Modern slavery is used to describe forms of coercive labor exploitation that affect more than 40 million persons globally. Such practices are difficult to identify given they exist in the informal economy, and involve vulnerable individuals. Addressing modern slavery by organizations requires awareness of its context and complexities. While corporations have increasingly sought to manage modern slavery risk in their supply chains, their understanding of what modern slavery is and what should be managed remains limited. We argue a key problem with firms’ efforts to manage modern slavery risk is that it is a psychologically distant concept for them. We apply construal level theory to explore how organizations’ psychological distance from modern slavery risk affects their management of risk. We interviewed purchasing executives at 41 global organizations in Australia, Finland, and the U.S and identified four approaches to managing modern slavery risk at different levels of psychological distance. We also identified that conflicts between organizations' approaches to risk and what they identify in their operating environment, precedes important construal shifts that help to improve organizational understanding of labor-related risk. We highlight ways that organizations' understanding of modern slavery risk plays a role in their governance of such risk in supply chains.

中文翻译：

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心理距离在组织应对供应链中现代奴隶制风险中的作用

现代奴隶制被用来描述影响全球超过 4000 万人的强制性劳动剥削形式。鉴于此类做法存在于非正规经济中并且涉及弱势个体，因此难以识别。组织解决现代奴隶制问题需要了解其背景和复杂性。尽管公司越来越多地寻求管理其供应链中的现代奴隶制风险，但他们对现代奴隶制是什么以及应该管理什么的理解仍然有限。我们认为，公司努力管理现代奴隶制风险的一个关键问题是，这对他们来说是一个心理上遥远的概念。我们应用解释水平理论来探索组织与现代奴隶制风险的心理距离如何影响他们的风险管理。我们采访了澳大利亚、芬兰和美国 41 家全球组织的采购主管，确定了四种在不同心理距离水平下管理现代奴隶制风险的方法。我们还发现，组织应对风险的方法与其在运营环境中所识别的内容之间存在冲突，先于重要的解释转变，这有助于提高组织对劳动相关风险的理解。我们强调组织对现代奴隶制风险的理解在供应链中的此类风险治理中发挥作用的方式。风险方法以及他们在运营环境中识别的内容，先于重要的解释转变，有助于提高组织对劳动相关风险的理解。我们强调组织对现代奴隶制风险的理解在供应链中的此类风险治理中发挥作用的方式。风险方法以及他们在运营环境中识别的内容，先于重要的解释转变，有助于提高组织对劳动相关风险的理解。我们强调组织对现代奴隶制风险的理解在供应链中的此类风险治理中发挥作用的方式。