IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ememar/v49y2021ics1566014120302326.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The effect of corporate philanthropy on corporate performance of Chinese family firms: The moderating role of religious atmosphere

Author

Listed:
  • Li, Xinlan
  • Li, Changhong
  • Wang, Zhan
  • Jiao, Wenting
  • Pang, Yiwen

Abstract

Drawing on sustainable family business theory and stakeholder theory, this study explores how corporate philanthropy affects corporate performance with the consideration of the moderating effects of religious atmosphere. Based on data of Chinese 534 listed family firms, the results show that corporate philanthropy is positively associated with corporate financial performance (CFP) and corporate social performance (CSP). Moreover, religious atmosphere negatively moderates the relationship between corporate philanthropy and CFP, but positively moderates the relationship between corporate philanthropy and CSP. Our findings provide systemic understandings of family firms' CFP and CSP by drawing important insights of corporate philanthropy and religious atmosphere.

Suggested Citation

  • Li, Xinlan & Li, Changhong & Wang, Zhan & Jiao, Wenting & Pang, Yiwen, 2021. "The effect of corporate philanthropy on corporate performance of Chinese family firms: The moderating role of religious atmosphere," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:ememar:v:49:y:2021:i:c:s1566014120302326
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ememar.2020.100757
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1566014120302326
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ememar.2020.100757?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. John Bingham & W. Gibb Dyer & Isaac Smith & Gregory Adams, 2011. "A Stakeholder Identity Orientation Approach to Corporate Social Performance in Family Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 99(4), pages 565-585, April.
    2. Stefano Pace, 2013. "Does Religion Affect the Materialism of Consumers? An Empirical Investigation of Buddhist Ethics and the Resistance of the Self," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 112(1), pages 25-46, January.
    3. Xian Chen & Jakob Arnoldi & Xin Chen, 2019. "Chinese culture, materialism and corporate supply of trade credit," China Finance Review International, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 10(2), pages 197-212, July.
    4. Chun-Keung (Stan) Hoi & Jun Xiong & Hong Zou, 2019. "Ownership identity and corporate donations: evidence from a natural experiment in China," China Finance Review International, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 10(2), pages 113-142, December.
    5. Michael Carney, 2005. "Corporate Governance and Competitive Advantage in Family–Controlled Firms," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 29(3), pages 249-265, May.
    6. S. Brammer & Geoffrey Williams & John Zinkin, 2007. "Religion and Attitudes to Corporate Social Responsibility in a Large Cross-Country Sample," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 71(3), pages 229-243, March.
    7. Allen, Franklin & Qian, Jun & Qian, Meijun, 2005. "Law, finance, and economic growth in China," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 57-116, July.
    8. Carmelo Cennamo & Pascual Berrone & Cristina Cruz & Luis R. Gomez–Mejia, 2012. "Socioemotional Wealth and Proactive Stakeholder Engagement: Why Family–Controlled Firms Care More about their Stakeholders," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 36(6), pages 1153-1173, November.
    9. Luo, Jinbo & Liu, Qigui, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility disclosure in China: Do managerial professional connections and social attention matter?," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(C).
    10. Hilary, Gilles & Hui, Kai Wai, 2009. "Does religion matter in corporate decision making in America?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(3), pages 455-473, September.
    11. Xingqiang Du, 2017. "Religious Belief, Corporate Philanthropy, and Political Involvement of Entrepreneurs in Chinese Family Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 142(2), pages 385-406, May.
    12. Tiago Melo, 2012. "Determinants of corporate social performance: the influence of organizational culture, management tenure and financial performance," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 8(1), pages 33-47, March.
    13. Xin Jin & Junli Yu, 2017. "Government governance, executive networks and corporate investment efficiency," China Finance Review International, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 8(2), pages 122-139, December.
    14. Kate Hogarth & Marion Hutchinson & Wendy Scaife, 2018. "Corporate Philanthropy, Reputation Risk Management and Shareholder Value: A Study of Australian Corporate giving," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 151(2), pages 375-390, August.
    15. Xingqiang Du & Yingjie Du & Quan Zeng & Hongmei Pei & Yingying Chang, 2016. "Religious atmosphere, law enforcement, and corporate social responsibility: Evidence from China," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 33(1), pages 229-265, March.
    16. Li, Weiwen & Au, Kevin Yuk-fai & He, Ai & Song, Lihong, 2015. "Why Do Family-controlled Firms Donate to Charity? The Role of Intrafamily Succession Intention, Social Status, and Religiosity," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 11(4), pages 621-644, December.
    17. Rjiba, Hatem & Jahmane, Abderrahman & Abid, Ilyes, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility and firm value: Guiding through economic policy uncertainty," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 35(C).
    18. Guiso, Luigi & Sapienza, Paola & Zingales, Luigi, 2003. "People's opium? Religion and economic attitudes," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 225-282, January.
    19. Pan, Yue & Weng, Ruoyu & Xu, Nianhang & Chan, Kam C., 2018. "The role of corporate philanthropy in family firm succession: A social outreach perspective," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 423-441.
    20. Xingqiang Du, 2015. "Is Corporate Philanthropy Used as Environmental Misconduct Dressing? Evidence from Chinese Family-Owned Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 129(2), pages 341-361, June.
    21. Jennifer C. Chen & Dennis M. Patten & Robin Roberts, 2008. "Corporate Charitable Contributions: A Corporate Social Performance or Legitimacy Strategy?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 82(1), pages 131-144, September.
    22. Xingqiang Du, 2013. "Does Religion Matter to Owner-Manager Agency Costs? Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 118(2), pages 319-347, December.
