Corporate social responsibility and dividend policy: a strategic choice in family firms

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Fayyaz Sheikh ◽  
Aamir Inam Bhutta ◽  
Bareera Rehman ◽  
Muhammad Bazil ◽  
Ali Hassan

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine whether corporate social responsibility (CSR) affects dividend policy (the propensity to pay dividends as well as the dividend payout ratio) and what role family ownership plays in this regard in an emerging market.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a sample of 1,480 observations from Pakistan for the period 2010–2016 and accounts for Hackman self-selection bias and endogeneity issues using a robust regression analysis. CSR activity is measured by CSR score developed through a content analysis of firms' annual reports.FindingsThe study finds that the greater number of CSR activities increases the propensity to pay dividends, but reduces the dividend payout in dividend-paying firms. On the other hand, in family firms, the greater number CSR activities decreases the propensity to pay dividends, but increases the dividend payout in dividend-paying firms. The findings hold for a series of robustness and sensitivity checks, for example, alternative measures, specifications and estimators.Practical implicationsA trade-off between firms' CSR activities and dividend policy needs to be the point of concern for investors, minority shareholders and policy makers. The role of the non-executive and independent directors becomes more important, especially in the family firms where family members sitting on the boards may drive CSR activities in their own interests opportunistically. The potential opportunistic behaviour of family members warrants the need for policy reform initiatives to strengthen the protection of other stakeholders' interests.Originality/valueThe study highlights that family owners' efforts to preserve their socio-emotional wealth in family firms affect the relationship between CSR activities and dividend policy. Further, the relationship between CSR and dividend policy in emerging markets is different from developed markets. This study simultaneously focuses on both the propensity to pay dividends and the amount of dividend payment and documents that the implications of CSR are different for them.

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Zeng

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities in Canadian family firms. Design/methodology/approach This paper is an empirical work using a sample of Canadian listed companies for eight years between 2010 and 2017. Findings Relying on five measures for CSR, this paper finds that, compared with other listed firms, family listed firms have a higher level of CSR engagement. Further tests show that family-named family firms engage in more CSR activities; family firms with second largest shareholders engage in more CSR activities; and family firms affiliated with large business groups engage in more CSR activities. However, family firms whose family members are CEOs, presidents or board chairpersons engage in less CSR engagement. Originality/value This paper contributes to the current CSR literature by highlighting the importance of family firm heterogeneity in shaping a firm’s CSR practices. It focuses on four characteristics of Canadian family firms that are potentially connected to CSR, namely, family-named family firms; family firms with family members being CEOs, presidents or chairpersons; family firms with second largest shareholders and family firms affiliated with large business groups.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahnoor Zahid ◽  
Hina Naeem ◽  
Iqra Aftab ◽  
Sajawal Ali Mughal

Purpose The purpose of this study is to scrutinize the effect of corporate social responsibility activities (CSRA) of the firm on its financial performance (FP) and analyze the mediating role of innovation and competitive advantage (CA) in the relationship between CSRA and FP in the manufacturing sector of an emerging country, i.e. Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach Data has been collected through an electronic structured questionnaire from 300 middle-level and top-level managers by surveying different manufacturing firms of Gujranwala, Pakistan. The study’s hypotheses have been checked by analyzing the reliability and validity of data and applying confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling through statistical package for the social sciences and analysis of moment structures. Findings Outcomes of this study supported the hypothesized model. It has been found that the CSRA plays a significant positive role in determining the FP of the firm. Furthermore, the CA and innovation have been proved as significant mediators between CSRA and FP. Originality/value The first time examining the intermediation of innovation and CA in the relationship between CSRA and FP is the primary input of this study to the literature. Practically, this study’s findings will help strategy makers of manufacturing firms in emerging countries develop better strategies for implementing CSRA, enhancing innovation, seeking CA and improving FP.


