Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Financial Performance: Moderating role of Ethical Leadership and Social Capital

Authors

  • Sadia Butt PhD Scholar,HSM, University of Management and Technology, Lahore
  • Iqra Mubeen PhD Scholar,HSM, University of Management and Technology, Lahore
  • Adeel Ahmed PhD Scholar,HSM, University of Management and Technology, Lahore

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31384/jisrmsse/2022.20.1.9

Keywords:

CSR, Financial Performance, Ethical Leadership, Social Capital

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the firm financial performance in Pakistan with the mediating role of ethical leadership and social capital between CSR and financial performance. Data was collected by applying random probability sampling from 178 respondents through a survey method from employees of non-financial PSX listed firms. Linear regression was conducted through SPSS to test hypotheses. The regression results confirmed a positive and significant relationship between CSR and financial performance. The results further reveal a positive significant moderating role of ethical leadership between CSR and financial performance but no moderating role of social capital between CSR and financial performance. The study has implications for both scholars and management. The study has implications for both scholars and practitioners. The results reveal the vital role of a leader ethical conduct in implementing CSR practices and its positive effect on financial performance of an organization.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Akben-Selcuk, E (2019). Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance: The Moderating Role of Ownership Concentration in Turkey. Sustainability, 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11133643. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su11133643

Ang, R et al. (2022). “The relationship between CSR and financial performance and the moderating effect of ownership structure: Evidence from Chinese heavily polluting listed enterprises.” Sustainable Production and Consumption 30, pp. 117–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2021.11.030Get. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2021.11.030

Angus-Leppan, T, L Metcalf, and S Benn (2010). “Leadership styles and CSR practice: An examination of sensemaking, institutional drivers and CSR leadership”. Journal of Business Ethics 93(2), pp. 189–213. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-009-0221-y. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-009-0221-y

Antoni, G Degli and E Portale (2010). “The effect of Corporate Social Responsibility on Social Capital creation in social cooperatives. Non-profit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly”.

Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly 40(3), pp. 566–582. https://doi.org/10.1177/0899764010362568. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0899764010362568

Ashraf, M, B Khan, and R Tariq (2017). “Corporate Social Responsibility Impact on Financial Performance of Bank’s: Evidence from Asian Countries”. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences 7(4), pp. 618–632. https://ideas.repec.org/a/hur/ijarbs/v7y2017i4p618-632.html. DOI: https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v7-i4/2837

Beraki, M T et al. (2022). “Exploring the correlation between diversity and financial performance: an empirical study”. International Journal of Business Performance Management 23(1-2), pp. 206–223. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBPM.2022.119578. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBPM.2022.119578

Brown, M E, L K Trevino, and D A Harrison (2005). “Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing”. Organizational Behaviour and Human Decision Processes 97, pp. 117–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2005.03.002. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2005.03.002

Butt, A, A N Butt, and M Ayaz (2016). “Impact of Ethical Leadership on Organizational Performance and Mediating Role of Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from Banking Sector of Pakistan”. International Journal of Management Sciences and Business Research 5(6), pp. 25–37. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3464785.

Butt, S (2020). “Service quality assessment and student satisfaction in business schools”. Malaysian Online Journal of Educational Management (MOJEM) 9(1), pp. 58–76.

Butt, S and N Yazdani (2021). “Influence of Workplace Incivility on Counterproductive Work Behaviour: Mediating Role of Emotional Exhaustion, Organizational Cynicism and the Moderating Role of Psychological Capital”. Pakistan Journal of Commerce and Social Sciences 15(2), pp. 378–404.

Cho, S J, C Y Chune Young Chung, and J. Jason Young (2019). “Study on the Relationship between CSR and Financial Performance, , 11:343”. Sustainability 11(2). https://doi.org/10.3390/su11020343. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su11020343

Chong, A Y et al. (2011). “Can Malaysian firms improve organizational/ innovation performance via SCM?” Industrial Management & Data Systems 111(3), pp. 410–431. https://doi.org/10.1108/02635571111118288. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/02635571111118288

Cohen, D and L Prusak (2001). “In Good Company: How Social Capital Makes Organizations Work”. Harvard Business School Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/358974.358979

Dinc, M S and M Aydemir (2014). “The Effects of Ethical Climate and Ethical Leadership on Employee Attitudes: Bosnian Case”. International Journal of Management Sciences 2(9), pp. 391–405. https://ideas.repec.org/a/rss/jnljms/v2i9p1.html.

