IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/corfin/v82y2023ics0929119923000792.html

Does CEO overconfidence affect workplace safety?

Author

Listed:
  • Chen, Yangyang
  • Ofosu, Emmanuel
  • Veeraraghavan, Madhu
  • Zolotoy, Leon

Abstract

We study the impact of CEO overconfidence on workplace safety. We provide robust evidence of a positive relation between CEO overconfidence and workplace injury rates, implying that CEO overconfidence impairs workplace safety. In cross-sectional analysis, we find that the documented effect is amplified among firms with greater concentration of decision rights in headquarters and higher employee turnover, while is mitigated among firms with stronger labor union presence and more effective corporate governance mechanisms. Additional analysis points to increased employee workload and poor corporate safety culture as the mechanisms behind the documented detrimental effect of CEO overconfidence on workplace safety.

Suggested Citation

  • Chen, Yangyang & Ofosu, Emmanuel & Veeraraghavan, Madhu & Zolotoy, Leon, 2023. "Does CEO overconfidence affect workplace safety?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:corfin:v:82:y:2023:i:c:s0929119923000792
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2023.102430
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0929119923000792
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2023.102430?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

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jay Dixon & Bryan Hong & Lynn Wu, 2021. "The Robot Revolution: Managerial and Employment Consequences for Firms," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(9), pages 5586-5605, September.
    2. Arthur Lewbel, 2012. "Using Heteroscedasticity to Identify and Estimate Mismeasured and Endogenous Regressor Models," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(1), pages 67-80.
    3. Anwer S. Ahmed & Scott Duellman, 2013. "Managerial Overconfidence and Accounting Conservatism," Journal of Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 51(1), pages 1-30, March.
    4. Hall, Brian J. & Murphy, Kevin J., 2002. "Stock options for undiversified executives," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 3-42, February.
    5. Cronqvist, Henrik & Makhija, Anil K. & Yonker, Scott E., 2012. "Behavioral consistency in corporate finance: CEO personal and corporate leverage," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(1), pages 20-40.
    6. Ulrike Malmendier & Geoffrey Tate, 2005. "CEO Overconfidence and Corporate Investment," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(6), pages 2661-2700, December.
    7. Hainmueller, Jens, 2012. "Entropy Balancing for Causal Effects: A Multivariate Reweighting Method to Produce Balanced Samples in Observational Studies," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(1), pages 25-46, January.
    8. Andrés Donangelo, 2014. "Labor Mobility: Implications for Asset Pricing," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 69(3), pages 1321-1346, June.
    9. Daniel Bradley & Connie X. Mao & Chi Zhang, 2022. "Does Analyst Coverage Affect Workplace Safety?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(5), pages 3464-3487, May.
    10. Emily Oster, 2019. "Unobservable Selection and Coefficient Stability: Theory and Evidence," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(2), pages 187-204, April.
    11. Todd A. Gormley & David A. Matsa, 2014. "Common Errors: How to (and Not to) Control for Unobserved Heterogeneity," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(2), pages 617-661.
    12. Caskey, Judson & Ozel, N. Bugra, 2017. "Earnings expectations and employee safety," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(1), pages 121-141.
    13. Antoinette Schoar & Luo Zuo, 2017. "Shaped by Booms and Busts: How the Economy Impacts CEO Careers and Management Styles," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 30(5), pages 1425-1456.
    14. Deng, Xin & Kang, Jun-koo & Low, Buen Sin, 2013. "Corporate social responsibility and stakeholder value maximization: Evidence from mergers," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 110(1), pages 87-109.
    15. Phua, Kenny & Tham, T. Mandy & Wei, Chishen, 2018. "Are overconfident CEOs better leaders? Evidence from stakeholder commitments," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(3), pages 519-545.
    16. Paul Hribar & Holly Yang, 2016. "CEO Overconfidence and Management Forecasting," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 33(1), pages 204-227, March.
    17. Jonathan B. Cohn & Malcolm I. Wardlaw, 2016. "Financing Constraints and Workplace Safety," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 71(5), pages 2017-2058, October.
    18. John Core & Wayne Guay, 2002. "Estimating the Value of Employee Stock Option Portfolios and Their Sensitivities to Price and Volatility," Journal of Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(3), pages 613-630, June.
    19. Simon Gervais & J. B. Heaton & Terrance Odean, 2011. "Overconfidence, Compensation Contracts, and Capital Budgeting," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 66(5), pages 1735-1777, October.
    20. Peter Demerjian & Baruch Lev & Sarah McVay, 2012. "Quantifying Managerial Ability: A New Measure and Validity Tests," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 58(7), pages 1229-1248, July.
