Are narcissistic CEOs more tax aggressive? The moderating role of internal audit committees

Abstract

This paper examines the effect of chief executive officerś (CEOs) narcissistic tendencies regarding corporate tax avoidance. Moreover, it aims to test the moderating effect of two audit committee characteristics, size and gender, on the relationship between narcissism and tax avoidance. By using a Spanish sample of analysis composed of 1303 firm-year observations from the period 2008–2017, the findings indicate support for our hypotheses. Specifically, CEO narcissism is positively related to tax avoidance. Narcissism is considered a personality trait that causes CEOs to implement tax avoidance strategies. However, this discretional behavior is constrained by some audit committee characteristics. Specifically, firms with larger audit committees help to control the consequences of CEO narcissism on tax avoidance. In addition, gender diverse audit committees are more sensitive to firm tax aggressiveness, and they reduce aggressive tax practices promoted by narcissistic CEOs. Therefore, audit committee effectiveness is critical in monitoring managerial decisions related to tax avoidance.