Ehsan, S and A Kaleem (2012). “An Empirical investigation of the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance (Evidence from Manufacturing Sector of Pakistan)”. Journal of Basic and Applied Scientific Research 2(3), pp. 2909–2922. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojapps.2019.93009. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/ojapps.2019.93009

Freeman, R E and J McVea (2001). “A Stakeholder Approach to Strategic Management”. SSRN.https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.263511. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.263511

Friedman, M (1970). A Friedman doctrine: The social responsibility of business is to increase its profits. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojbm.2019.74139. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/ojbm.2019.74139

Galant, A and S Cadez (2017). “Corporate social responsibility and financial performance relationship: a review of measurement approaches”. Economic research 30(1), pp. 676–693. https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2017.1313122. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2017.1313122

Galema, R, A Plantinga, and B Scholtens (2008). “The stocks at stake: Return and risk in socially responsible investment”. Journal of Banking & Finance 32(12), pp. 2646–2654. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2008.06.002. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2008.06.002

Gillan, S L, A Koch, and L T Starks (2021). “Firms and social responsibility: A review of ESG and CSR research in corporate finance”. Journal of Corporate Finance 66, p. 101889. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2021.101889. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2021.101889

Gliem, Joseph A. and Rosemary R. Gliem (2003). “Calculating, Interpreting, and Reporting Cronbach’s Alpha Reliability Coefficient for Likert-Type Scales”. Midwest Research to Practice Conference in Adult, Continuing, and Community Education, pp. 82–88. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2019.1015127. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2019.1015127

Hannon, J M and G T Milkovich (1996). “The effect of human resource reputation signals on share prices: An event study”. Human Resource Management 35(3), pp. 405–424. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-050X(199623)35:3<405::AID-HRM7>3.0.CO;2-0. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-050X(199623)35:3<405::AID-HRM7>3.0.CO;2-0

Hansen, S D (2011). “Ethical leadership: A multifoci social exchange perspective”. The Journal of Business Inquiry 10(1), pp. 41–55. https://journals.uvu.edu/index.php/jbi/article/view/225.

Hasan, M and A Habib (2017). “Social capital and idiosyncratic return volatility”. Australian journal of management 44(1), pp. 3–31. https://doi.org/10.1177/0312896217717573. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0312896217717573

Hassan, S et al. (2013). “Ethical and empowering leadership and leader effectiveness”. Journal of Managerial Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1108/02683941311300252. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/02683941311300252

Hayes, Andrew F (2012). PROCESS: A Versatile Computational Tool for Observed Variable Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Modeling.

Hill, R P et al. (2007). “Corporate social responsibility and socially responsible investing: A global perspective”. Journal of business ethics 70(2), pp. 165–174. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9103-8. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9103-8

Hmieleski, K M, M S Cole, and R A Baron (2012). “Shared authentic leadership and new venture performance”. Journal of Management 38(5), pp. 1476–149. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206311415419. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206311415419

Iqbal, N et al. (2012). “Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Financial Performance of Corporations: Evidence from Pakistan”. International Journal of Learning and Development 2(6), pp. 107–118. https://ideas.repec.org/a/mth/ijld88/v2y2012i6p107-118.html. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5296/ijld.v2i6.2717

Isa, S M and C K Loke (2019). “Effect of Ethical Leadership of Company’s CSR on Employee CSR Engagement in the Era of Digital Industry Revolution”. Paper presented in FGIC 2nd Conference on Governance and Integrity, pp. 666–686. https://doi.org/10.18502/kss.v3i22.508.

Ishtiaq, M et al. (2017). “Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance: The Moderating Effect of Ownership Concentration”. Journal of Managerial Sciences(3), pp. 354–386.

Javeed, S A and L Lefen (2019). “An Analysis of Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance with Moderating Effects of CEO Power and Ownership Structure: A Case Study of the Manufacturing Sector of Pakistan”. Ethical Leadership: Sustainability 11(1). https://doi.org/10.3390/su11010248. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su11010248

Jha, A and J Cox (2015). “Corporate social responsibility and social capital”. Journal of Banking & Finance 60(C), pp. 252–270. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2015.08.003. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2015.08.003

Khan, R M and K A Hassan (2013). “Relationship between financial performance & CSR activities in companies in Pakistan”. Interdisciplinary journal of contemporary research in business 4(10), pp. 918–928.

