Marta De la Cuesta

National Distance Education University | UNED · Department of Applied Economy

Purpose The aim of this paper is to explore the affective and cognitive factors that condition banking relationships for economically vulnerable consumers and how these factors contribute to increasing financial difficulties and exclusion. This research, performed on a set of focus groups, bases its findings on a combination of experimental and dis...

Transitioning to a circular economy (CE) particularly challenges small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and a deeper understanding of CE financial barriers is needed. We draw on SME and financiers’ views to qualitatively study the risks associated with CE, how such risks limit access to financial resources and how financial institutions percei...

This paper addresses the question of whether and how public action via civil society and/or government can meaningfully shape industry-wide corporate responsibility (ICR) behaviour. We explore how, in principle, ICR can come about and what conditions might be effective in promoting more ethical behaviour. We propose a framework to understand attemp...

Even though many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) realize the importance of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for their sustainable business development, they face difficulties when individually pursuing this target. This paper aims to provide cluster-based SMEs with a framework to facilitate the uptake of the SDGs through a cluster...

The financial exclusion phenomenon has been approached from different perspectives. After reviewing the recent literature, we adopt a financial ecology approach and propose a comprehensive framework to analyse the different types of difficulties (access, use and perception) that vulnerable financial consumers face in relationships with banking inst...

Sustainable finance seeks to increase the contribution of finance to sustainable and inclusive growth. The global financial crisis of 2008 provoked the return of inequality in advanced countries to levels typical of a century ago. The aim of this paper is to empirically analyze the relationship between finance and income inequality for a group of n...

In a context of increasing public awareness of corporate harmful tax practices and their impact on society, corporate tax responsibility (CTR) is becoming more important to companies, stakeholders and scholars. Nevertheless, this issue has not been fully explored in the academic literature and the few existing studies do not delve into the prioriti...

This article analyses the technical and financial responsibilities of the banking sector, and reflects on their relation with the definition of social corporate responsibility applied exclusively to commercial banking activities. Mainstream assessment and reporting systems regarding external or commercial CSR show an insufficient capacity to integr...

In the Covid-19 pandemic, the immediate concern of European citizens is with the spread of the virus and the public health crisis, with the lock downs and their economic consequences and with the response of governments. The crisis demonstrates the importance of the foundational economy. This is the part of the economy which cannot be shut down bec...

This paper studies whether the failure of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting practices to enable effective CSR communication allowing stakeholders to appreciate firms' CSR is due to the reporting model guiding firms in elaborating sustainability reports, the companies' application of the model, or both. Drawing on the communication the...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically appraise the health of banking systems by applying a new theoretical framework based on resilience and stability simultaneously. In line with complex system theories, the authors will consider the dynamics of the banking system as a whole, analysing not only banks individually but also the broad e...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the emerging discourse on corporate taxation from a corporate social responsibility perspective to develop a consensual definition of corporate tax responsibility (CTR) and to identify a set of indicators that firms should publicly communicate to their stakeholders as an accountability mechanism. Des...

This paper analyses the phenomenon of financial discrimination that has been identified in many developed countries in the aftermath of the financial crisis. We would consider the process of worsening quality in the provision of banking products and services as part of the increasing problem of financial exclusion, which should consider not only ph...

RESUMEN Fruto de la crisis financiera la responsabilidad fiscal está ganando mayor atención social y gubernamental, consolidándose como elemento integrante de la responsabilidad social corporativa. Como consecuencia, las empresas son objeto de mayor presión para informar sobre sus prácticas fiscales. Desde 2017 las empresas deben cumplir nuevas exi...

Una de las estrategias de inversión socialmente responsable que mayor crecimiento ha registrado en los últimos años es la asociada a las prácticas de diálogo activo (o engagement) accionarial. Bajo esta denominación se engloban aquellas acciones a través de las cuales los inversores utilizan su poder como propietarios para influir en los comportami...

The purpose of this chapter is to measure social and environmental responsibility in the commercial activities of banks (external CSR performance)—in contrast to other models based on internal stakeholders—and define to what extent it is influenced by a bank’s size, banking model or business specialization. The banking sector is composed of diverse...

The economic crisis has increased the inequality and heterogeneity of people at risk of social exclusion, and thus their financial vulnerability. This article reviews the literature on the determinants of unbanking and underbanking and proposes a model linking financial and social exclusion. We aimed to determine if people at risk of poverty and so...

This paper analyses the influence of ownership structure on the transparency of corporate social responsibility (CSR) information for a sample of 128 Spanish listed companies between 2009 and 2011. We distinguish two types of significant shareholders, depending on whether or not they are members of the board of directors. The results of the ordinar...

The economic and financial crisis that began in 2008 has raised concerns over the impact of Corporate Social Performance (CSP) on Corporate Financial Performance (CFP). The controversies and scandals in regard to the role of banks in the crisis have revealed failures in some CSP dimensions and questioned the CSR policies of banks as a real strategi...

This paper proposes a comprehensive explanatory model to explain both causes and consequences of over-indebtedness. It presents as causes some borrower aspects, such as propensity to indebtedness and low financial literacy. Other causes are borrower circumstances: adverse external shocks, borrower internal problems and financial institutions' press...

