How Changing Firm Characteristics Can Shape Behaviour: Has Increased Executive Diversity Led to a Decrease in Corporate Aggression?

Abstract

This paper explores whether executives within a firm that have certain attributes tend to lead their corporation to become less tax aggressive. Specifically, we use previous literature regarding tax compliance of individuals (Hasseldine and Hite 2003; Murphy 2004) to see if these would extend to firms. We tried to find if there was evidence to suggest that an increase in age and gender diversity would lead less aggressive tax policies instituted by the firm. Our findings could not show that this was the case and suggest that more work will need to be done to provide support or overturn this theory, especially across other demographic dimensions.