Fulfillment Of Corporate Social Responsibility Research Articles

The Bidirectional Relationship between Digital Transformation and Corporate Social Responsibility: A Legitimacy Perspective

The pursuit of efficiency or legitimacy is an important choice facing corporate sustainability, especially in uncertain environments. Digital transformation contributes to corporate efficiency, while fulfilling corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a non-market-based strategy for companies seeking legitimacy. However, sustainability research remains unclear about the link between digital transformation and CSR and the mechanisms behind it. To fill this research gap, we incorporate economic policy uncertainty (EPU) into our analytical framework and elucidate the theoretical mechanism of the simultaneous bidirectional relationship between digital transformation and CSR from the perspective of organizational legitimacy. We construct a simultaneous equation model and analyze a sample of 468 Chinese listed companies collected from 2011 to 2018 using the three-stage least squares method. Our findings reveal a mutually reinforcing bidirectional relationship between digital transformation and CSR. Furthermore, we discover that EPU weakens the facilitating influence of digital transformation on CSR but strengthens the positive impact of CSR on digital transformation. Our conclusions suggest that companies taking on more CSR in digital transformation contexts can help achieve the organic unity of efficiency and legitimacy for sustainable development, but uncertainty can undermine this positive interaction.

Research on the mechanisms of the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises for carbon emissions reduction

With the rapid development of digital technologies, digital transformation has emerged as a crucial strategy to increase competitiveness and lower carbon emissions. To explore the impact and mechanisms of manufacturing enterprises' digital transformation on reducing their carbon emissions, this study uses data from A-share listed manufacturing enterprises on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges from 2010 to 2019. Employing fixed-effect and mediation models, the empirical analyses yield the following results: (1) Digital transformation positively influences carbon emissions reduction in manufacturing enterprises. (2) The fulfillment of corporate social responsibility and advancement in technological innovation mediate the relationship between digital transformation and carbon emissions reduction. (3) Both internal (redundant resources) and external (government support) factors affect the impact of digital transformation on carbon emissions. Reducing redundant resources and strengthening government support amplify the positive effect of digital transformation, while redundant resources negatively regulate the initial phase of the impact path of “digital transformation - technological innovation–carbon emissions intensity”. (4) Heterogeneity results reveal that digital transformation plays a more significant role in carbon emission reduction for heavy-polluting enterprises and China's central region. Hence, proactive digital transformation promotion is essential for enterprises aiming to achieve the “dual-carbon” goal, with optimization of internal resource integration and government-appropriate support.

Influence Mechanism between Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Sustainability: Empirical Evidence from China

With the increasing public attention being paid to corporate social responsibility and global advocacy of sustainable development, corporate governance issues centered on corporate social responsibility, especially the relationship between corporate social responsibility and financial sustainability, are important topics of concern for managers. By taking companies listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share indices between 2010 and 2020 in China as samples, this study investigated the effect and mechanism of corporate social responsibility implementation on financial sustainability, examined the intermediate roles of agency cost and green innovation on this effect, and explored the heterogeneity in different contexts. The results indicated that: (1) implementing corporate social responsibility has significantly promoted financial sustainability, and fulfilling responsibilities to shareholders showed the most significant effect; (2) active pursuit of corporate social responsibility objectives can alleviate corporate agency conflicts, increase green innovation, and thus promote corporate financial sustainability; and (3) the positive impact of implementing corporate social responsibility on financial sustainability is more significant in non-state-owned enterprises and non-heavily polluting enterprises. This study revealed the specific effect of fulfilling corporate responsibility objectives for different stakeholders on financial sustainability, confirmed the mediating role of agency cost and green innovation on this effect, and discussed the intensity of the impact of fulfilling corporate social responsibility objectives on financial sustainability in different contexts. This study enhances the understanding of the effect and mechanism of fulfilling corporate social responsibility obligations on financial sustainability, which can guide the advancement of future theory-building in corporate governance.