The aim of this chapter is to analyse financial exclusion far beyond the classical approach of branch disappearance by including a new dimension: use difficulties. Our main hypothesis states that branch closures have been inconsistent and depended on the vulnerability of particular communities. We empirically analyse the main drivers of branch aban...

This paper analyzes whether effective boards of directors in addressing shareholder interests also prove to be effective in guaranteeing the interests of the rest of the firm's stakeholders. We measure board effectiveness based on the shareholder perspective, and test whether it is valid for the stakeholder perspective. The novelty of this paper pr...

Corporate social responsibility is a multidimensional concept that is often measured using diverse indicators. Composite indices can aggregate these single indicators into one measurement. This article aims to identify the key challenges in constructing a composite index for measuring corporate social responsibility. The process is illustrated by t...

Uno de los principios básicos de la gestión e información reportada en materia de Responsabilidad Social Empresarial (RSE) es que se centre en los aspectos relevantes para la sociedad. Adicionalmente, la necesidad de realizar comparaciones entre empresas exige un esfuerzo sintetizador en la rendición de cuentas en RSE. Este trabajo se centra en la...

Socially responsible investment (SRI) and the consideration of environmental, social and governance (ESG)issues when investing has experienced tremendous growth in recent years around the world and especially inEurope. The aim of this paper is to analyse the drivers and barriers to the integration of ESG information in thefinancial market and why S...

In Spain there is no legal obligation for the government to report on their CSR. But national and international statements may be subject to greater proactive enforcement in order to promote sustainability commitment with its stakeholders-stakeholders-and improve your economic, social and environmental level. This study analyzes what the current of...

El objetivo del estudio es probar la validez de una escala para medir la dimensión económica de la Responsabilidad Social Corporativa (RSC). La escala final, compuesta por 14 ítems, es construida a partir del juicio de expertos, empresas y grupos de interés. La importancia de los ítems de la escala es evaluada a través de la metodología de análisis...

Purpose. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the quality of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting of Spanish companies listed in the IBEX-35 stock index and the main drivers of the differences among reporters. Design/methodology/approach. A benchmark tool was built based on GRIv3, and the ESG information issued by Spanish compa...

The origins of microinsurance activity are clearly based on a sense of social responsibility, seeking to alleviate poverty, and it has come as a result of wealth distribution inequalities in the world (FAO, 2009; World Bank, 2006).

Corporate compliance with human rights has received little attention in the management literature. This papers aims to shed some light on this issue, by examining business recognition of HR; in particular how companies state their own commitment with the HR; the policies and procedures in place to ensure compliance, including mechanisms of control...

El compromiso de las empresas con los derechos humanos (ddHH) ha sido poco analizado por la literatura de gestión empresarial. este artículo pretende cubrir ese vacío examinando las políticas y los compromisos que asumen voluntariamente las empresas españolas que forman parte del ibex 35 respecto a los ddHH. la muestra utilizada estuvo compuesta po...

The commitment of companies to human rights (HR) has not been widely analyzed by the business management literature. this article aims to cover that gap by examining the policies and commitments voluntarily adopted by spanish companies that are part of the ibex 35 regarding human rights. the sample used is composed of the 35 ibex companies as of de...

Over the last few years, the accession of new candidates to the European Union has posed an additional difficulty for the process of convergence towards a single European financial system. The official accession candidates, most of them with underdeveloped financial systems, have made some reforms in order to become more market orientated.

There is an intimate connection between socially responsible investment (SRI) and corporate social responsibility (CSR): faced with the demands of their investors, listed companies have started to adopt CSR strategies to comply with the demands of ethical fund managers and ethical index managers. This paper is an exploratory study of the obstacles...

Este artículo examina el papel de promoción del Tercer Sector en la promoción de la responsabilidad social de la empresa (RSE). En concreto, identifica cuatro vías mediante las cuales las organiza-ciones están desarrollando la RSE: creando incentivos económicos para la RSE, participando en la elaboración de políticas públicas, formando parte de los...

En este trabajo se presenta el papel de las Cooperativas de Crédito como instrumento de desarrollo local y regional, poniendo de manifiesto los resultados de una encuesta sobre su nivel de desarrollo de estrategias de RSC. A partir del conocimiento de las características del sector y de las herramientas de uso común en la evaluación de la Responsab...

Ethical codes or internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) codes proliferate in the business world within the context of the debate about self-regulation as an alternative or complement to traditional regulation. They are drawn up, supervised and controlled within the bosom of a company and at its insistence. This article pursues two objective...

Los intermediarios financieros juegan un papel activo en el desarrollo económico y social de los países, al tener la capacidad de seleccionar proyectos de inversión y consumo, gestionar riesgos y decidir quién accede al capital y qué actividades se financian. Su responsabilidad social en la lucha contra la pobreza, las desigualdades sociales y a fa...

En el contexto del debate sobre la autorregulación como alternativa o complemento a la regulación tradicional, proliferan en el mundo empresarial los códigos éticos o códigos internos de responsabilidad social corporativa (RSC): aquellos elaborados, supervisados y controlados en el seno de la empresa y a instancia suya. Este artículo pretende conse...

