Disentangling the Knot

Abstract

The objective of this study is to reach a deeper understanding of the nature of the motivations behind social practices used by firms. The motivation-mix model is a proposal that attempts to classify the different reasons that may motivate the use of each practice. The article proposes that this motivation-mix can be examined as intrafirm, indicating a particular combination for each social practice within each firm, at a given moment. The article argues that the aggregate of motivation-mixes for all social practices in use by the company at a certain point in time establishes the motivation position for the company as a whole. The author applies the concept of motivation-mix to business community involvement (BCI) practices as an illustration.