IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/bstrat/v24y2015i1p20-39.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Relationship Between Sustainable Development and Financial Performance: International Empirical Research

Author

Listed:
  • Jennifer Martínez‐Ferrero
  • José Valeriano Frías‐Aceituno

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to clarify the relationship between companies' sustainable behavior and their financial performance (FP), which has been studied for several years without reaching a consensus on the effect and the direction of it. Hypotheses are tested for an unbalanced sample of 1960 multinational non‐financial listed companies from 25 countries and one administrative region for the period between 2002 and 2010. Due to the use of an international database and the differences among countries, it is possible to observe divergence between institutional settings. For this reason, a corporate governance system (Anglo‐Saxon, Germanic, Latin and Asian) is used as characteristic of the macro‐environment. Results obtained via the generalized method of moments estimator allow us to support the existence of a positive bidirectional relationship between corporate social responsibility and FP, evidencing the existence of a synergistic circle. The use of market value indicated that investors are able to identify economic, social and environmental practices generating a positive effect on FP. These relationships differ between corporate governance systems, due to the specific characteristics of each system. Findings are robust for each sustainable sub‐index (society, human rights, environmental and board). Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment

Suggested Citation

  • Jennifer Martínez‐Ferrero & José Valeriano Frías‐Aceituno, 2015. "Relationship Between Sustainable Development and Financial Performance: International Empirical Research," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(1), pages 20-39, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:24:y:2015:i:1:p:20-39
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.1803
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.1803
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/bse.1803?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
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jeroen Weimer & Joost Pape, 1999. "A Taxonomy of Systems of Corporate Governance," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(2), pages 152-166, April.
    2. Klapper, Leora F. & Love, Inessa, 2004. "Corporate governance, investor protection, and performance in emerging markets," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 10(5), pages 703-728, November.
    3. Isabel Lourenço & Manuel Branco & José Curto & Teresa Eugénio, 2012. "How Does the Market Value Corporate Sustainability Performance?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 108(4), pages 417-428, July.
    4. Cho, Charles H. & Patten, Dennis M., 2007. "The role of environmental disclosures as tools of legitimacy: A research note," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 32(7-8), pages 639-647.
    5. Diego Prior & Jordi Surroca & Josep A. Tribó, 2008. "Are Socially Responsible Managers Really Ethical? Exploring the Relationship Between Earnings Management and Corporate Social Responsibility," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(3), pages 160-177, May.
    6. Francesco Perrini & Antonio Tencati, 2006. "Sustainability and stakeholder management: the need for new corporate performance evaluation and reporting systems," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(5), pages 296-308, September.
    7. Jordi Surroca & Josep A. Tribó, 2008. "Managerial Entrenchment and Corporate Social Performance," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(5‐6), pages 748-789, June.
    8. Stephen Brammer & Andrew Millington, 2008. "Does it pay to be different? An analysis of the relationship between corporate social and financial performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(12), pages 1325-1343, December.
    9. John M. Stevens & H. Kevin Steensma & David A. Harrison & Philip L. Cochran, 2005. "Symbolic or substantive document? The influence of ethics codes on financial executives' decisions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(2), pages 181-195, February.
    10. Sandra A. Waddock & Samuel B. Graves, 1997. "The Corporate Social Performance–Financial Performance Link," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(4), pages 303-319, April.
    11. Alberto De Miguel & Julio Pindado & Chabela De La Torre, 2005. "How do Entrenchment and Expropriation Phenomena Affect Control Mechanisms?," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 13(4), pages 505-516, July.
    12. Blundell, Richard & Bond, Stephen, 1998. "Initial conditions and moment restrictions in dynamic panel data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 115-143, August.
    13. Adrian Wai Kong Cheung, 2011. "Do Stock Investors Value Corporate Sustainability? Evidence from an Event Study," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 99(2), pages 145-165, March.
    14. Olaf Weber & Roland W. Scholz & Georg Michalik, 2010. "Incorporating sustainability criteria into credit risk management," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(1), pages 39-50, January.
    15. Core, John E. & Holthausen, Robert W. & Larcker, David F., 1999. "Corporate governance, chief executive officer compensation, and firm performance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(3), pages 371-406, March.
    16. Donald S. Siegel & Donald F. Vitaliano, 2007. "An Empirical Analysis of the Strategic Use of Corporate Social Responsibility," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(3), pages 773-792, September.
    17. Heli Wang & Jaepil Choi & Jiatao Li, 2008. "Too Little or Too Much? Untangling the Relationship Between Corporate Philanthropy and Firm Financial Performance," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(1), pages 143-159, February.
    18. Paul Collier & Mahbub Zaman, 2005. "Convergence in European Corporate Governance: the audit committee concept," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 13(6), pages 753-768, November.
    19. Javier González‐Benito & Óscar González‐Benito, 2006. "A review of determinant factors of environmental proactivity," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(2), pages 87-102, March.
    20. Carol Adams & Ambika Zutshi, 2004. "Corporate Social Responsibility: Why Business Should Act Responsibly and Be Accountable," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 14(34), pages 31-39, November.
