Das Paper „Between Handprints and Footprints: Controlling Decision-Making in Corporate Digital Responsibility“ von Herrn Armando Schrödter und Frau Prof. Dr. Weißenberger wurde für einen Vortrag auf der Jahrestagung des Verbands der Hochschulllehrerinnen und -lehrer für Betriebswirtschaft (VHB) zum Generalthema „Responsible Innovation“ in Göttingen zum Vortrag im offenen Programm angenommen.
Abstract:
This study examines managerial decision-making in Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR), addressing how organizations navigate the ethical and economic challenges of digitalization. Integrating Rest’s (1986) four-component model with Ajzen’s (1991) the-ory of planned behavior, we surveyed 187 German managers to identify factors influenc-ing CDR implementation. Our findings reveal that treating CDR as a unified construct masks critical differences in decision-making patterns. When analyzed as pooled data, perceived behavioral control emerges as the sole significant predictor of implementation intentions. However, exploratory analysis differentiating between opportunity-based CDR (leveraging technology to create positive societal “handprints”) and risk-based CDR (mitigating negative digital “footprints” like privacy violations) uncovers distinct deci-sion-making logics. Risk-based CDR decisions are driven primarily by economic evalu-ations (attitude), reflecting compliance-oriented thinking, whereas opportunity-based CDR depends on organizational capabilities (perceived behavioral control) and margin-ally on stakeholder expectations (subjective norm). Across all models, ethical considera-tions fail to predict implementation intentions, indicating that CDR adoption is driven by pragmatic rather than moral factors. The consistently strong intention-action relationship confirms that intention formation remains the critical gateway to actual implementation, requiring differentiated strategies for different CDR types.