William C. Frederick's professional career spans a half century, following doctoral studies in economics and anthropology at the University of Texas-Austin. His principal scholarly work has been teaching, research, and writing about the social and ethical dimensions of business corporations.
Much of his work has been devoted to multidisciplinary approaches employing economics, anthropology, socio-economics, moral development, philosophy, complexity science, and the natural sciences of evolutionary biology, physics, cognitive neuroscience, and evolutionary psychology. Reflecting these interests are his 1995 book Values, Nature, and Culture in the American Corporation; and his 2006 book Corporation, Be Good! The Story of Corporate Social Responsibility.
He coauthored five editions of Business and Society, a market-leading textbook. He was dean of the business schools at the University of Kansas City (now the University of Missouri at Kansas City) and the University of Pittsburgh. He has been president of The Society for Business Ethics, the Society for Advancement of Socio-Economics, and chair of the Social Issues in Management division of The Academy of Management.
Featured Work
OCT 2, 2008 • Article
Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Commentary: The Difference Makers
Sandra Waddock's book "The Difference Makers" tells the stories of nearly two dozen innovators who pioneered the corporate responsibility movement over the past quarter century.
JAN 18, 2007 • Article
Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Commentary: Yes, Virginia, there is a Corporate Social Responsibility
Riffing on the famous 1897 Sun editorial "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus," Frederick argues that the larger purpose of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) advocacy ...