    21. Anderson, Cameron & Brion, Sebastien & Moore, Don A. & Kennedy, Jessica A., 2012. "A status-enhancement account of overconfidence," Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, Working Paper Series qt6s5812wf, Institute of Industrial Relations, UC Berkeley.
    22. Vivian W. Fang & Xuan Tian & Sheri Tice, 2014. "Does Stock Liquidity Enhance or Impede Firm Innovation?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 69(5), pages 2085-2125, October.
    23. Coles, Jeffrey L. & Daniel, Naveen D. & Naveen, Lalitha, 2006. "Managerial incentives and risk-taking," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(2), pages 431-468, February.
    24. Suman Banerjee & Mark Humphery-Jenner & Vikram Nanda, 2015. "Restraining Overconfident CEOs through Improved Governance: Evidence from the Sarbanes-Oxley Act," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 28(10), pages 2812-2858.
    25. Schrand, Catherine M. & Zechman, Sarah L.C., 2012. "Executive overconfidence and the slippery slope to financial misreporting," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 311-329.
    26. Alberto Galasso & Timothy S. Simcoe, 2011. "CEO Overconfidence and Innovation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 57(8), pages 1469-1484, August.
    27. Appel, Ian R. & Gormley, Todd A. & Keim, Donald B., 2016. "Passive investors, not passive owners," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 121(1), pages 111-141.
    28. Karl V. Lins & Henri Servaes & Ane Tamayo, 2017. "Social Capital, Trust, and Firm Performance: The Value of Corporate Social Responsibility during the Financial Crisis," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 72(4), pages 1785-1824, August.
    29. Hyunseob Kim & Howard Kung, 2017. "The Asset Redeployability Channel: How Uncertainty Affects Corporate Investment," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 30(1), pages 245-280.
    30. Ramalingegowda, Santhosh & Yu, Yong, 2012. "Institutional ownership and conservatism," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 98-114.
    31. Christensen, Hans B. & Floyd, Eric & Liu, Lisa Yao & Maffett, Mark, 2017. "The real effects of mandated information on social responsibility in financial reports: Evidence from mine-safety records," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 284-304.
    32. Jeong†Bon Kim & Zheng Wang & Liandong Zhang, 2016. "CEO Overconfidence and Stock Price Crash Risk," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 33(4), pages 1720-1749, December.
    33. Gennaro Bernile & Vineet Bhagwat & P. Raghavendra Rau, 2017. "What Doesn't Kill You Will Only Make You More Risk-Loving: Early-Life Disasters and CEO Behavior," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 72(1), pages 167-206, February.
    34. Marianne Bertrand & Antoinette Schoar, 2003. "Managing with Style: The Effect of Managers on Firm Policies," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 118(4), pages 1169-1208.
    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. Tao, Ran & Zhao, Hong, 2026. "“May the road ahead be smooth”: Cultural continuity and CEO succession," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    2. Chen, Xuanyi & Tong, Jiarui, 2025. "Social trust and workplace safety," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 85(PA).
    3. Ji, Xinru & Chen, Xiaoxu & Ao, Zhiming, 2024. "ESG rating, board faultlines, and corporate performance," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 72(PB).
    4. Li, Kenuo & Zhang, Lijuan, 2025. "Does share pledging affect workplace safety?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    5. Gao, Jingru & Dong, Yunhe, 2025. "The effect of managerial ability on workplace safety," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 85(PB).
    6. Min Bai & Pamela Kent & Sujin Kim & Shan Li, 2025. "The role of accounting conservatism in corporate innovation," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 65(2), pages 1091-1127, June.
    7. Juwon Jang & Eunju Lee, 2024. "CEO confidence matters: the real effects of short sale constraints revisited," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 62(2), pages 603-636, February.
    8. Zhong, Xi & She, Jianquan & Wu, Xiaojie, 2024. "Tech for social good: Artificial intelligence and workplace safety," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    9. Xin Che, 2025. "Investment in big data analytics and loss reserve accuracy: evidence from the U.S. property-liability insurance industry," The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan;The Geneva Association, vol. 50(1), pages 203-231, January.
    10. Xin Che, 2025. "Addressing the talent crisis in the insurance industry: Does investment in employee relations pay off?," The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan;The Geneva Association, vol. 50(3), pages 650-683, July.
    11. Lutfa Tilat Ferdous & Nader Atawnah & Jia Liu & Yifan Zhou, 2026. "Chief financial officer power and conditional accounting conservatism," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 66(1), pages 155-200, January.
    12. Hasan, Mostafa Monzur & Chen, Xiaomeng Charlene, 2025. "Business strategies and carbon emissions," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    13. Zhang, Tony Xiaochi & Molchanov, Alexander & Nguyen, Harvey & Pham, Mia Hang, 2025. "Leading safely: The impact of generalist CEOs on workplace safety," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 46(C).

