IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/corsem/v28y2021i6p1749-1759.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: International evidence of the mediating role of reputation

Author

Listed:
  • Yosra Makni Fourati
  • Mariam Dammak

Abstract

The aim of this article is to explore both the direct and indirect effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on corporate financial performance (CFP). Specifically, the mediating role of corporate reputation (CR) on the relationship between CSR and CFP is examined. We empirically investigate a sample of 3274 listed firms over the period 2009–2016 drawn from 25 countries located at Europe, Asia, Africa, and South and North America. Using four OLS regressions, we evince on the one side that CSR has a positive and direct impact on CFP. On the other side, we show that CR mediates the relationship between CSR and CFP: CSR has a significant and positive impact on CR and that CR has a significant and positive influence on CFP. The results of this study add to CSR‐related literature by providing international evidence and provide direction for a comparison across countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Yosra Makni Fourati & Mariam Dammak, 2021. "Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: International evidence of the mediating role of reputation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(6), pages 1749-1759, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:corsem:v:28:y:2021:i:6:p:1749-1759
    DOI: 10.1002/csr.2143
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2143
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/csr.2143?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. 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.
    2. Gerda Barauskaite & Dalia Streimikiene, 2021. "Corporate social responsibility and financial performance of companies: The puzzle of concepts, definitions and assessment methods," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 278-287, January.
    3. Won-Moo Hur & Hanna Kim & Jeong Woo, 2014. "How CSR Leads to Corporate Brand Equity: Mediating Mechanisms of Corporate Brand Credibility and Reputation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 125(1), pages 75-86, November.
    4. Suaini Othman & Faizah Darus & Roshayani Arshad, 2011. "The influence of coercive isomorphism on corporate social responsibility reporting and reputation," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 7(2), pages 119-135, February.
    5. Nollet, Joscha & Filis, George & Mitrokostas, Evangelos, 2016. "Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: A non-linear and disaggregated approach," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 52(PB), pages 400-407.
    6. J.J. Graafland & H. Smid, 2004. "Reputation, Corporate Social Responsibility and Market Regulation," Review of Business and Economic Literature, KU Leuven, Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), Review of Business and Economic Literature, vol. 0(2), pages 271-308.
    7. Na Ni & Carolyn Egri & Carlos Lo & Carol Lin, 2015. "Patterns of Corporate Responsibility Practices for High Financial Performance: Evidence from Three Chinese Societies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 126(2), pages 169-183, January.
    8. 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.
    9. Saeidi, Sayedeh Parastoo & Sofian, Saudah & Saeidi, Parvaneh & Saeidi, Sayyedeh Parisa & Saaeidi, Seyyed Alireza, 2015. "How does corporate social responsibility contribute to firm financial performance? The mediating role of competitive advantage, reputation, and customer satisfaction," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 341-350.
    10. Ahmed Al‐Hadi & Bikram Chatterjee & Ali Yaftian & Grantley Taylor & Mostafa Monzur Hasan, 2019. "Corporate social responsibility performance, financial distress and firm life cycle: evidence from Australia," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 59(2), pages 961-989, June.
    11. Sprinkle, Geoffrey B. & Maines, Laureen A., 2010. "The benefits and costs of corporate social responsibility," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 53(5), pages 445-453, September.
    12. E. Arikan & D. Kantur & C. Maden & E. Telci, 2016. "Investigating the mediating role of corporate reputation on the relationship between corporate social responsibility and multiple stakeholder outcomes," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 50(1), pages 129-149, January.
    13. Mehdi Taghian & Clare D’Souza & Michael Polonsky, 2015. "A stakeholder approach to corporate social responsibility, reputation and business performance," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 11(2), pages 340-363, June.
    14. Anastasia Axjonow & Jürgen Ernstberger & Christiane Pott, 2018. "The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure on Corporate Reputation: A Non-professional Stakeholder Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 151(2), pages 429-450, August.
    15. Progress Choongo, 2017. "A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Firm Performance in SMEs in Zambia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-19, July.
    16. Marco Trombetta & Mónica Espinosa, 2004. "The Reputational Consequences Of Disclosures," Working Papers. Serie EC 2004-10, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
    17. Chen-En Hou & Wen-Min Lu & Shiu-Wan Hung, 2019. "Does CSR matter? Influence of corporate social responsibility on corporate performance in the creative industry," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 278(1), pages 255-279, July.
    18. Elvia Shauki, 2011. "Perceptions on corporate social responsibility: A study in capturing public confidence," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(3), pages 200-208, May.
    19. Henry Petersen & Harrie Vredenburg, 2009. "Morals or Economics? Institutional Investor Preferences for Corporate Social Responsibility," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 90(1), pages 1-14, November.