Why are enterprises willing to assume social responsibility? Answers from the perspective of innovation

Previous studies have examined the innovation effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) by measuring R&D investment or patent output, and there are still different opinions. Using the data of Chinese listed companies, we analyse the influence of CSR on innovation and its mechanism. We find that the active fulfillment of CSR is beneficial to the improvement of the scale and quality of innovation. The mechanism test shows that undertaking more CSR enables enterprises to obtain more financial subsidies, which promotes the improvement of innovation scale and quality. In addition, media attention reinforces the innovative effect of CSR. Heterogeneity research shows that for non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs) and enterprises located in areas with imperfect market mechanisms, actively assuming CSR is conducive to improving innovation performance. However, for SOEs and enterprises located in areas with mature market mechanisms, the innovative effect of CSR is not significant.

Mapping stakeholders' relationships management in fulfilling corporate social responsibility: A study of China's construction industry.

Businesses today face a strong call for implementing corporate social responsibilities (CSR) subject to stakeholders' multiple expectations on the creation of long-term value. However, a vast majority of companies have struggled with the challenge of stakeholder management in CSR fulfillment, giving rise to a waste of enterprise resources. This study aims to map out stakeholders' relationships in CSR fulfillment to underscore stakeholder management. 253 CSR reports published by Chinese listed construction companies from 2010 to 2021 were collected and analyzed to map the stakeholders' relationships. The results show that construction companies usually stress the importance of corporate governance and workers interest, followed by construction quality and environmental preservation in implementing CSR. They adopt three types of stakeholder management approaches: coercive, cooperative, and coordinated approaches. The study presents the latest effort in managing stakeholders' relationships in the domain of CSR research. It favors construction firms to reconsider CSR activities from the stakeholder management perspective.

Does national culture influence corporate social responsibility on firm performance?

In recent years, the influence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on firm performance has received increasing attention, with academic research deepening in this field. This study introduces national culture as a moderating variable and explores the relationship between national culture, CSR, and firm performance to determine the role of national culture in the impact of CSR on firm performance. Data of listed companies from 15 different countries, between 2011 and 2020, were collected for empirical analysis. Comprehensive environmental, social and governance (ESG) score was used to measure the degree of CSR fulfillment. The results reveal that CSR hinders firm performance. In terms of national culture, power distance index, and uncertainty avoidance have a negative relationship with firm performance, while individualism has a positive impact. Conversely, power distance index can enhance the negative correlation between CSR and firm performance. This study suggests that governments should appropriately intervene in the implementation of CSR and take the initiative to foster a national cultural climate of individualism and democracy.

Corporate social responsibility and green supply chain efficiency: conditioning effects based on CEO narcissism

Accelerating the construction of the green supply chain system and improving the efficiency of the green supply chain is the key to promoting the high-quality development of enterprises. In view of this, based on stakeholder theory, higher order theory and expectancy theory, this study focuses on the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on corporate green supply chain efficiency (GSCE) and the moderating role of chief executive officer (CEO) narcissism. A regression analysis of the observed sample reveals that CSR significantly enhances GSCE. Further decomposing CSR into internal CSR and external CSR to reveal the impact of different types of CSR on GSCE, we find that internal CSR fulfillment has a significant positive impact on GSCE, and this relationship is strengthened when CEOs are narcissistic. Furthermore, external CSR has a significant negative impact on GSCE, and this relationship is also strengthened by CEO narcissism. The main contribution of this paper is to study the relationship between CSR and green supply chain efficiency, decompose CSR into internal and external CSR, enrich the research on the intrinsic mechanism of value creation of CSR. It also enriches the research in the context of CSR from the perspective of CEO personality traits, providing new ideas and suggestions for manager selection and corporate greening governance in practice.

