Este artigo se dedica a levantar hipóteses sobre a responsabilidade social empresarial no Brasil. Para tanto, vale-se de duas vertentes distintas da literatura sobre comportamento das empresas, uma que procura definir os fatores, não apenas estratégicos, mas também institucionais, da responsabilidade social empresarial, e outra, conhecida como abordagem das “variedades de capitalismo”, que se empenha em descrever o impacto das diferentes instituições (normas e práticas) características do capitalismo de cada país sobre a atuação das empresas. Foram elaboradas, como resultado, seis hipóteses sobre a conduta socialmente responsável das empresas no Brasil.Abstract: The paper raises hypotheses regarding corporate social responsibility in Brazil. It draws on two distinct branches of the literature concerning the behavior of firms, one that seeks to determine both the strategic and institutional factors conditioning firms’ social performance and other, known as the “varieties of capitalism” approach, describing the impact of different institutions (norms and practices) featured by national capitalisms on firms’ strategies. As a result, six hypotheses about the social performance of enterprises in Brasil are formulated. Abstract: The paper raises hypotheses regarding corporate social responsibility in Brazil. It draws on two distinct branches of the literature concerning the behavior of firms, one that seeks to determine both the strategic and institutional factors conditioning firms’ social performance and other, known as the “varieties of capitalism” approach, describing the impact of different institutions (norms and practices) featured by national capitalisms on firms’ strategies. As a result, six hypotheses about the social performance of enterprises in Brasil are formulated.