    20. Jamal Shamsie, 2003. "The context of dominance: an industry‐driven framework for exploiting reputation," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(3), pages 199-215, March.
    21. Suaini Othman & Faizah Darus & Roshayani Arshad, 2011. "The influence of coercive isomorphism on corporate social responsibility reporting and reputation," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 7(1), pages 119-135, March.
    22. Chi-Shiun Lai & Chih-Jen Chiu & Chin-Fang Yang & Da-Chang Pai, 2010. "The Effects of Corporate Social Responsibility on Brand Performance: The Mediating Effect of Industrial Brand Equity and Corporate Reputation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(3), pages 457-469, September.
    23. SeHyun Park, 2017. "Corporate social responsibility, visibility, reputation and financial performance: empirical analysis on the moderating and mediating variables from Korea," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 13(4), pages 856-871, October.
    24. Park, Jongchul & Lee, Hanjoon & Kim, Chankon, 2014. "Corporate social responsibilities, consumer trust and corporate reputation: South Korean consumers' perspectives," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 295-302.
    25. Luis Cabral, 2012. "Living Up to Expectations: Corporate Reputation and Sustainable Competitive Advantage," Working Papers 12-19, New York University, Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Department of Economics.
    26. Kotha, Suresh & Rajgopal, Shivaram & Rindova, Violina, 2001. "Reputation Building and Performance: An Empirical Analysis of the Top-50 Pure Internet Firms," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 19(6), pages 571-586, December.
    27. Ker-Tah Hsu, 2012. "The Advertising Effects of Corporate Social Responsibility on Corporate Reputation and Brand Equity: Evidence from the Life Insurance Industry in Taiwan," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 109(2), pages 189-201, August.
    28. 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.
    29. Paul C. Godfrey & Craig B. Merrill & Jared M. Hansen, 2009. "The relationship between corporate social responsibility and shareholder value: an empirical test of the risk management hypothesis," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 425-445, April.
    30. Zia ur Rehman & Asad Khan & Asim Rahman, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility's influence on firm risk and firm performance: the mediating role of firm reputation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(6), pages 2991-3005, November.
    31. 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. Sonia Boukattaya & Zyed Achour & Zeineb Hlioui, 2021. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Financial Performance: An Empirical Literature Review," Post-Print hal-03472433, HAL.
    2. Christopher Groening & Cheryl‐lyn Ngoh & Ryan Luchs, 2022. "The impact of a firm's corporate social responsibility on firm–supplier relationships: The effect of secondary stakeholder CSR on inventory days," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(5), pages 1689-1705, September.
    3. David Berlepsch & Fred Lemke & Matthew Gorton, 2024. "The Importance of Corporate Reputation for Sustainable Supply Chains: A Systematic Literature Review, Bibliometric Mapping, and Research Agenda," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(1), pages 9-34, January.
    4. Lixin Sheng & Jibao Gu & Jianlin Wu, 2023. "How does entrepreneurial orientation influence firm performance? The roles of corporate social responsibility and institutional environments," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(4), pages 2021-2036, July.
    5. Riccardo Rodella & Maria Rosa De Giacomo, 2023. "How do financial markets reward companies tackling climate change concerns? A natural experiment based on the Brexit referendum," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 979-990, March.
    6. Timo Busch & Maximilian Schnippering, 2022. "Corporate social and financial performance: Revisiting the role of innovation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(3), pages 635-645, May.
    7. Sojin Jung & Stacy H. Lee, 2022. "The buffering effect of continuous corporate social responsibilities engagement on negative consumer responses toward brand crises," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(5), pages 1636-1646, September.
    8. Kyle D. Turner, 2022. "Actions in the spotlight: Differential effects of corporate social responsibility actions on organizational celebrity," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(4), pages 860-870, July.
    9. Juan Carlos Matallín‐Sáez & Amparo Soler‐Domínguez & Salvador Navarro‐Montoliu & Diego Víctor de Mingo‐López, 2022. "Investor behavior and the demand for conventional and socially responsible mutual funds," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(1), pages 46-59, January.
    10. Francisco José Gomes Silva & Konstantinos Kirytopoulos & Luis Pinto Ferreira & José Carlos Sá & Gilberto Santos & Maria Carolina Cancela Nogueira, 2022. "The three pillars of sustainability and agile project management: How do they influence each other," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(5), pages 1495-1512, September.
    11. Erum Shaikh & Mohsen Brahmi & Pham Chien Thang & Waqas Ahmad Watto & Ta Thi Nguyet Trang & Nguyen Thi Loan, 2022. "Should I Stay or Should I Go? Explaining the Turnover Intentions with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Organizational Identification and Organizational Commitment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-16, May.
    12. He-Boong Kwon & Jooh Lee & Laee Choi, 2023. "Dynamic interplay of environmental sustainability and corporate reputation: a combined parametric and nonparametric approach," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 324(1), pages 687-719, May.