2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olfa Ben Salah ◽  
Anis Ben Amar

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to focus on the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on dividend policy in the French context. In addition, the authors seek to determine if the individual components of CSR influence dividend policy. Design/methodology/approach This study uses panel data methodology for a sample of French non-financial firms between 2008 and 2018. Generalized least squares method is used to estimate the models. Findings Using panel data methodology for a sample of 825 observations for the period 2008–2018, this study finds a positive impact of CSR practices on dividend policy. The authors also find that individual components of CSR positively influence dividend policy. To check the robustness of the results, this study further runs a sensitivity tests, including an alternative measure of dividend policy, all of which confirm the findings. Practical implications This study has examined the impact of CSR on dividend policy in France and may have implications for regulatory, investors, analysts and academics. First, the involvement in CSR best practices encourages companies to pay more dividends to investors. Therefore, investors are more motivated to invest in socially responsible firms than socially irresponsible firms. Second, given the association of CSR with the quality of accounting information and financial markets, regulators should step up recommendations relating to the different societal dimensions of CSR. Originality/value While little previous work has focused on the causal link between CSR and dividend policy, this research is the first, to the authors’ knowledge, to have looked at the impact of CSR on dividend policy in France.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jasmine Alam ◽  
Mustapha Ibn Boamah ◽  
Yuheng Liu

Purpose This study aims to investigate the relationship between a commercial bank’s micro-loaning activity and overall performance over a 10-year period. Design/methodology/approach Quarterly data was obtained from the Wind Database, China Minsheng Banks’s official annual reports and annual corporate social responsibility reports from 2009 to 2019, to test the linear relationship between micro-loan activities and the overall financial performance of the bank. Findings The results of this study empirically demonstrate that there is a positive relationship between increases in micro-loaning activity and the overall performance of the bank. Some key recommendations for the sector are shared in the conclusion of this paper. Originality/value In the financial sector, some corporate social responsibility activities focus on the issuance of micro-loans. It is unclear, however, if this has also served as a means to increase profitability and overall performance for such institutions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 244-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Zeng

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and tax avoidance as well as how CSR and country-level governance interplay in affecting tax avoidance in an international setting. Design/methodology/approach This paper is an empirical work using listed companies from 35 countries and relying on several proxies for corporate tax avoidance activities including the difference between the statutory tax rate and the annual effective tax rate, the book-tax difference and the residual book-tax difference. Findings This study finds strong evidence that CSR is positively related to tax avoidance. It also finds that in countries with weak country-level governance, firms with higher CSR scores engage in less tax avoidance, implying that CSR and country-level governance are substitutes. Originality/value This paper is the first study that examines the relationship between CSR and tax avoidance in an international setting with different legal and institutional environment.


2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (11) ◽  
pp. 26-28

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings That whilst there are similarities between Strategic Quality Management (SQM) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), one is not dependent on the other. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Haruna Babatunde Jaiyeoba ◽  
Shahoriyer Hossain ◽  
Hamzah Mohd Salleh ◽  
Amal A.M. Elgharbawy

Purpose This paper aims to intend to ascertain whether corporate social responsibility (CSR) can serve as an effective promotional tool for the Malaysian halal certified companies in the era of Covid-19 pandemic. Starting from being nice to do, the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic has brought CSR to the forefront of businesses, forcing them to rapidly shift from profit maximisation to business preservation. Thus, it is practically crucial to ascertain whether CSR could be effectively used to promote halal brands in this era. Design/methodology/approach To achieve the stated aim, a survey questionnaire was developed and used to collect data from 295 participants who are familiar with the concepts of CSR and halal in Malaysia. The data collected were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings The findings reveal that the commitment to halal best practices, zakat and charitable donations, environmental responsibility, employee welfare and responsible dealings with clients are the most important CSR activities that can promote halal certified companies in the era of Covid-19. Whilst there is a positive relationship between halal economic responsibility and CSR as a promotional tool, such relationship is not significant. Nevertheless, the relationship between legal responsibility and CSR as a promotional tool is negative and insignificant. Research limitations/implications Limitations are inevitable in any study where a convenient sampling technique is used. Respondents from Klang Valley in Malaysia make up a large proportion of the study’s sample. This may consequently limit the generalisability of the findings of this study. Hence, future research should adequately collect data from other cities in Malaysia. Moreover, this paper does not differentiate between perceptions of Muslims and non-Muslims or between male and female; this might have an effect, as Muslims are likely to favour most of the items in the questionnaire used to collect data for this study. Thus, future research may collect sufficient data to shed more light on this issue. Originality/value The researchers have revealed that CSR is an effective promotional tool for the Malaysian halal certified companies in the era of Covid-19 pandemic. Study of this nature is rare in academic literature.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eswaran Velayutham ◽  
Vijayakumaran Ratnam

