A comparative approach to corporate social performance and corporate financial performance: Moderating effects of conformity tendency in the industry

Abstract

This article attempts to revisit the corporate social performance (CSP)-corporate financial performance (CFP) relationship using a comparative approach. Drawing insights from institutional theory and a strategic management perspective, we take into account tensions between conformity and differentiation by industry and year. Using a sample of 1001 firms and 6006 observations from 1993 to 2015, we test and find data in support of the argument that a firm can expect the highest financial performance (CFP) when its social performance (CSP) is slightly higher than the industry average. We also show that a tendency toward low conformity in an industry has a negative impact on this relationship by weakening conformity pressure. Specifically, a firm belonging to an industry with low conformity tendency has more latitude to deviate its social performance without significantly affecting its financial performance. In sum, we show the importance of using comparative approaches in the CSP-CFP literature.