    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. Toksoz, Tuba & Demirkan, Sebahattin & Demirkan, Irem & Mishra, Birendra K., 2025. "CEO overconfidence across the firm lifecycle: effects on accounting outcomes and stock market reactions," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(3).
    2. Liao, Shushu & Nguyen, Nhut H. & Truong, Cameron, 2024. "Does CEO extraversion pay off when in need? Evidence from the global financial crisis," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(4).
    3. Bharati, Rakesh & Doellman, Thomas & Fu, Xudong, 2016. "CEO confidence and stock returns," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 12(1), pages 89-110.
    4. Cai, Xiangshang & Gao, Yang & Wu, Zhiting & Yuan, Jiayi, 2024. "Chief executive officer marital status and corporate credit ratings," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 95(PA).
    5. Yangyang Chen & Emmanuel Ofosu & Don O’Sullivan & Madhu Veeraraghavan & Leon Zolotoy, 2025. "Rank-and-File Employee Stock Options and Workplace Safety," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 71(7), pages 5971-5996, July.
    6. Kim, Mindy (Hyo Jung), 2021. "Effects of managerial overconfidence and ability on going-concern decisions and auditor turnover," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    7. Lin Li & Wilson H S Tong, 2022. "Who shall succeed? An examination of manager overconfidence and CEO selection," Post-Print hal-03861065, HAL.
    8. Pham, Mia Hang, 2020. "In law we trust: Lawyer CEOs and stock liquidity," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    9. Tuck Siong Chung & Angie Low & Roland T. Rust, 2023. "Executive confidence and myopic marketing management," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 51(5), pages 1118-1142, September.
    10. Lin Li & Wilson H. S. Tong, 2022. "Who shall succeed? An examination of manager overconfidence and CEO selection," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(9-10), pages 1736-1783, October.
    11. Killins, Robert & Ngo, Thanh & Wang, Hongxia, 2021. "Goodwill impairment and CEO overconfidence," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(C).
    12. Caleb Rawson, 2022. "Manager perception and proprietary investment disclosure," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 27(4), pages 1493-1525, December.
    13. Jeon, Heung-Jae, 2023. "CEO overconfidence: A dual-detriment to investment-price sensitivity via market negligence and reduced informed trading," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(3).
    14. Kim, Hyeong Joon, 2025. "Lesson from stock price crash: Changes in managerial confidence and incentives," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 57(3).
    15. Hwang, Hyoseok (David) & Kim, Hyun-Dong & Kim, Taeyeon, 2020. "The blind power: Power-led CEO overconfidence and M&A decision making," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    16. Chen, Po-Jung & Hsu, Ching-Yu, 2022. "CEO optimism, CEO selection, compensation, and corporate investment decision: The case of CEOs who were rehired as CEOs by another firms after turnover," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    17. Kaplan, Steven N. & Sørensen, Morten & Zakolyukina, Anastasia A., 2022. "What is CEO overconfidence? Evidence from executive assessments," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(2), pages 409-425.
    18. Jennifer Kunz & Lara Sonnenholzner, 2023. "Managerial overconfidence: promoter of or obstacle to organizational resilience?," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 67-128, January.
    19. Phua, Kenny & Tham, T. Mandy & Wei, Chishen, 2018. "Are overconfident CEOs better leaders? Evidence from stakeholder commitments," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(3), pages 519-545.
    20. Cook, Douglas O. & Chowdhury, Jaideep & Zhang, Weiwei, 2023. "Director optimism and CEO equity compensation," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 143-162.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General
    • G41 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making in Financial Markets
    • J28 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Safety; Job Satisfaction; Related Public Policy

    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:corfin:v:82:y:2023:i:c:s0929119923000792. 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: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jcorpfin .

    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.