Conceptualizing the Relation between Private Benefit and the Public Good: The Emerging Contribution of Impact Investment
The juxtaposition between private benefit (i.e. profit maximization) and the public good (i.e. social and environmental benefits) has long been treated as an inevitable tension. However, this notion has been increasingly challenged in recent years by a rejection of the binary choice between investing strictly for financial gain or donating to charity. Impact investment is the most recent manifestation of this challenge, directing the private sectors vast innovative and adaptive capabilities towards solving social and environmental problems. This paper addresses (1) whether a theoretical shift has taken place on the relation between private benefit and the public good and (2) whether or not impact investment has contributed to this theoretical shift. It is argued that (1) a theoretical shift has taken place through the emergence and sophistication of five key theoretical perspectives and (2) that impact investment contributes an overarching conceptualization of this shift as the widespread pursuit of a single fundamental element: the creation of social and/or environmental benefits while generating a financial return.
Bobbie Macdonald
University of Winnipeg
国际会议
2011 Academy for Global Business Advancement(AGBAs)8th World Congress(全球商务发展学会第八届国际会议)
大连
英文
590-607
2011-09-15（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）