Implementasi SDGS’S dan Trihita Karana dalam Pemenuhan Tanggungjawab Sosial Perusahaan Hotel Berbintang di Badung

This research aims to analyze the understanding and implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Tri Hita Karana (THK) in fulfilling corporate social responsibility at 5 star hotels in Badung Regency, Bali, namely Anantara Uluwatu Bali Resort, Jumana Bali Ungasan Resort, and also Hilton Bali Resorts. The research method uses a qualitative approach by collecting data through interviews, observation and documentation from Human Resources who are tasked with planning and implementing CSR programs in the company. The results of the research show that, for the SDGs program of the three 5 star hotels studied, all of them do not understand the SDGs, but indirectly it turns out that some of their CSR activities have been included in the 17 SDGs indicators, but their implementation has not been optimal due to a lack of knowledge and information about the program. these SDGs. And for the THK program itself, it was found that the three hotels had understood and implemented this program, this was because they were used to implementing CSR programs related to THK, especially in Bali, where THK is one of the local wisdom programs from Bali and there is also the THK Bali Foundation..

Enhancing Strategic CSR in Chinese Leading Enterprises: The Role of Government Compensation and a Multi-Phase Portfolio Model

Water environment governance of large rivers is an essential measurement of ecological protection in China. The effectiveness of governance depends highly on the fulfillment of strategic CSR (corporate social responsibility) of Chinese leading enterprises. However, the fulfillment of strategic CSR often brings economic burden to the leading enterprises and needs government compensation support. Therefore, this paper explores the impact of government compensation on the fulfillment of strategic CSR of Chinese leading enterprises by constructing a multi-stage portfolio model. The main results show that (1) the prerequisite for leading enterprises to fulfill strategic CSR is sufficient profits; (2) the increase in government compensation can significantly affect the proportion of strategic CSR fulfillment of leading enterprises; (3) only when the portfolio considers both strategic CSR and project benefits, can the leading enterprises obtain the highest economic returns and better fulfill strategic CSR. The results can provide policy reference for the government to stimulate the fulfillment of leading enterprises’ strategic CSR and also give suggestions for the leading enterprises to alleviate the economic pressure brought by fulfilling strategic CSR.

Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Innovation Performance: An Empirical Study

This study is dedicated to exploring the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and innovation performance, especially in the context of intense competition and society's pursuit of high quality development, where corporate innovation has become a key factor in maintaining competitiveness and realizing sustainable development. The core of the study is to understand the role of mission statement in corporate culture and how it affects long-term corporate strategy and innovation performance. In terms of theoretical framework, this study relies on strategic management theory, stakeholder theory, corporate culture theory and resource dependence theory to construct a mediation model of "mission statement-Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)-innovation performance", and adopts the "words-actions-report" model. Using the logical framework of "words—actions—report", we analyze how the guiding principles of mission statement can promote innovation results by motivating enterprises to fulfill their social responsibility and gain the support of stakeholders. By empirically analyzing data from 1,297 A-share listed companies that have been established for more than ten years between 2015 and 2019, this study finds that the focus on stakeholders in the mission statement, especially the focus on customers, employees, and suppliers, can significantly improve innovation performance by enhancing the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility. At the same time, no significant relationship was observed for the impact of this focus on shareholders and society, suggesting that firms may differ in the consistency of their words and actions. Overall, this study brings a new perspective to the field of mission statement research and fills the gap in previous research on the relationship between mission statement and non-financial performance, especially innovation performance. The results of this study have important implications for subsequent research and practice, providing suggestions on how to effectively incentivize and promote corporate innovation through mission statement management and social responsibility activities to achieve long-term business performance improvement.

What drives the fulfillment of social responsibility among international construction contractors? Stakeholder perspective

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is important for the growth of the construction industry; hence, the factors that influence construction contractors to implement CSR should be understood. Using government supervision as a moderator and CSR strategy as a mediating variable, the influence of stakeholders on the fulfillment of CSR by international construction contractors (ICCs) was explored in this study. ICC managers’ completed online questionnaires, and partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) were used to analyze the survey data. The results revealed that CSR strategies are influenced by customer expectations, partners expectations, and employee participation in CSR. Local community pressure had no direct effect on CSR strategies, and government supervision had a positive moderating effect on the relationship between customer expectations and CSR strategies. The findings of this study allow policymakers and practitioners to understand the elements driving CSR implementation and establish a win-win situation for society, stakeholders, and corporations.

