IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jocaae/v14y2018i3p254-265.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility: The Indian experience

Author

Listed:
  • Mukherjee, Abhishek
  • Bird, Ron
  • Duppati, Geeta

Abstract

The question we raise is what to do when companies fail to keep pace with societal expectations with respect to their corporate social responsibility (CSR). The response of the Indian government was to make it mandatory for large corporations to spend funds on CSR activities. In this paper, we investigate the success of this legislation both for the companies and the intended beneficiaries. We find that the impact of the legislation has fallen short of expectations both in terms of the volume of CSR expenditure generated and the activities to which it has been directed. In particular, we find that the legislation has had a negative corporate profitability which can impact on the willingness of companies to spend in this area. We conclude that greater care must be taken when implementing mandatory CSR if it is to be effective.

Suggested Citation

  • Mukherjee, Abhishek & Bird, Ron & Duppati, Geeta, 2018. "Mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility: The Indian experience," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 254-265.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jocaae:v:14:y:2018:i:3:p:254-265
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcae.2018.06.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1815566918300821
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jcae.2018.06.002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michael C. Jensen, 2010. "Value Maximization, Stakeholder Theory, and the Corporate Objective Function," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 22(1), pages 32-42, January.
    2. Aithal, Sreeramana & V.T., Shailashree & Kumar, Suresh, 2015. "ABCD analysis of Stage Model in Higher Education," MPRA Paper 71972, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Supriti Mishra & Damodar Suar, 2010. "Does Corporate Social Responsibility Influence Firm Performance of Indian Companies?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(4), pages 571-601, September.
    4. Edward Nelling & Elizabeth Webb, 2009. "Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: the “virtuous circle” revisited," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 32(2), pages 197-209, February.
    5. Clarkson, Peter M. & Li, Yue & Richardson, Gordon D. & Vasvari, Florin P., 2011. "Does it really pay to be green? Determinants and consequences of proactive environmental strategies," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 122-144, March.
    6. Ye Cai & Hoje Jo & Carrie Pan, 2012. "Doing Well While Doing Bad? CSR in Controversial Industry Sectors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 108(4), pages 467-480, July.
    7. Stuart L. Hart & Gautam Ahuja, 1996. "Does It Pay To Be Green? An Empirical Examination Of The Relationship Between Emission Reduction And Firm Performance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(1), pages 30-37, March.
    8. Caroline Flammer, 2015. "Does Corporate Social Responsibility Lead to Superior Financial Performance? A Regression Discontinuity Approach," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 61(11), pages 2549-2568, November.
    9. Laura Albareda & Josep Lozano & Tamyko Ysa, 2007. "Public Policies on Corporate Social Responsibility: The Role of Governments in Europe," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 74(4), pages 391-407, September.
    10. El Ghoul, Sadok & Guedhami, Omrane & Kwok, Chuck C.Y. & Mishra, Dev R., 2011. "Does corporate social responsibility affect the cost of capital?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(9), pages 2388-2406, September.
    11. Bruce E. Hansen, 2001. "The New Econometrics of Structural Change: Dating Breaks in U.S. Labour Productivity," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 15(4), pages 117-128, Fall.
    12. Roberto Garcia-Castro & Miguel Ariño & Miguel Canela, 2010. "Does Social Performance Really Lead to Financial Performance? Accounting for Endogeneity," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 92(1), pages 107-126, March.
    13. Jayesh Kumar, 2004. "Does Corporate Governance Influence Firm Value? Evidence from Indian Firms," Journal of Entrepreneurial Finance, Pepperdine University, Graziadio School of Business and Management, vol. 9(2), pages 61-92, Summer.
    14. Jeremy Galbreath & Paul Shum, 2012. "Do customer satisfaction and reputation mediate the CSR–FP link? Evidence from Australia," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 37(2), pages 211-229, August.
