IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/reveco/v101y2025ics1059056025002965.html

ESG and Manager integrity: Evidence from China

Author

Listed:
  • Lv, Wendai
  • Meng, Qiuchi
  • Gan, Zhixia
  • Sun, Shilu

Abstract

This paper investigates the role of management integrity in determining the quality of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) disclosures. We first derive a measure of management integrity from the Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) section of annual financial statements using textual analysis and machine learning techniques. We then conduct baseline regressions and a series of robustness tests. Our empirical findings reveal a positive relationship between management integrity and ESG scores, particularly in the environmental and social dimensions. This research emphasizes the importance of non-financial information in investor assessments and highlights the critical role of management integrity in the effective implementation of ESG strategies.

Suggested Citation

  • Lv, Wendai & Meng, Qiuchi & Gan, Zhixia & Sun, Shilu, 2025. "ESG and Manager integrity: Evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:reveco:v:101:y:2025:i:c:s1059056025002965
    DOI: 10.1016/j.iref.2025.104133
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1059056025002965
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.iref.2025.104133?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. Durnev, Art & Mangen, Claudine, 2020. "The spillover effects of MD&A disclosures for real investment: The role of industry competition," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(1).
    2. He, Yu & Zhao, Xiaoling & Zheng, Huan, 2023. "How does the environmental protection tax law affect firm ESG? Evidence from the Chinese stock markets," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(PA).
    3. Gunther Capelle-Blancard & Aurélien Petit, 2019. "Every Little Helps? ESG News and Stock Market Reaction," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 157(2), pages 543-565, June.
    4. Mauro Romano & Alessandro Cirillo & Christian Favino & Antonio Netti, 2020. "ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) Performance and Board Gender Diversity: The Moderating Role of CEO Duality," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-16, November.
    5. Lee, Michael T. & Raschke, Robyn L. & Krishen, Anjala S., 2022. "Signaling green! firm ESG signals in an interconnected environment that promote brand valuation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 1-11.
    6. Fang, Yiwei & Fiordelisi, Franco & Hasan, Iftekhar & Leung, Woon Sau & Wong, Gabriel, 2023. "Corporate culture and firm value: Evidence from crisis," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    7. Chance, Don & Cicon, James & Ferris, Stephen P., 2015. "Poor performance and the value of corporate honesty," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 1-18.
    8. Karim Mahran & Ahmed A. Elamer, 2024. "Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and corporate environmental sustainability: A systematic literature review and avenues for future research," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3), pages 1977-2003, March.
    9. Maha Faisal Alsayegh & Rashidah Abdul Rahman & Saeid Homayoun, 2020. "Corporate Economic, Environmental, and Social Sustainability Performance Transformation through ESG Disclosure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-20, May.
    10. Wang, Yanxia & Shen, Tao & Chen, Yang & Carmeli, Abraham, 2021. "CEO environmentally responsible leadership and firm environmental innovation: A socio-psychological perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 327-340.
    11. Huang, Jun & Han, Feifei & Li, Yun, 2023. "Government as major customer: The effects of government procurement on corporate environmental, social, and governance performance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    12. Kai Li & Feng Mai & Rui Shen & Xinyan Yan, 2021. "Measuring Corporate Culture Using Machine Learning," NBER Chapters, in: Big Data: Long-Term Implications for Financial Markets and Firms, pages 3265-3315, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Pham, Hanh Song Thi & Tran, Hien Thi, 2020. "CSR disclosure and firm performance: The mediating role of corporate reputation and moderating role of CEO integrity," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 127-136.
    14. Yuping Jia, 2013. "Meeting or Missing Earnings Benchmarks: The Role of CEO Integrity," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(3-4), pages 373-398, April.
    15. Laura Chiaramonte & Alberto Dreassi & Claudia Girardone & Stefano Piserà, 2022. "Do ESG strategies enhance bank stability during financial turmoil? Evidence from Europe," The European Journal of Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(12), pages 1173-1211, August.
    16. Jinhua Cui & Hoje Jo & Haejung Na, 2018. "Does Corporate Social Responsibility Affect Information Asymmetry?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(3), pages 549-572, March.
    17. Cline, Brandon N. & Walkling, Ralph A. & Yore, Adam S., 2018. "The consequences of managerial indiscretions: Sex, lies, and firm value," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(2), pages 389-415.
    18. Finja Lena Kind & Jennifer Zeppenfeld & Rainer Lueg, 2023. "The impact of chief executive officer narcissism on environmental, social, and governance reporting," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4448-4466, November.
    19. Kai Li & Feng Mai & Rui Shen & Xinyan Yan, 2021. "Measuring Corporate Culture Using Machine Learning [Machine learning methods that economists should know about]," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 34(7), pages 3265-3315.
    20. Steven N. Kaplan & Mark M. Klebanov & Morten Sorensen, 2012. "Which CEO Characteristics and Abilities Matter?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 67(3), pages 973-1007, June.
