermediated giving and asking in the non‐profit sector

“…Type Ai is the disintermediation of traditional charities by a different incorporated entity. The microlending site Kiva (which is a charity, but, as we said above, not a ‘traditional’ one) is a good example of organisational Type Ai disintermediation, as lenders make loans directly to individuals as an investment in their business/enterprise (Knudsen & Nielsen, 2013, p. 612; so this is lending crowdfunding rather than donation crowdfunding).…”

Perceived Inconsistency in New Philanthropy

“…Donors and supporters of charity may be driven by multiple and coexisting motives, including altruistic as well as egoistic motives (Bekkers & Wiepking, 2011). The coexistence of apparent opposite motives is embedded in recent approaches to ethics, including the ‘ethics of care’, where the distinction between self- and ‘other caring’ is diluted (Knudsen & Nielsen, 2013).…”