Social Networks, Social Responsibility, and Sustainable Development of Chinese Corporations in Africa

Abstract

Based on the questionnaire data and the qualitative data obtained in two field surveys in Zimbabwe in 2018 and 2019, this study examined local people’s attitudes towards Chinese corporations. Focusing on locals’ impressions of Chinese corporations and their willingness to support the sustainable development of Chinese corporations as dependent variables, and using demographic statistics, social networks, and social responsibility as independent variables, we applied multiple linear regression analysis to explore the effect of Chinese corporations’ social networks and social responsibility on their sustainability. The findings showed that social networks overall help to enhance locals’ impressions of Chinese corporations, but social networks have no positive impact on local communities’ willingness to support more Chinese corporations. In contrast, corporate social responsibility clearly has a much greater impact on the capability of the corporation to gain support from local communities for its sustainable development. This study speaks to the need for a scholarly investigation of China–Africa links as a global hotspot issue and provides a reference value for Chinese or other corporations for how to handle the relationship with local communities.