    15. Vicente Lima Crisóstomo & Fátima de Souza Freire & Felipe Cortes de Vasconcellos, 2011. "Corporate social responsibility, firm value and financial performance in Brazil," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 7(2), pages 295-309, June.
    16. Cantrell, R Stephen & Burrows, Peter M & Vuong, Quang H, 1991. "Interpretation and Use of Generalized Chow Tests," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 32(3), pages 725-741, August.
    17. Malcolm Smith & Khadijah Yahya & Ahmad Marzuki Amiruddin, 2007. "Environmental disclosure and performance reporting in Malaysia," Asian Review of Accounting, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 15(2), pages 185-199, April.
    18. Ron Bird & Geeta Duppati & Abhishek Mukherjee, 2016. "Corporate social responsibility and firm market performance: a study of Indian listed companies," International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 11(1), pages 68-88.
    19. Vicente Lima Crisóstomo & Fátima de Souza Freire & Felipe Cortes de Vasconcellos, 2011. "Corporate social responsibility, firm value and financial performance in Brazil," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 7(2), pages 295-309, July.
    20. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    21. Abagail McWilliams & Donald Siegel, 2000. "Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: correlation or misspecification?," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(5), pages 603-609, May.
    22. Belaid Rettab & Anis Brik & Kamel Mellahi, 2009. "A Study of Management Perceptions of the Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Organisational Performance in Emerging Economies: The Case of Dubai," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 89(3), pages 371-390, October.
    23. Scott J. Callan & Janet M. Thomas, 2009. "Corporate financial performance and corporate social performance: an update and reinvestigation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(2), pages 61-78, March.
    24. Angeloantonio Russo & Francesco Perrini, 2010. "Investigating Stakeholder Theory and Social Capital: CSR in Large Firms and SMEs," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 91(2), pages 207-221, January.
    25. Hariom Manchiraju & Shivaram Rajgopal, 2017. "Does Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Create Shareholder Value? Evidence from the Indian Companies Act 2013," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(5), pages 1257-1300, December.
    26. Nava Subramaniam & Monika Kansal & Shekar Babu, 2017. "Governance of Mandated Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from Indian Government-owned Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 143(3), pages 543-563, July.
    27. Waymond Rodgers & Hiu Choy & Andrés Guiral, 2013. "Do Investors Value a Firm’s Commitment to Social Activities?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 114(4), pages 607-623, June.
    28. Lois Mahoney & Robin W. Roberts, 2007. "Corporate social performance, financial performance and institutional ownership in Canadian firms," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 31(3), pages 233-253, September.
    29. Freedman, Martin & Jaggi, Bikki, 1982. "Pollution disclosures, pollution performance and economic performance," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 10(2), pages 167-176.
    30. Jayesh Kumar, 2004. "Does Ownership Structure Influence Firm Value? Evidence from India," Finance 0406008, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    31. Abhishek Mukherjee & Ron Bird, 2016. "Analysis of mandatory CSR expenditure in India: a survey," International Journal of Corporate Governance, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 7(1), pages 32-59.
    32. Maretno Harjoto & Hoje Jo, 2011. "Corporate Governance and CSR Nexus," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 100(1), pages 45-67, April.
    33. Hoje Jo & Haejung Na, 2012. "Does CSR Reduce Firm Risk? Evidence from Controversial Industry Sectors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 110(4), pages 441-456, November.
    34. Lin, Chin-Huang & Yang, Ho-Li & Liou, Dian-Yan, 2009. "The impact of corporate social responsibility on financial performance: Evidence from business in Taiwan," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 56-63.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jadiyappa, Nemiraja & Chauhan, Yogesh, 2023. "Mandatory CSR regulation and R&D investments: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 55(PA).
