INTRODUCTION

In recent years, the interest in the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has grown among both researchers and entrepreneurs. These activities are often carried out to improve the competitive position. However, it is impossible to make use of the concept of CSR without being involved in cooperation with entities present on the market. The cooperation of stake-holders takes place, for example, through self-regulatory initiatives, such as, the Codes of Good Practice or the Codes of Ethics and as part of the companies' cooperation and dialogue with local environment and customers. Thanks to CSR, companies can, while working with stakeholders, contribute to the reconciliation of economic, social and environmental goals [Energy Regulatory Office 2008]. More often Polish companies from the energy sector engage in CSR activities. Therefore, it seems relevant to look for the answer to the question about the perception of these activities among the entities to which they are addressed, both for pragmatic and cognitive reasons. The study focuses on one of the major groups of recipients – consumers. The aim of this paper is to describe individual consumers' (representatives of households – consumers of electric energy) perception of CSR activities in the power sector in Poland. The realization of the goal was possible thanks to the systematization of CSR activities on the basis of scientific and trade publications and empirical verification of the reception of these activities.