Kim, Joonho and Seunghye Jung (2015). “Study on CEO characteristics for management of public art performance centers”. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity 1(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40852-015-0007-7. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40852-015-0007-7

Lee, E M, S Y Park, and H J Lee (2013). “Employee perception of CSR activities: Its antecedents and consequences”. Journal of business research 66(10), pp. 1716–1724. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2012.11.008. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2012.11.008

Lin, L et al. (2019). “Financial performance and corporate social responsibility: Empirical evidence from Taiwan”. Asia pacific management review 24, pp. 61–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmrv.2018.07.001. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmrv.2018.07.001

Lins, K V, H Servaes, and A Tamayo (2017). “Social Capital, Trust, and Firm Performance: The Value of Corporate Social Responsibility during the Financial Crisis”. Journal of Finance 72(4), pp. 1785–1824. https://doi.org/10.1111/jofi.12505. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jofi.12505

Manduku, D. O., Shin, Y., & Sung. (2017). The influence of ethical leadership on the financial performance of listed firms in Kenya. Africa.

Maqbool, S, Zameer, and Mn (2018). “Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: An empirical analysis of Indian banks”. Future Business Journal 4, pp. 84–93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fbj.2017.12.002. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fbj.2017.12.002

Mcguire, J B, A Sundgren, and T Schneeweis (1988). “Corporate social responsibility and firm financial performance”. Academy of management Journal 31(4), pp. 854–872. https://doi.org/10.5465/256342. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/256342

Mcwilliams, A and Siegel (2001). “Corporate Social Responsibility: A Theory of the Firm Perspective”. The Academy of Management Review 26(1), pp. 117–127. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2001.4011987. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2001.4011987

Mehar, A and F Rahat (2007). “Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Firm’s Financial Performance”. South Asian Journal of Management Sciences 1(1), pp. 16–24.

Monsuru, A F and A Abdulazeez (2014). “The effects of corporate social responsibility activity disclosure on corporate profitability: Empirical evidence from Nigerian commercial banks.” IOSR Journal of Economics and Finance 2(6), pp. 17–25. https://doi.org/10.9790/5933-0261725. DOI: https://doi.org/10.9790/5933-0261725

Murtaza, I A et al. (2014). “International review of management & business research”. Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Firm Financial Performance: A Case Study of Pakistan 3, pp. 1914–1927.

Nguyen, V H, F W Agbola, and B Choi (2022). “Does Corporate Social Responsibility Enhance Financial Performance? Evidence from Australia”. Australian Accounting Review 32(1), pp. 5–18. https://doi.org/10.1111/auar.12347. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/auar.12347

Northouse, P G (2010). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks, CA. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1379(200002)21:13.0.CO;2-C.

Nunnally, J C (1978). Psychometric Theory. 2nd ed. New York: McGraw. https://doi.org/10.4236/wjns.2013.32015. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/wjns.2013.32015

Onkila, T and B Sarna (2022). “A systematic literature review on employee relations with CSR: State of art and future research agenda”. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management 29(2), pp. 435–447. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2210. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2210

Palacios-Manzano, M, E Gras-Gil, and J M Santos-Jaen (2021). “Corporate social responsibility and its effect on earnings management: an empirical research on Spanish firms”. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence 32(7-8), pp. 921–937. https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2019.1652586. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2019.1652586

Pasricha, P, B Singh, and P Verma (2018). “Ethical Leadership, Organic Organizational Cultures and Corporate Social Responsibility: An Empirical Study in Social Enterprises”. Journal of Business Ethics 151, pp. 941–958. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-017-3568-5. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-017-3568-5

Payne, G T et al. (2011). “Multilevel Challenges and Opportunities in Social Capital Research”. Journal of management 37, pp. 491–520. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310372413. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310372413

Putnam, R D (1995). “Bowling alone: America’s declining social capital”. Journal of Democracy 6(1), pp. 65–78. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429261732-19. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/jod.1995.0002

PWC (2013). 16th CEO Survey. http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/ceo- survey/2013/assets/pwc-16th-global-ceo-surveyjan-2013.pdf.

PWC (2014). 17th CEO Survey. http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/ceo- survey/2014/assets/pwc-17th-annual-global-ceo-survey-jan-2014.pdf.