    21. Bhaskar, Ratikant & Li, Peigong & Bansal, Shashank & Kumar, Satish, 2023. "A new insight on CEO characteristics and corporate social responsibility (CSR): A meta-analytical review," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    22. Gil Cohen, 2023. "The impact of ESG risks on corporate value," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 60(4), pages 1451-1468, May.
    23. Yasser Eliwa & Ahmed Aboud & Ahmed Saleh, 2023. "Board gender diversity and ESG decoupling: Does religiosity matter?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4046-4067, November.
    24. Yang, Mo & Li, Yan & Dong, Dayong, 2023. "Strategic information disclosure and the cost of equity capital: Evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    25. Daryl Koehn & Maria Goranova, 2018. "Do Investors See Value in Ethically Sound CEO Apologies? Investigating Stock Market Reaction to CEO Apologies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 152(2), pages 311-322, October.
    26. Liu, Hongxun & Zhang, Zihan, 2023. "The impact of managerial myopia on environmental, social and governance (ESG) engagement: Evidence from Chinese firms," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 122(C).
    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. Bao, Xin & Han, Meini & Lau, Raymond & Xu, Xiaowei, 2024. "Corporate integrity culture and credit rating assessment," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    2. Liu, Xuexin & Tang, Xiaomeng & Kong, Xiaoxu & Gao, Jijun & Jiang, Lihua, 2026. "The impact of non-state shareholder governance on state-owned enterprises' ESG performance in China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    3. Li, Wenquan & Neupane, Suman & Tan, Kelvin Jui Keng, 2025. "Environmental externalities of corporate culture: Evidence from firm pollution," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 57(5).
    4. Tran, Thanh & Nguyen, Harvey & Pham, Mia Hang, 2025. "Do financial markets value corporate culture?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    5. Coraggio, Luca & Pagano, Marco & Scognamiglio, Annalisa & Tåg, Joacim, 2025. "JAQ of all trades: Job mismatch, firm productivity and managerial quality," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    6. Shiblu, Kawser Ahmed & Toscano, Francesca, 2026. "Culture as a catalyst: The impact of corporate culture on strategic alliances and equity market response," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    7. Karim Mahran & Ahmed A. Elamer, 2026. "Navigating the Corporate Ego: Understanding the Association Between ESG Performance and Organizational Narcissistic Rhetoric," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 204(2), pages 437-456, March.
    8. Wang, Qun & Zhou, Yan & Zhao, Xiangfang & Zeng, Yongliang, 2025. "Collaborative culture, product quality, and firm performance," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 246(C).
    9. Dan Palmon & Yifei Chen & Biao Chen, 2024. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Information Asymmetry: Do Earnings Conference Calls Play a Role?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 194(1), pages 77-101, September.
    10. Tingting Hu & Kun You & Char-Lee Lok, 2025. "State ownership, political connection and ESG performance," Risk Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 27(1), pages 1-33, February.
    11. Liu, Qigui & Wang, Junyi & Chi, Wenqiang, 2022. "The spillover effects of innovation content disclosure in MD&A," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    12. Yiqiang Zhou & Lianghua Chen & Xue Peng & Wan Li, 2026. "Impact of “environmental disclosure greenwashing”: a study from the perspective of heterogeneous environmental policies," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 28(4), pages 10265-10298, April.
    13. Li, Weiping & Mao, Zhuowei & Ren, Xiaohang & Liang, Jing, 2025. "Retail investor attention: Guardian of corporate ESG integrity or catalyst for greenwashing?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    14. Ding, Guolei & Lei, Jin & Liu, Yunxiao & Wang, Zhen, 2024. "Supplier–customer cultural similarity and supplier performance," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    15. Sakhr Bani-Khaled & Graça Azevedo & Jonas Oliveira, 2025. "Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors and firm value: A systematic literature review of theories and empirical evidence," AMS Review, Springer;Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 15(1), pages 228-260, June.
    16. Jinyu Chen & Yixin Qiu & Qian Ding & Yuan Geng, 2025. "Climate transition risk and corporate environment, social and governance performance: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(3), pages 2829-2848, July.
    17. Quan‐Jing Wang & Hai‐Jie Wang & Gen‐Fu Feng & Chun‐Ping Chang, 2023. "Impact of digital transformation on performance of environment, social, and governance: Empirical evidence from China," Business Ethics, the Environment & Responsibility, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(4), pages 1373-1388, October.
    18. Talal Zebian & Terry Harris & Omneya Abdelsalam, 2025. "Adaptability culture and meeting or beating analysts’ estimates," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 65(2), pages 471-537, August.
    19. Cumming, Douglas & Köchling, Gerrit & Neukirchen, Daniel & Posch, Peter N., 2024. "How does corporate culture affect IPO price formation?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    20. Cao, Jiawei & Li, Haibo & Zhong, Juandan, 2025. "Management integrity and stock liquidity," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    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:reveco:v:101:y:2025:i:c:s1059056025002965. 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/620165 .

    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.