The Relationship between Social Responsibility and Brand Value of Chinese Food and Beverage Enterprises in the Context of High-Quality Development

This article constructs a corporate social responsibility indicator system and conducts regression analysis on the relationship between food and beverage enterprises fulfilling social responsibility and enhancing brand value. Research has found that food and beverage companies have a significant positive impact on brand value enhancement when fulfilling social responsibilities to shareholders, suppliers, and governments; The fulfillment of social responsibility towards employees, creditors, and consumers does not have a significant impact on brand value enhancement; The overall completion of social responsibility by food and beverage enterprises has a significant positive impact on enhancing brand value. Among them, the feedback of employees, creditors, and consumers on the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility is not easy to fully measure, and they belong to anonymous beneficiaries, whose impact on brand value also shows a hidden nature. The social responsibilities undertaken by different types of enterprises vary greatly. Therefore, this article introduces the moderating variable of enterprise type to conduct heterogeneity analysis and verify that enterprise type plays a positive promoting role in the relationship between food and beverage enterprises fulfilling social responsibility and enhancing brand value.

Steady-state analysis of social responsibility strategy of coal power enterprises from the perspective of game theory

Under the dual-carbon background, coal power enterprises are required to actively fulfill their social responsibility in order to achieve energy saving and emission reduction as soon as possible. Considering the uncertainty of the external environment and the potential conflict of interest of the key stakeholders in the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility, coal power enterprises are not always positive in fulfilling their social responsibility. This paper combines prospect theory and mental account theory with evolutionary game to construct an evolutionary game model involving coal power enterprises, government regulators and the public to study the social responsibility behavior of coal power enterprises. The results of the study show that: (1) The social responsibility behavior of coal power enterprises under the dual-carbon background is a typical cost-driven behavior, and coal power enterprises are more sensitive to costs compared to benefits. (2) The formulation of regulatory policies by government regulators largely depends on the decision inertia of coal power enterprises, and the formulation of regulatory policies by government regulators will also affect the decision inertia of coal power enterprises. (3) The public's strategic choices do not entirely depend on the strategic choices of coal and power enterprises and government regulators, and are more closely related to the setting of the reference point. (4) In addition to the realistic factors, the subjective factors of decision makers are also important factors affecting the fulfillment of social responsibility of coal and power enterprises. Based on the results of the study, this paper proposes countermeasures to enhance the internal driving force of coal power enterprises to fulfill their social responsibility behaviors from the aspects of establishing a communication mechanism, improving the reward and punishment system, and strengthening risk management.