Roeck, K D and O Farooq (2018). “Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethical Leadership: Investigating Their Interactive Effect on Employees’ Socially Responsible Behaviours”. Journal of Business Ethics 151, pp. 923–939. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-017-3656-6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-017-3656-6

Sacconi, L and G D Antoni (2011). “Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethical Leadership: Investigating Their Interactive Effect on Employees’ Socially Responsible Behaviors”. In: Palgrave Macmillan London.

Saeed, M and F Arshad (2012). “Corporate social responsibility as a source of competitive advantage: The mediating role of social capital and reputational capital”. Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management 19(4), pp. 219–232. https://doi.org/10.1057/dbm.2012.19. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/dbm.2012.19

Saleh, M, N Zulkifli, and R Muhamad (2008). “An Empirical Examination of the Relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure and Financial Performance in an Emerging Market”. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management 59(3), pp. 229–254. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.750. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.750

Shin, Y et al. (2015). “Top management ethical leadership and firm performance: Mediating role of ethical and procedural justice climate”. Journal of Business Ethics 129(1), pp. 43–57. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2144-5. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2144-5

Simionescu, L N and D Dumitrescu (2018). “Empirical study towards corporate social responsibility practices and company financial performance. Evidence for companies listed on the Bucharest stock exchange”. Sustainability 10(9), p. 3141. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10093141. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su10093141

Simpson, W G and T Kohers (2002). “The link between corporate social and financial performance: Evidence from the banking industry”. Journal of business ethics 35(2), pp. 97–109. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013082525900. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013082525900

Soana, M (2011). “The Relationship Between Corporate Social Performance and Corporate Financial Performance in the Banking Sector”. Journal of Business Ethics 104, pp. 133–148. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-0894-x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-0894-x

Ullah, I et al. (2017). “Development of CSR through Ethical Leadership: Constructive Role of Ethical Culture and Intellectual Capital”. Pakistan Journal of Commerce and Social Sciences 11(3), pp. 977–1004.

Vveinhardt, J, R Andriukaitiene, and L M Cunha (2014). “Social Capital as a Cause and Consequence of Corporate Social Responsibility”. Transformations in Business & Economics 13(2A), pp. 483–505.

Waddock, S A and S B Graves (1997). “The corporate social performance-financial performance link”. Strategic management journal 18(4), pp. 303–319. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199704)18:4<303::AID-SMJ869>3.0.CO;2-G DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199704)18:4<303::AID-SMJ869>3.0.CO;2-G

Walumbwa, F. O., & Schaubroeck, J. (2009). Leader personality traits and employee voice behaviour: Mediating roles of ethical leadership and work group psychological safety. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94(5), 1275–1286. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015848 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015848

Wang, D et al. (2017). “Linking Ethical Leadership with Firm Performance: A Multi-dimensional Perspective”. Journal of Business Ethics 145(1), pp. 95–109. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2905-9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2905-9

Wright, P and S P Ferris (1997). “Agency conflict and corporate strategy: The effect of divestment on corporate value”. Strategic management journal 18(1), pp. 77–83. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199701)18:1%3C77::AID-SMJ810%3E3.0.CO;2-R. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199701)18:1<77::AID-SMJ810>3.0.CO;2-R

Wu, L. Z., Kwan, H. K., Yim, F. H. K., Chiu, R. K., & He, X. (2015). CEO ethical leadership and corporate social responsibility: A moderated mediation model. Journal of Business Ethics, 130(4), 819–831. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2108-9 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2108-9

Xu, Y, Q Liang, and Z Huang (2018). “Benefits and pitfalls of social capital for farmer cooperatives: evidence from China”. International Food and Agribusiness Management Review 21, pp. 1137–1152. https://doi.org/10.22434/IFAMR2018.0024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22434/IFAMR2018.0024

Zhu, Y, L Sun, and A Leung (2014). “Corporate social responsibility, firm reputation & firm performance: The role of ethical leadership”. Asia Pacific journal of management 31(4), pp. 925–947. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-013-9369-1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-013-9369-1

Published

2022-06-30

How to Cite

Butt, S., Mubeen, I., & Ahmed, A. (2022). Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Financial Performance: Moderating role of Ethical Leadership and Social Capital. JISR Management and Social Sciences & Economics, 20(1), 165–186. https://doi.org/10.31384/jisrmsse/2022.20.1.9

Issue

Section

Original Articles