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and shareholder wealth arising from announcement returns of security issuance from a frontier market. It also explores the role of business group affiliation (BGA) on this relationship. Design/methodology/approach The study uses short-term scenarios to examine the link between CSR and shareholder wealth using the event study methodology which helps us mitigate the reverse causality problems related to studies of the relationship between CSR and firm value. Abnormal returns surrounding the security issue announcements were generated using the market model. Findings This paper finds that security issuers with high CSR scores are associated with higher shareholder value. However, this paper finds that CSR activities of security issuers with BGA are value-destroying which is consistent with the agency perspective of CSR. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to only one nascent market, namely the Colombo Stock Exchange. Originality/value This study documents that CSR and BGA are important determinants, among others, of stock price reactions to security offerings in emerging markets.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anura De Zoysa ◽  
Nobyuki Takaoka ◽  
Yuqian Zhang

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the impact of three key factors — corporate social responsibility (CSR) awareness, CSR affordability and CSR management system (CSRMS) sophistication—on the CSR performance of Japanese firms.Design/methodology/approachUsing responses to 36 items developed on the Global CSR standard of ISO26000, two CSR indexes were constructed to assess the CSR management system sophistication and performance of Japanese firms. The relationship between the three key variables (CSR awareness, affordability and management system sophistication) and CSR performance was then examined through a partial least squares (PLS)-based structural equation model. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey of 146 firms.FindingsThe results of the study found a positive relationship between CSR performance and three exogenous variables (CSR awareness, affordability and management system sophistication). Furthermore, the study found that CSRMS sophistication played a mediating role in the relationship between CSR performance and firms' CSR awareness and affordability.Research limitations/implicationsThe study was limited to examining the CSR practices of a major province in Japan, which may hinder the generalisation of the findings to the rest of the country. Moreover, the data used for assessing the variables in this study were self-reported by the participating firms, in addition to being cross-sectional. The findings of this study clarified areas that policymakers, including Japan's business associations–Keidanren and Keizai Doyukai, and other relevant parties need to focus on for further improving CSR performances of Japanese firms.Originality/valueThis study highlights the role CSR awareness, affordability and CSRMS sophistication play in improving CSR performance. On the one hand, it identifies the critical role CSRMS plays in mediating the relationship among CSR performance, awareness and affordability. On the other hand, it advances CSR theory providing insight for practitioners to generate positive CSR outcomes.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Salmi Mohd Isa ◽  
Phaik Nie Chin ◽  
Irene Liew

Purpose Few studies exist which delve into the possible factors that prevent ethically minded consumers from translating their ethical perceptions into ethical purchase intention (EPI). Thus, this study aims to explore how consumers assess corporate social responsibility (CSR) based on several influencing factors toward EPI, with CSR skepticism (SKP) as a moderator. Design/methodology/approach This cross-sectional study is conducted through a self-administered questionnaire and uses a positive research approach with a quantitative basis of enquiry. The partial least squares–structural equation modeling- model is used to examine the causal relationship between seven independent variables of CSR assessment (i.e. CSR awareness, knowledge of CSR position of company, cause importance, price consciousness, CSR image of company, credibility of CSR efforts and peer influence) with EPI. In addition, this study also examines the moderating effect of SKP in the relationship. Findings The findings show that CSR assessment factors are important to convert mere purchase criteria into EPI and SKP does play a significant role in weakening the relationship. Originality/value This study examines the moderating effect of CSR skepticism, the exploration of which still remains very limited in current literature.


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