    23. Anderson, Gary M, 1988. "Mr. Smith and the Preachers: The Economics of Religion in the Wealth of Nations," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 96(5), pages 1066-1088, October.
    24. Arthur Gautier & Anne-Claire Pache, 2015. "Research on Corporate Philanthropy: A Review and Assessment," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 126(3), pages 343-369, February.
    25. Thomas M. Zellweger & Robert S. Nason & Mattias Nordqvist & Candida G. Brush, 2013. "Why Do Family Firms Strive for Nonfinancial Goals? An Organizational Identity Perspective," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 37(2), pages 229-248, March.
    26. Thomas M. Zellweger & Franz W. Kellermanns & James J. Chrisman & Jess H. Chua, 2012. "Family Control and Family Firm Valuation by Family CEOs: The Importance of Intentions for Transgenerational Control," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 23(3), pages 851-868, June.
    27. 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.
    28. Ronald W. Masulis & Syed Walid Reza, 2015. "Agency Problems of Corporate Philanthropy," Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 28(2), pages 592-636.
    29. Duane Windsor, 2006. "Corporate Social Responsibility: Three Key Approaches," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(1), pages 93-114, January.
    30. Jingqin Zhang & Yong Ye, 2019. "Research on the relationship between institutional investor research meeting and the performance of listed companies," China Finance Review International, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 10(3), pages 347-360, November.
    31. Edward Freeman, R. & Phillips, Robert A., 2002. "Stakeholder Theory: A Libertarian Defense," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 12(3), pages 331-349, July.
    32. Francesco Perrini & Angeloantonio Russo & Antonio Tencati & Clodia Vurro, 2011. "Deconstructing the Relationship Between Corporate Social and Financial Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 102(1), pages 59-76, March.
    33. Sharon M. Danes & Jinhee Lee & Kathryn Stafford & Ramona Kay Zachary Heck, 2008. "The Effects Of Ethnicity, Families And Culture On Entrepreneurial Experience: An Extension Of Sustainable Family Business Theory," Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship (JDE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 13(03), pages 229-268.
    34. Jaepil Choi & Heli Wang, 2009. "Stakeholder relations and the persistence of corporate financial performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(8), pages 895-907, August.
    35. Dan Wang & Taiwen Feng & Alan Lawton, 2017. "Linking Ethical Leadership with Firm Performance: A Multi-dimensional Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 145(1), pages 95-109, September.
    36. Mitchell A. Petersen, 2009. "Estimating Standard Errors in Finance Panel Data Sets: Comparing Approaches," Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(1), pages 435-480, January.
    37. Marta Rey-Garcia & Nuria Puig-Raposo, 2013. "Globalisation and the organisation of family philanthropy: A case of isomorphism?," Business History, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(6), pages 1019-1046, September.
    38. Jacqueline Cramer, 2005. "Company learning about corporate social responsibility," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(4), pages 255-266, July.
    39. 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.
    40. Louis Amato & Christie Amato, 2012. "Retail Philanthropy: Firm Size, Industry, and Business Cycle," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 107(4), pages 435-448, June.
    41. 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.
    42. Ran Zhang & Jigao Zhu & Heng Yue & Chunyan Zhu, 2010. "Corporate Philanthropic Giving, Advertising Intensity, and Industry Competition Level," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 94(1), pages 39-52, June.
    43. Jahmane, Abderrahmane & Gaies, Brahim, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility, financial instability and corporate financial performance: Linear, non-linear and spillover effects – The case of the CAC 40 companies," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 34(C).
    44. Lucia Naldi & Carmelo Cennamo & Guido Corbetta & Luis Gomez–Mejia, 2013. "Preserving Socioemotional Wealth in Family Firms: Asset or Liability? The Moderating Role of Business Context," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 37(6), pages 1341-1360, November.
    45. Li, Changhong & Xu, Yuan & Gill, Amarjit & Haider, Zulfiquer Ali & Wang, Yuan, 2019. "Religious beliefs, socially responsible investment, and cost of debt: Evidence from entrepreneurial firms in India," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 102-114.
    46. Cristina Cruz & Martin Larraza–Kintana & Lucía Garcés–Galdeano & Pascual Berrone, 2014. "Are Family Firms Really More Socially Responsible?," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 38(6), pages 1295-1316, November.
    47. Xingqiang Du & Wei Jian & Yingjie Du & Wentao Feng & Quan Zeng, 2014. "Religion, the Nature of Ultimate Owner, and Corporate Philanthropic Giving: Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 123(2), pages 235-256, August.
    48. Dev R. Mishra, 2017. "Post-innovation CSR Performance and Firm Value," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 140(2), pages 285-306, January.
    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. Zeng, Huixiang & Zhang, Xinxin & Zhou, Zhifang & Zhang, Tao & Zhou, Qiong, 2022. "Does the effect of the annual year taboo exist? Empirical evidence from senior managers’ zodiac year and corporate inefficient investment," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(6).
    2. Wu, Xiaojuan & Dluhošová, Dana & Zmeškal, Zdeněk, 2023. "The moderating role of a corporate life cycle with the impact of economic value-added on corporate social responsibility: Evidence from China's listed companies," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    3. Shilei Wu & Hongjie Zhang & Taoyuan Wei, 2021. "Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure, Media Reports, and Enterprise Innovation: Evidence from Chinese Listed Companies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-17, July.
    4. Li, Xinlan & Li, Changhong & Guo, Xiaoli, 2023. "Environmental practices, family control, and corporate performance: Evidence from Chinese family firms," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    5. Zhi Su & Bo Yi & Linan Wang, 2022. "Is corporate philanthropy a pretext for executives' excess perk consumption? Evidence from China," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(8), pages 4010-4027, December.

