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The Good Samaritan and/or Strategic Actor? Assessing the motivations of BEL20 companies to engage in philanthropic giving

Degrave, Kato LU (2026) MIDM19 20261
Department of Human Geography
LUMID International Master programme in applied International Development and Management
Abstract
Public funding budgets for international development are sinking and the need for other types of funding such as corporate philanthropy are therefore rising. This study examines the motivations of Belgian BEL20 companies to engage in corporate philanthropy for national and international development. Using a combination of quantitative thematic content analysis on CSR documents and follow-up interviews with people at the companies, the study assesses the motivations through the legitimacy theory and strategic philanthropy. Results show that companies are largely motivated by the arguments of the legitimacy theory and strategic philanthropy, however overlapping and non-exclusive. Namely, the companies are motivated to engage in philanthropy... (More)
Public funding budgets for international development are sinking and the need for other types of funding such as corporate philanthropy are therefore rising. This study examines the motivations of Belgian BEL20 companies to engage in corporate philanthropy for national and international development. Using a combination of quantitative thematic content analysis on CSR documents and follow-up interviews with people at the companies, the study assesses the motivations through the legitimacy theory and strategic philanthropy. Results show that companies are largely motivated by the arguments of the legitimacy theory and strategic philanthropy, however overlapping and non-exclusive. Namely, the companies are motivated to engage in philanthropy to legitimize themselves towards the general public, while at the same time aiming to strategically use their philanthropy to increase competitiveness and benefit from it themselves. Hence, these findings highlight that the motivations of Belgian BEL20 companies are more complex and intertwined than previous research suggested. (Less)
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author
Degrave, Kato LU
supervisor
organization
course
MIDM19 20261
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
language
English
id
9226086
date added to LUP
2026-06-30 15:17:34
date last changed
2026-06-30 15:17:34
@misc{9226086,
  abstract     = {{Public funding budgets for international development are sinking and the need for other types of funding such as corporate philanthropy are therefore rising. This study examines the motivations of Belgian BEL20 companies to engage in corporate philanthropy for national and international development. Using a combination of quantitative thematic content analysis on CSR documents and follow-up interviews with people at the companies, the study assesses the motivations through the legitimacy theory and strategic philanthropy. Results show that companies are largely motivated by the arguments of the legitimacy theory and strategic philanthropy, however overlapping and non-exclusive. Namely, the companies are motivated to engage in philanthropy to legitimize themselves towards the general public, while at the same time aiming to strategically use their philanthropy to increase competitiveness and benefit from it themselves. Hence, these findings highlight that the motivations of Belgian BEL20 companies are more complex and intertwined than previous research suggested.}},
  author       = {{Degrave, Kato}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{The Good Samaritan and/or Strategic Actor? Assessing the motivations of BEL20 companies to engage in philanthropic giving}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}