    21. Jordi Surroca & Josep A. Tribó, 2008. "Managerial Entrenchment and Corporate Social Performance," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(5‐6), pages 748-789, June.
    22. Jianxin (Daniel) Chi, 2005. "Understanding the Endogeneity Between Firm Value and Shareholder Rights," Financial Management, Financial Management Association, vol. 34(4), Winter.
    23. Aguilera, Ruth V. & Flores, Ricardo G. & Vaaler, Paul M., 2007. "Is It All a Matter of Grouping? Examining the Regional Effect in Global Strategy Research," Working Papers 07-0106, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, College of Business.
    24. Manuel Arellano & Stephen Bond, 1991. "Some Tests of Specification for Panel Data: Monte Carlo Evidence and an Application to Employment Equations," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 58(2), pages 277-297.
    25. Jordi Surroca & Josep A. Tribó & Sandra Waddock, 2010. "Corporate responsibility and financial performance: the role of intangible resources," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(5), pages 463-490, May.
    26. Amy J. Hillman & Gerald D. Keim, 2001. "Shareholder value, stakeholder management, and social issues: what's the bottom line?," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(2), pages 125-139, February.
    27. Baruch Lev & Christine Petrovits & Suresh Radhakrishnan, 2010. "Is doing good good for you? how corporate charitable contributions enhance revenue growth," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(2), pages 182-200, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Lin, Woon Leong & Law, Siong Hook & Ho, Jo Ann & Sambasivan, Murali, 2019. "The causality direction of the corporate social responsibility – Corporate financial performance Nexus: Application of Panel Vector Autoregression approach," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 401-418.
    2. Claude Francoeur & Réal Labelle & Souha Balti & Saloua EL Bouzaidi, 2019. "To What Extent Do Gender Diverse Boards Enhance Corporate Social Performance?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(2), pages 343-357, March.
    3. Martínez Ferrero, Jennifer, 2014. "Consecuencias de las prácticas de sostenibilidad en el coste de capital y en la reputación corporativa," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 153-162.
    4. Ngoc Phu Tran & Co Thi Huyen Dinh & Hien Thi Thu Hoang & Duc Hong Vo, 2022. "Intellectual Capital and Firm Performance in Vietnam: The Moderating Role of Corporate Social Responsibility," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-13, October.
    5. Juhee Hwang & Hyuna Kim & Dongjin Jung, 2021. "The Effect of ESG Activities on Financial Performance during the COVID-19 Pandemic—Evidence from Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-17, October.
    6. Yongqiang Gao & Jian Wu & Taïeb Hafsi, 2017. "The Inverted U‐Shaped Relationship between Corporate Philanthropy and Spending on Research and Development: A Case of Complementarity and Competition Moderated by Firm Size and Visibility," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(6), pages 465-477, November.
    7. Ben Lahouel, Béchir & Ben Zaied, Younes & Managi, Shunsuke & Taleb, Lotfi, 2022. "Re-thinking about U: The relevance of regime-switching model in the relationship between environmental corporate social responsibility and financial performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 498-519.
    8. Martínez-Ferrero, Jennifer & Prado-Lorenzo, José Manuel & Fernández-Fernández, José Miguel, 2013. "Responsabilidad social corporativa vs. responsabilidad contable," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 32-45.
    9. Cuadrado Ballesteros, Beatriz & García Rubio, Raquel & Martínez Ferrero, Jennifer, 2015. "Efecto de la composición del consejo de administración en las prácticas de responsabilidad social corporativa," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 20-31.
    10. Jordi A. Surroca & Ruth V. Aguilera & Kurt Desender & Josep A. Tribó, 2020. "Is managerial entrenchment always bad and corporate social responsibility always good? A cross‐national examination of their combined influence on shareholder value," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(5), pages 891-920, May.
    11. Saridakis, Charalampos & Angelidou, Sofia & Woodside, Arch G., 2023. "How historical and social aspirations reshape the relationship between corporate financial performance and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    12. Franck Brulhart & Sandrine Gherra & Bertrand V. Quelin, 2019. "Do Stakeholder Orientation and Environmental Proactivity Impact Firm Profitability?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(1), pages 25-46, August.
    13. Hans B. Christensen & Luzi Hail & Christian Leuz, 2021. "Mandatory CSR and sustainability reporting: economic analysis and literature review," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 26(3), pages 1176-1248, September.
    14. Isabel‐Maria García‐Sánchez & Nazim Hussain & Sana Akbar Khan & Jennifer Martínez‐Ferrero, 2020. "Managerial entrenchment, corporate social responsibility, and earnings management," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(4), pages 1818-1833, July.
    15. Hajer Tebini & Bouchra M’Zali & Pascal Lang & Paz Méndez-Rodrı́guez, 2015. "Social Performance and Financial Performance: A Controversial Relationship," International Series in Operations Research & Management Science, in: Enrique Ballestero & Blanca Pérez-Gladish & Ana Garcia-Bernabeu (ed.), Socially Responsible Investment, edition 127, chapter 0, pages 53-73, Springer.
    16. Yongqiang Gao & Haibin Yang & Taïeb Hafsi, 2019. "Corporate giving and corporate financial performance: the S-curve relationship," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 36(3), pages 687-713, September.
    17. 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.
    18. Alice Monti & Pierpaolo Pattitoni & Barbara Petracci & Otto Randl, 2022. "Does corporate social responsibility impact equity risk? International evidence," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 59(3), pages 825-855, October.
    19. Liu, Haiming & Chiang, Yao-Min, 2024. "Employment protection and environmental corporate social responsibility: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    20. Veda Fatmy & John Kihn & Jukka Sihvonen & Sami Vähämaa, 2022. "Does lesbian and gay friendliness pay off? A new look at LGBT policies and firm performance," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(1), pages 213-242, March.

    More about this item

    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:bla:bstrat:v:24:y:2015:i:1:p:20-39. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-0836 .

    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.