    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. Li, Xinlan & Li, Changhong & Guo, Xiaoli, 2023. "Environmental practices, family control, and corporate performance: Evidence from Chinese family firms," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    2. Liu, Yaosong & Zhang, Min & Ye, Tingting & Zhang, Yue, 2019. "Does giving always lead to getting? Evidence from the collapse of charity credibility in China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    3. Jun Chen & Wang Dong & Jamie Tong & Feida Zhang, 2018. "Corporate Philanthropy and Tunneling: Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 150(1), pages 135-157, June.
    4. Heli Wang & Ming Jia & Zhe Zhang, 2021. "Good Deeds Done in Silence: Stakeholder Management and Quiet Giving by Chinese Firms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 32(3), pages 649-674, May.
    5. Jun Xie & Junyi Chen, 2021. "Corporate philanthropy, public awareness, and the cost of equity capital: Evidence from China," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 22(1), pages 153-194, May.
    6. Wu, Bao & Monfort, Abel & Jin, Chenfei & Shen, Xinyan, 2022. "Substantial response or impression management? Compliance strategies for sustainable development responsibility in family firms," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    7. Xingqiang Du & Yingjie Du & Quan Zeng & Hongmei Pei & Yingying Chang, 2016. "Religious atmosphere, law enforcement, and corporate social responsibility: Evidence from China," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 33(1), pages 229-265, March.
    8. Lei Xu & Xiaoning Guo & Yan Liu & Xiaochen Sun & Jie Ji, 2022. "How Does Corporate Charitable Giving Affect Enterprise Innovation? A Literature Review and Research Directions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-21, November.
    9. Yaoqin Li, 2021. "Religious founders and employee welfare," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(5), pages 6037-6067, December.
    10. Kun Su, 2019. "Does religion benefit corporate social responsibility (CSR)? Evidence from China," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(6), pages 1206-1221, November.
    11. Olivier Meier & Guillaume Schier, 2021. "CSR and Family CEO: The Moderating Role of CEO’s Age," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 174(3), pages 595-612, December.
    12. Wu, Wuqing & Peng, Fei & Shan, Yuan George & Jie, Xiaoxiao, 2020. "Signaling through corporate philanthropy," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    13. Xingqiang Du & Wei Jian & Yingjie Du & Wentao Feng & Quan Zeng, 2014. "Religion, the Nature of Ultimate Owner, and Corporate Philanthropic Giving: Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 123(2), pages 235-256, August.
    14. Xingqiang Du, 2015. "Is Corporate Philanthropy Used as Environmental Misconduct Dressing? Evidence from Chinese Family-Owned Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 129(2), pages 341-361, June.
    15. Bose, Sudipta & Podder, Jyotirmoy & Biswas, Kumar, 2017. "Philanthropic giving, market-based performance and institutional ownership: Evidence from an emerging economy," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 429-444.
    16. Kellie Liket & Ana Simaens, 2015. "Battling the Devolution in the Research on Corporate Philanthropy," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 126(2), pages 285-308, January.
    17. Andrea Stübner & Svenja Jarchow, 2023. "Family oblige: the link between CSR and succession intention in small and medium family firms," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 93(3), pages 389-431, April.
    18. Minghui Yang & Yan Wang & Lu Bai & Petra Maresova, 2023. "Corporate social responsibility, family involvement, and stock price crash risk," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(3), pages 1204-1225, May.
    19. Dominik Aaken & Florian Buchner, 2020. "Religion and CSR: a systematic literature review," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 90(5), pages 917-945, June.
    20. Frederik Plewnia & Edeltraud Guenther, 2017. "The benefits of doing good: a meta-analysis of corporate philanthropy business outcomes and its implications for management control," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 28(3), pages 347-376, October.

    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:ememar:v:49:y:2021:i:c:s1566014120302326. 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/inca/620356 .

    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.