Banking firms are becoming increasingly aware that their clients’ management of environmental and social risks may in term threaten their own business as lenders and investors. In addition, stakeholders are requiring banks to improve their social performance. As a result, some banks are developing corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies and...

En este artículo, se analiza el estado actual de financiación de las ONG de Desarrollo y Acción Social. Los resultados se confrontan con las recomendaciones para una adecuada estrategia financiera de las entidades sin ánimo de lucro, concluyendo con una exposición de las limitaciones del actual modelo de financiación de las organizaciones del Terce...

Recent concern regarding corporate social responsibility (CSR) has resulted in voluntary initiatives aimed at bringing companies closer to society, such as codes of conduct, reporting or environmental management systems. These voluntary initiatives present a number of flaws. Some authors and pressure groups argue that, although self-regulation may...

Should CSR be approached only on a voluntary basis or should it be complemented with a compulsory regulatory framework? What type of government intervention is more effective in fostering CSR among companies? This paper is an attempt to answer these questions, reviewing the debate between proponents of the voluntary case and the obligatory case for...

Hasta hace muy poco tiempo, se venía considerando al sector bancario como un sector neutral con escaso impacto medioambiental y social si lo comparamos con el sector industrial. En la actualidad las entidades bancarias perciben que una mala gestión de los riesgos medioambientales y sociales tanto internos como externos, representan una amenaza para...

La responsabilidad social corporativa esta despertando en los últimos un enorme interés por parte del sector empresarial, las escuelas de negocio, los inversores e incluso algunos gobiernos. Desde finales de los noventa han ido apareciendo en el panorama internacional diferentes iniciativas, códigos, normas encaminados a promover un comportamiento...

RESUMEN Estudios recientes (Quah, 1996b y Rodríguez Pose, 1998) afirman que las regiones europeas se encuentran simultáneamente en un proceso de convergencia y divergencia, poniendo de manifiesto la diferente capacidad de las regiones de adaptarse a los cambios económicos. Un factor fundamental en esa adaptación regional es la disponibilidad de ca...

RESUMEN Estudios recientes (Quah, 1996b y Rodríguez Pose, 1998) afirman que las regiones europeas se encuentran simultáneamente en un proceso de convergencia y divergencia, poniendo de manifiesto la diferente capacidad de las regiones de adaptarse a los cambios económicos. Un factor fundamental en esa adaptación regional es la disponibilidad de ca...

Desde los años 60, académicos y profesionales han ido consolidando el área de investigación denominada responsabilidad social de la empresa (RSE) o responsabilidad social corporativa (RSC). Aunque en nuestro país ha habido contribuciones importantes al desarrollo teórico de la materia, solo recientemente se ha empezado a avanzar en la medición y ap...

En los últimos tiempos la sociedad viene reclamando un comportamiento responsable de las empresas y cada vez más las empresas, especialmente las grandes, admiten su protagonismo y la contribución necesaria que han de hacer a la mejora de las condiciones ambientales y sociales. Esta mayor conciencia social exige reflexionar sobre la mejor manera de...

Introducción a la getión financiera en entidades sin ánimo de lucro -- Recursos propios y ayudas de entidades privadas -- Recursos públicos para ONG's de cooperación y desarrollo -- Gestión de subvenciones para ONG's de cooperación y desarrollo -- Gestión de subvenciones de acción local -- Organismos financieros internacional -- Las operaciones en...

¿Qué interés tiene tu dinero?. El ahorro ético -- ¿Somos responsables de nuestro ahorro?. El ahorro ético -- Cuestiones previas -- ¿Cómo puedo ser responsable con mi ahorro? -- Clases de inversiones éticas o socialmente responsables -- Un breve paseo por la historia de las inversiones éticas -- Responsabilidad social de la empresa -- ¿Es lo mismo l...

This article attempts to answer two questions, using Spain as a case study: do savings banks, and the regional banking system in general, have specific forms of activity which may be termed 'regionalising'?; and then, is the quantitative importance of the regional banking system sufficient to ensure that the effects of such behaviour upon the regio...

El trabajo que se presente en este libro, además de ahondar en el concepto de responsabilidad social corporativa y sus implicaciones, ofrece una metodología de análisis para evaluar la responsabilidad social de las empresas a partir de la definición de 19 criterios de contenido fundamentalmente económico, social y medioambiental. Esta metodología h...

Las inversiones socialmente responsables como palanca de cambio económico y social -- La inversión socialmente responsable a nivel internacional : experiencia y retos -- El papel de la Iglesia en la promoción de la responsabilidad social empresarial. Problemas, soluciones y retos -- Experiencia concreta de inversión ética promovida por la Iglesia c...

Pretende sensibilizar y mostrar unas orientaciones prácticas para la PYME, como una primera aproximación a la RSC de su empresa, así como dotarla de mecanismos para facilitar la integración de un modelo de gestión regido por los principios marcados por la RSC en el marco de la estrategia de negocio de cada PYME.