CEO Early-Life Disaster Experience and Tax Avoidance: Chinese Evidence

Synopsis The research problem This study examines the impact of chief executive officers (CEOs)’ early-life disaster experiences on corporate tax-avoidance behaviors and explores the mechanisms through which these experiences influence these behaviors. We use the Great Chinese Famine of 1959–1961 (hereafter the Great Famine) as an indicator of early-life disaster experience. Motivation or theoretical reasoning Our study is motivated by the following reasons. First, like many major economies worldwide, corporate income tax is an important source of tax revenue in China. The financial impact of corporate income tax on a country’s economy is enormous. Second, the Great Famine was one of the most destructive natural disasters in human history, which is likely to have a lifelong influence on CEOs who lived through the disaster as children and teenagers. Third, corporate tax strategy is a significant accounting, financing, and managerial behavior of firms that is influenced by multiple internal and external factors. However, there are limited findings on the impact of CEOs’ early-life disaster experience on corporate tax decisions. The consequences of this impact remain unclear. The test hypotheses We hypothesize that CEOs’ early-life famine experience mitigates corporate tax aggressiveness. We also consider the alternative hypothesis that CEOs’ early-life famine experience increases corporate tax aggressiveness. Target population Our sample includes Chinese listed firms from 2013 to 2020 led by CEOs who have or who do not have early-life disaster experiences. Adopted methodology We employed ordinary least square regressions in our analyses. Analyses Since the Great Famine occurred between 1959 and 1961, we considered CEOs to have experienced famine if they were born prior to or in the year 1961, in a province affected by the Great Famine (e.g., Hu et al. , 2020 ; Zhang , 2017 ). We identified a province as significantly affected by famine if its abnormal death rate was greater than the median abnormal death ratio of all Chinese provinces during the period of famine. Following Dyreng et al. ( 2010 ), Hoi et al. ( 2013 ), Koester et al. ( 2017 ), and Rego & Wilson ( 2012 ), we used effective tax rate as the first proxy of tax avoidance for a firm. Additionally, in line with Desai & Dharmapala ( 2006 ) and Hoi et al. ( 2013 ), we used the discretionary book-tax differences of firms as an alternative proxy to measure corporate tax avoidance. Findings The findings indicate that CEOs who experienced the Great Famine at a young age significantly reduced their firms’ tax-avoidance efforts. Furthermore, the negative association between CEOs’ early-life famine experiences and corporate tax-avoidance behaviors is more pronounced for companies with higher independent director ratios. These negative associations appear more obvious for firms with CEOs who experienced famine early in life and for females. The economic mechanism of the findings demonstrate that CEOs’ famine experiences make them more conservative in investing in innovative projects; they are more likely to fulfill corporate social responsibility and work in state-owned enterprises. Furthermore, firms with lower innovation expenditure, effective corporate social performance, and government ownership are less likely to display tax-avoidance behaviors.

Peran Program Karawang Berseri dalam Upaya Pemberdayaan Masyarakat, Pencegahan dan Penanganan Kekerasan Terhadap Perempuan dan Anak

The increased recognition of the significance of sustainable development has led business communities in Indonesia to fulfill Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). One example is the implementation of a corporate social responsibility program by PT Pertamina EP Zone 7 Tambun Field which focuses on efforts to eradicate violence against women and children in Karawang, known as "Karawang Berseri" or "Karawang Free from Violence, Growing and Independent". This research will analyze the implementation of the Karawang Berseri program from the perspective of community empowerment, starting from planning, implementation, and ultimately generating impacts and benefits for the community, especially in Karawang Kulon Sub-District. This research uses a qualitative approach to literature sources related to the program. The Karawang Berseri Program has had a positive impact not only in dealing with the problem of violence against women and children, but also in seeking program sustainability by creating an independent source of financing from hydroponic cultivation activities and joint economic initiatives. The effectiveness of the program is also supported by innovations through the program such as redesigning the case-handling system, standardization of networking service procedure, creation of a Desa Berseri Module, and the Gender School Discussion Series. Apart from that, participation from the local community is the main key in the sustainable success of the Karawang Berseri program because they are involved as beneficiaries and implementers of activities, so they are independently motivated. The achievements of the Karawang Berseri program have proven a successful and sustainable model of community empowerment in overcoming the problem of violence against women and children.

Altruistic motivation or instrumental motivation: The spatial spillover effect of corporate social responsibility on corporate green innovation.

In recent years, the concept of corporate social responsibility has gained more attention from investors, and green innovation has become a key factor in China's economic growth. Despite this, regional disparities still remain, and the impact of corporate social responsibility on green innovation in local and surrounding areas is worth exploring. This article uses a Spatial Durbin Model to analyze the spatial spillover effect and mechanism of corporate social responsibility on green innovation of A-share listed companies in China from 2010 to 2020. The results show that corporate social responsibility behavior motivated by "tools" has a negative effect on local enterprises' green innovation, while also having a negative spillover effect on surrounding areas, thus affecting the spatial pattern of green innovation. Further research suggests that fulfilling corporate social responsibility can attract investors, alleviate financing constraints, and change corporate resource investment strategies, thus promoting cross-regional resource flow and enhancing green innovation. The results of this study remain consistent when the matrix and variables are changed. This article provides new insights into corporate social responsibility and green innovation, and offers policy recommendations to improve green innovation in enterprises.