    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. Clara Pérez‐Cornejo & Esther de Quevedo‐Puente & Juan Bautista Delgado‐García, 2020. "Reporting as a booster of the corporate social performance effect on corporate reputation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(3), pages 1252-1263, May.
    2. Zia ur Rehman & Asad Khan & Asim Rahman, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility's influence on firm risk and firm performance: the mediating role of firm reputation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(6), pages 2991-3005, November.
    3. 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.
    4. 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.
    5. Marina Brogi & Antonella Cappiello & Valentina Lagasio & Fabrizio Santoboni, 2022. "Determinants of insurance companies' environmental, social, and governance awareness," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(5), pages 1357-1369, September.
    6. Woon Leong Lin & Jo Ann Ho & Murali Sambasivan, 2018. "Impact of Corporate Political Activity on the Relationship Between Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance: A Dynamic Panel Data Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-22, December.
    7. Bader Obeidat & Forat Hasan Alkhalafat & Nisrin Amira Abdallah Makahleh & Mohammed Ali Akour, 2019. "The Role of Corporate Social Responsibility in Enhancing Firm Performance: The Mediating Effect of Transformational Leadership," Journal of Business & Management (COES&RJ-JBM), , vol. 7(2), pages 162-191, April.
    8. Francisco Javier Forcadell & Elisa Aracil, 2017. "European Banks' Reputation for Corporate Social Responsibility," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(1), pages 1-14, January.
    9. Massimiliano Cerciello & Francesco Busato & Simone Taddeo, 2023. "The effect of sustainable business practices on profitability. Accounting for strategic disclosure," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 802-819, March.
    10. Iordanis Kalaitzoglou & Hui Pan & Jacek Niklewski, 2021. "Corporate social responsibility: How much is enough? A higher dimension perspective of the relationship between financial and social performance," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 306(1), pages 209-245, November.
    11. J. Alfredo Flores‐Hernández & Jesús J. Cambra‐Fierro & Rosario Vázquez‐Carrasco, 2020. "Sustainability, brand image, reputation and financial value: Manager perceptions in an emerging economy context," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(4), pages 935-945, July.
    12. Bardos, Katsiaryna Salavei & Ertugrul, Mine & Gao, Lucia Silva, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility, product market perception, and firm value," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    13. Alfredo Flores-Hernández & Ana Olavarría-Jaraba & Guadalupe Valera-Blanes & Rosario Vázquez-Carrasco, 2020. "Sustainability and Branding in Retail: A Model of Chain of Effects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-15, July.
    14. Alexandra ZBUCHEA & Florina PÎNZARU, 2017. "Tailoring CSR Strategy to Company Size?," Management Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy, College of Management, National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, vol. 5(3), pages 415-437, September.
    15. Yu-Muo Lee & Jin-Li Hu, 2018. "Integrated Approaches for Business Sustainability: The Perspective of Corporate Social Responsibility," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-20, July.
    16. Zelong Wei & Hao Shen & Kevin Zheng Zhou & Julie Juan Li, 2017. "How Does Environmental Corporate Social Responsibility Matter in a Dysfunctional Institutional Environment? Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 140(2), pages 209-223, January.
    17. Zhaoyang Guo & Siyu Hou & Qingchang Li, 2020. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Value: The Moderating Effects of Financial Flexibility and R&D Investment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-17, October.
    18. Mª Eugenia López‐Pérez & Iguácel Melero & F Javier Sese, 2017. "Management for Sustainable Development and Its Impact on Firm Value in the SME Context: Does Size Matter?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(7), pages 985-999, November.
    19. Eduardo Duque-Grisales & Javier Aguilera-Caracuel, 2021. "Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Scores and Financial Performance of Multilatinas: Moderating Effects of Geographic International Diversification and Financial Slack," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 168(2), pages 315-334, January.
    20. Francisco Javier Forcadell & Antonio Lorena & Elisa Aracil, 2023. "The firm under the spotlight: How stakeholder scrutiny shapes corporate social responsibility and its influence on performance," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(3), pages 1258-1272, May.

    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:wly:corsem:v:28:y:2021:i:6:p:1749-1759. 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: https://doi.org/10.1002/(ISSN)1535-3966 .

    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.