Multinational Enterprise, ‘Corporate Responsibility’ and the Nazi Dictatorship
The Case of Unilever and Germany in the 1930s
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12269752 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Neil Forbes (0000-0002-4960-5436, Coventry University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2007 |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 149-167 |
| Publication date | 2007-04-16 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Contemporary European History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0960-7773 • E-ISSN: 1469-2171 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0960777307003761 |
| OpenAlex | W1971440181 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 7 |
| References cited | 11 |
The reason why a fuller understanding of the significance of the Hitler dictatorship did not emerge in prewar democracies remains a question of enduring historical interest. This article examines the way in which Unilever, one of the earliest multinational corporations, responded to the challenges of political risk posed by the Third Reich, and how aspects of business activity that gave rise to moral issues were weighed against the need to survive commercially. The realisation that Unilever could be seen as an unwitting accomplice in the dictatorship's criminal activities seems to have come late to the company. While corporate culture reflected the values of contemporary society, multinational business was partly responsible for the failure to sound the alarm over the unique dangers inherent in National Socialism
Democracy · Dictatorship · Economic history · Economics · Economy · Multinational corporation · Nazism · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · European history and politics · French Historical and Cultural Studies · Historical and Contemporary Political Dynamics · History · Law
Corporate Leadership and Mass Atrocity
Business-government relations and national economic models
Frozen Food and National Socialist Expansionism
Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Control
To know or not to know
Foreign direct investment in high-risk environments
Managing political imperatives in war time
Imperialism and after
Business and Politics in Europe, 1900–1970
The Nazi Dictatorship and the Deutsche Bank.
From Cooperation to Complicity
Allianz and the German Insurance Business, 1933–1945
The Role of Private Property in the Nazi Economy
German industry and global enterprise. Basf
National Cultures and International Competition. The Experience of Schering AG, 1851-1950
| Unique citing works | 7 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,47 |
| Citation span | 2011 - 2021 (11) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 7 |