Does local government debt affect corporate social responsibility? Evidence from China

We examine the influence of local government debt on local firms' corporate social responsibility (CSR). Using a sample of Chinese public companies, we find that local government debt is negatively associated with local firms' CSR performance, indicating that government debt financing behaviour dampens firms' CSR engagement. Furthermore, the adverse influence of local government debt on CSR is particularly evident for non-state-owned enterprises and low-leverage firms. This article makes a contribution to CSR research by furnishing empirical evidence about the nexus between government debt and firms' CSR performance. Our study indicates that a company conditions social responsibility decisions on the availability of external financing resources, and local governments should be aware that excessive government debt generates an adverse impact on firms’ CSR fulfillment. This study is the first to explore the link between government debt and CSR, and the results help enrich our understanding of the determinants of CSR and the consequences of local government debt.

Business model innovation driven by corporate social responsibility in a digital innovation ecosystem: Evidence from Chinese manufacturers

AbstractThis study focuses on examining the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) fulfillment and business model innovation (BMI) in the context of China's business environment. The research utilizes data from 1028 manufacturing firms in China and specifically explores the impact of CSR fulfillment on BMI within the digital innovation ecosystem. The findings indicate that both internal CSR (ICSR) and external CSR (ECSR) have a significant positive influence on BMI, with ECSR having a stronger effect. Additionally, the study reveals that value co‐creation (VCC) plays a mediating role in strengthening the relationship between CSR fulfillment and BMI. Furthermore, the study highlights that the positive association between CSR fulfillment and BMI is more prominent in firms with higher digital platform capability (DPC). Overall, this research provides valuable insights for manufacturers seeking to achieve BMI and sustainable development.

Appointment-Based CEO Connectedness and Employee Compensation: Empirical Evidence from China

Employee compensation is an often-neglected but essential part of corporate social responsibility which emphasizes caring for the needs of all stakeholders, including employees. In order to address pressure from stakeholders to strengthen prosocial acts, CEOs might prefer to raise employee compensation. However, other top executives are often reluctant to do so due to the concern that it reduces firm profits. In this paper, we propose that appointment-based CEO connectedness (ABCC) has a positive effect on employee compensation as it facilitates CEOs gaining support from the top management team to raise employee compensation. We employ multivariate linear regression as our research approach and find supportive evidence using data from Chinese listed firms during 2011–2020. Our results are robust to endogeneity concerns and survive an array of robustness checks. Heterogeneity tests show that this impact is stronger for firms facing less market competition and firms with low financial constraints. We further show that greater ABCC is associated with higher CSR scores of non-shareholders responsibility dimensions. Overall, our study suggests ABCC is conducive to the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility towards non-shareholders.

Does environmental governance matter to the relationship between digital transformation and high-quality development? Evidence from manufacturing sector in China.

Environmental governance has emerged as a crucial tactic to support the sustainable development of human civilization in light of the serious environmental issues. Meanwhile, during the process of promoting the high-quality development of China's economy, digital transformation plays a significant role in improving the total factor productivity of the manufacturing sector. We seek to find out whether urban environmental governance has an impact on micro-enterprises, and therefore, the study selects the data of A-share listed manufacturing companies from 2012 to 2020 to study the effect of digital transformation on the total factor productivity of the manufacturing industry and how the effect of environmental governance affects the relationship between digital transformation and total factor productivity. The results unveil that digital transformation can significantly contribute to the total factor productivity of the manufacturing industry. At the same time, digital transformation can promote the high-quality development of enterprises by promoting the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility. Additionally, it is shown that poor environmental governance will weaken the promoting effect of digital transformation on total factor productivity. Furthermore, in state-owned companies and non-heavy polluting industries, environmental governance has a more significant moderating influence on digital transformation and total factor productivity. This study enriches the literature on urban environmental governance and micro-enterprise development, and they support the notion that, from the standpoints of environmental protection and economic development, the level of environmental governance should be continuously optimized and the development of ecological civilization should be strengthened.