    2. Prasad, Krishna & Kumar, Satish & Devji, Shridev & Lim, Weng Marc & Prabhu, Nandan & Moodbidri, Sudhir, 2022. "Corporate social responsibility and cost of capital: The moderating role of policy intervention," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    3. Anna Jessop & Nicole Wilson & Michal Bardecki & Cory Searcy, 2019. "Corporate Environmental Disclosure in India: An Analysis of Multinational and Domestic Agrochemical Corporations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-33, September.
    4. Manfred Max Bergman & Zinette Bergman & Yael Teschemacher & Bimal Arora & Divya Jyoti & Rijit Sengupta, 2019. "Corporate Responsibility in India: Academic Perspectives on the Companies Act 2013," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-20, October.
    5. Akshita Arora, 2023. "Enforcement and Compliance: The Case of Mandated CSR Provisions in an Emerging Economy," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 48(1), pages 64-75, February.
    6. Shankar Shaw, Tara & Raithatha, Mehul & Krishnan, Gopal V. & Cordeiro, James J., 2021. "Did mandatory CSR compliance impact accounting Conservatism? Evidence from the Indian Companies Act 2013," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(3).
    7. Iram Hasan & Shveta Singh & Smita Kashiramka, 2022. "Does corporate social responsibility disclosure impact firm performance? An industry-wise analysis of Indian firms," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(8), pages 10141-10181, August.
    8. Popkova, Elena & DeLo, Piper & Sergi, Bruno S., 2021. "Corporate Social Responsibility Amid Social Distancing During the COVID-19 Crisis: BRICS vs. OECD Countries," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    9. GUPTA Pradeep Kumar & GARG Arunesh, 2022. "Impact Of Csr Expenditure Compliance On Firm Value Using P/B-Roe Valuation Model And Instrumental Approach," Studies in Business and Economics, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 17(2), pages 108-123, August.
    10. Aruna Jha & Vijita Singh Aggrawal, 2019. "Institutional pressures for corporate social responsibility implementation: a study of Indian executives," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 16(4), pages 555-577, June.
    11. Bhattacharyya, Asit & Rahman, Md Lutfur, 2019. "Mandatory CSR expenditure and firm performance," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(3).
    12. Mingyuan Guo & Yanfang Hu & Yu Zhang & Fuge Tian, 2019. "State-Owned Shareholding and CSR: Do Multiple Financing Methods Matter?—Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-15, March.
    13. Manish Bansal, 2022. "Impact of mandatory CSR spending on strategic brand‐building levers: Evidence from a quasi‐natural experiment in India," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(8), pages 3620-3633, December.
    14. Asit Bhattacharyya & Sue Wright & Md Lutfur Rahman, 2021. "Is better banking performance associated with financial inclusion and mandated CSR expenditure in a developing country?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(1), pages 125-161, March.
    15. Hickman, L. Emily & Iyer, Subramanian Rama & Jadiyappa, Nemiraja, 2021. "The effect of voluntary and mandatory corporate social responsibility on earnings management: Evidence from India and the 2% rule," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(C).
    16. Ved Dilip Beloskar & S. V. D. Nageswara Rao, 2022. "Corporate Social Responsibility: Is Too Much Bad?—Evidence from India," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 29(2), pages 221-252, June.
    17. Sudershan Kuntluru, 2019. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance: Indian Evidence," Working papers 317, Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode.
    18. Ved Dilip Beloskar & S. V. D. Nageswara Rao, 2023. "Did ESG Save the Day? Evidence From India During the COVID-19 Crisis," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 30(1), pages 73-107, March.
    19. Monika Kansal & Nava Subramaniam & Shekar Babu & Suresh Mony, 2020. "CSR in Government-Owned Enterprises in India: A Principal–Agent Perspective," CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governance, in: Bodo B. Schlegelmilch & Ilona Szőcs (ed.), Rethinking Business Responsibility in a Global Context, pages 219-236, Springer.
    20. Sudershan Kuntluru, 2019. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance: Indian Evidence," Working papers 332, Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bhattacharyya, Asit & Rahman, Md Lutfur, 2019. "Mandatory CSR expenditure and firm performance," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(3).
    2. María del Mar Miras‐Rodríguez & Amalia Carrasco‐Gallego & Bernabé Escobar‐Pérez, 2015. "Are Socially Responsible Behaviors Paid Off Equally? A Cross‐cultural Analysis," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 22(4), pages 237-256, July.
