Abstract
This study examines the impact of top management team (TMT) media exposure on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the moderating effect of TMT characteristics based on the upper echelons theory and stakeholder theory. Based on the observations of 5,352 firms between 2010 and 2019, multiple regression analysis is conducted to empirically test whether TMT media exposure can promote CSR. TMT media exposure is further divided into paper media and online media to reveal the impact of different types of TMT media exposure on CSR. Some robustness tests are also conducted to strengthen the regression results. The results found that a high level of TMT media exposure promotes social responsibility. In addition, the TMT power and political connections negatively moderate the relationship between TMT media exposure and CSR. The main contribution of this study is to develop a TMT media exposure model to assess the impact of TMT media exposure on CSR, providing a theoretical contribution to the existing literature and enriching the research in the CSR context from the perspective of the TMT characteristic moderating role.
Highlights
In recent years, corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in China has attracted increasing attention (Yin and Quazi, 2018)
From the perspective of media attention to top management team (TMT), this study finds that an increase in such attention may enhance the strength of TMT voices in their companies, improve the effectiveness of external supervision, and have a positive impact on CSR
The empirical results show that TMT media exposure can promote CSR
Summary
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in China has attracted increasing attention (Yin and Quazi, 2018). According to the CSR rating report of Rankings Global (RKS) in 2019, the Chinese A-share companies listed in the CSR information disclosure report increased by 129% from 2009 to 2018, with an average of 48 new companies each year. In view of the increasingly important position of social responsibility investment in corporate operation and management and the importance of CSR for corporate sustainable development, understanding the driving of CSR has become an important research field in corporate finance literature. According to upper echelons theory (Hambrick and Mason, 1984), corporate strategic decisionmaking is influenced by the characteristics of top management teams (TMTs); CSR should be regarded as a type of strategic decision which can be decided by TMTs. Scholars have studied demographic variables from the perspective of internal control, such as gender, age, and educational background (Sánchez et al, 2017).
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