Accountability: En studie av hur omfattande omgivningens krav är på ett företags ansvar i tid och rum vid en etisk skandal

Sammanfattning: Internet and media have led to companies' operations becoming more visible and transparent to the public during the 21st century. Several notable corporate scandals have led to society placing greater demands on businesses to assume more accountability for their actions. This study aims to examine and develop existing research regarding accountability, by adding dimensions of time and space. More specifically, the study examines the extent to which stakeholders hold corporations accountable after the revelation of an ethical corporate scandal, through a qualitative case study on a pending lawsuit against the Swedish corporation Boliden. Our theory is based on John Roberts' (1991) research presented in the article "The Possibilities of Accountability" and Martin Messner's (2009) research presented in the article "The Limits of Accountability". We have developed a four-field model that discusses the extent to which stakeholders hold corporations accountable in time and space regarding two different forms of accountability; hierarchical and social. Our results show that demands for hierarchical accountability are often weaker in less developed countries and that the demands decrease with time due to statutes of limitation. Demands for social accountability increase with the proximity to those affected and with time as society's expectations on companies to assume more responsibility is increasing. Thus we conclude that the extent to which stakeholders hold corporations accountable depend on time and space.