    3. Ved Dilip Beloskar & S. V. D. Nageswara Rao, 2022. "Corporate Social Responsibility: Is Too Much Bad?—Evidence from India," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 29(2), pages 221-252, June.
    4. Sana Noor & Abubakr Saeed & Muhammad Saad Baloch & Muhammad Awais, 2020. "CSR permanency, family ownership, and firm value: Evidence from emerging economies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(5), pages 2135-2149, September.
    5. Ntim, Collins G., 2016. "Corporate governance, corporate health accounting, and firm value: The case of HIV/AIDS disclosures in Sub-Saharan Africa," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 155-216.
    6. Buchanan, Bonnie G. & Cao, Cathy Xuying & Wang, Shuhui, 2021. "Corporate social responsibility and inside debt: The long game," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    7. Tahira Naseem & Faisal Shahzad & Ghazanfar Ali Asim & Ijaz Ur Rehman & Faisal Nawaz, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility engagement and firm performance in Asia Pacific: The role of enterprise risk management," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(2), pages 501-513, March.
    8. Hui-Ju Tsai & Yangru Wu, 2022. "Changes in Corporate Social Responsibility and Stock Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 178(3), pages 735-755, July.
    9. Camelia-Daniela Hategan & Ruxandra-Ioana Curea-Pitorac, 2017. "Testing the Correlations between Corporate Giving, Performance and Company Value," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(7), pages 1-20, July.
    10. Ramakrishnan Ramanathan, 2018. "Understanding Complexity: the Curvilinear Relationship Between Environmental Performance and Firm Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 149(2), pages 383-393, May.
    11. Bai Xue & Zhuang Zhang & Pingli Li, 2020. "Corporate environmental performance, environmental management and firm risk," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 1074-1096, March.
    12. Pornanong Budsaratragoon & Boonlert Jitmaneeroj, 2021. "Corporate Sustainability and Stock Value in Asian–Pacific Emerging Markets: Synergies or Tradeoffs among ESG Factors?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-25, June.
    13. Jieun Chung & Charles H. Cho, 2018. "Current Trends within Social and Environmental Accounting Research: A Literature Review," Accounting Perspectives, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 17(2), pages 207-239, June.
    14. Bu, Luofan & Chan, Kam C. & Choi, Ahrum & Zhou, Gaoguang, 2021. "Talented inside directors and corporate social responsibility: A tale of two roles," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    15. Gonzalo Maldonado-Guzman & Sandra Yesenia Pinzon-Castro & Gabriela Citlalli Lopez-Torres, 2016. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Performance: The Role of Mexican SMEs," International Journal of Asian Social Science, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 6(10), pages 568-579, October.
    16. She‐Chih Chiu & Hsuan‐Chu Lin & Chuan‐San Wang, 2017. "The Impact of Investments in Pollution Reduction on Shareholder Wealth: Evidence from Taiwanese Manufacturing Companies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(6), pages 676-691, November.
    17. Sohail Ahmad Javeed & Lin 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," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-25, January.
    18. Abraham Ansong, 2017. "Corporate social responsibility and firm performance of Ghanaian SMEs: The role of stakeholder engagement," Cogent Business & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 4(1), pages 1333704-133, January.
    19. Encarna Guillamon-Saorin & Magdalena Kapelko & Spiro E. Stefanou, 2018. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Operational Inefficiency: A Dynamic Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-26, July.
    20. Hyeong Joon Kim & Seongjae Mun & Seung Hun Han, 2023. "Corporate social responsibility and the alignment of CEO and shareholders wealth: Does a strong alignment induce or restrain CSR?," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 720-741, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); Mandatory; Indian legislation; Corporate response; Impact on profitability;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • M14 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Corporate Culture; Diversity; Social Responsibility

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jocaae:v:14:y:2018:i:3:p:254-265. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-contemporary-accounting-and-economics .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.