IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/finana/v87y2023ics1057521923001527.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Celebrity CEOs and corporate investment: A psychological contract perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Zhou, Linzi
  • Long, Wenbin
  • Qu, Xin
  • Yao, Daifei

Abstract

Drawing on the psychological contract theory, we examine how the celebrity status of chief executive officers (CEO) influences corporate investment behavior. Using a sample of Chinese listed companies from 2002 to 2019, we find that celebrity CEOs increase corporate investment levels, leading to lower investment efficiency. In addition, they employ more impression management tactics to signal their superior managerial ability, and dodge possible rejections of their investment decisions by having fewer board meetings. Furthermore, since the perceived psychological contract is dynamic, we provide evidence that the association between the celebrity CEO and corporate investment is more pronounced when a firm faces environmental uncertainty, and pressures from intensive industry competition and peers' performance. Our study contributes to corporate finance literature and results indicate that CEOs with celebrity status are pressured to maintain a psychological contract, which in turn, reduce the efficiency of corporate resource allocation.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhou, Linzi & Long, Wenbin & Qu, Xin & Yao, Daifei, 2023. "Celebrity CEOs and corporate investment: A psychological contract perspective," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finana:v:87:y:2023:i:c:s1057521923001527
    DOI: 10.1016/j.irfa.2023.102636
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1057521923001527
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.irfa.2023.102636?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. Biddle, Gary C. & Hilary, Gilles & Verdi, Rodrigo S., 2009. "How does financial reporting quality relate to investment efficiency?," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(2-3), pages 112-131, December.
    2. Ulrike Malmendier & Geoffrey Tate, 2005. "CEO Overconfidence and Corporate Investment," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(6), pages 2661-2700, December.
    3. Milton Harris & Artur Raviv, 2008. "A Theory of Board Control and Size," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 21(4), pages 1797-1832, July.
    4. Vincent L. Barker , III & George C. Mueller, 2002. "CEO Characteristics and Firm R&D Spending," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(6), pages 782-801, June.
    5. Chen, Ruiyuan & El Ghoul, Sadok & Guedhami, Omrane & Wang, He, 2017. "Do state and foreign ownership affect investment efficiency? Evidence from privatizations," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 408-421.
    6. Lee, Gilsoo & Cho, Sam Yul & Arthurs, Jonathan & Lee, Eun Kyung, 2020. "Celebrity CEO, identity threat, and impression management: Impact of celebrity status on corporate social responsibility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 69-84.
    7. Scott R. Baker & Nicholas Bloom & Steven J. Davis, 2016. "Measuring Economic Policy Uncertainty," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 131(4), pages 1593-1636.
    8. Joshua Shemesh, 2017. "CEO Social Status and Risk-Taking," Quarterly Journal of Finance (QJF), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 7(02), pages 1-35, June.
    9. Chen, Shimin & Sun, Zheng & Tang, Song & Wu, Donghui, 2011. "Government intervention and investment efficiency: Evidence from China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 259-271, April.
    10. Plaksina, Yulia & Gallagher, Liam & Dowling, Michael, 2019. "CEO social status and M&A decision making," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 282-300.
    11. Park, Jong-Hun & Kim, Changsu & Sung, Yun-Dal, 2014. "Whom to dismiss? CEO celebrity and management dismissal," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(11), pages 2346-2355.
    12. R. David Mclean & Tianyu Zhang & Mengxin Zhao, 2012. "Why Does the Law Matter? Investor Protection and Its Effects on Investment, Finance, and Growth," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 67(1), pages 313-350, February.
    13. Kim, Bora & Lee, Seoki, 2022. "The impact of celebrity CEOs on restaurant firm performance: The moderating role of environmental dynamism," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 869-880.
    14. Sam Y. Cho & Jonathan D. Arthurs & David M. Townsend & Douglas R. Miller & Jeffrey Q. Barden, 2016. "Performance deviations and acquisition premiums: The impact of CEO celebrity on managerial risk‐taking," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(13), pages 2677-2694, December.
    15. Wei Cen & John A. Doukas, 2017. "CEO personal investment decisions and firm risk," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 23(5), pages 920-950, October.
    16. Caroline Flammer & Ioannis Ioannou, 2021. "Strategic management during the financial crisis: How firms adjust their strategic investments in response to credit market disruptions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(7), pages 1275-1298, July.
    17. Wei, Jiuchang & Ouyang, Zhe & Chen, Haipeng (Allan), 2018. "CEO characteristics and corporate philanthropic giving in an emerging market: The case of China," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 1-11.
    18. Ulrike Malmendier & Geoffrey Tate, 2005. "Does Overconfidence Affect Corporate Investment? CEO Overconfidence Measures Revisited," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 11(5), pages 649-659, November.
    19. Renée B. Adams & Daniel Ferreira, 2007. "A Theory of Friendly Boards," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(1), pages 217-250, February.
    20. Charles Ham & Nicholas Seybert & Sean Wang, 2018. "Narcissism is a bad sign: CEO signature size, investment, and performance," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 23(1), pages 234-264, March.
    21. 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.
    22. Auh, Seigyoung & Menguc, Bulent, 2005. "Balancing exploration and exploitation: The moderating role of competitive intensity," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 58(12), pages 1652-1661, December.
    23. Scott D. Graffin & James B. Wade & Joseph F. Porac & Robert C. McNamee, 2008. "The Impact of CEO Status Diffusion on the Economic Outcomes of Other Senior Managers," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(3), pages 457-474, June.
    24. Kevin Koh, 2011. "Value or Glamour? An empirical investigation of the effect of celebrity CEOs on financial reporting practices and firm performance," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 51(2), pages 517-547, June.
    25. Jennifer Francis & Allen H. Huang & Shivaram Rajgopal & Amy Y. Zang, 2008. "CEO Reputation and Earnings Quality," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 25(1), pages 109-147, March.
    26. Jared Harris & Philip Bromiley, 2007. "Incentives to Cheat: The Influence of Executive Compensation and Firm Performance on Financial Misrepresentation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 18(3), pages 350-367, June.
    27. Agyei-Boapeah, Henry & Ntim, Collins G. & Fosu, Samuel, 2019. "Governance structures and the compensation of powerful corporate leaders in financial firms during M&As," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    28. Matthew S. Bothner & Young-Kyu Kim & Edward Bishop Smith, 2012. "How Does Status Affect Performance? Status as an Asset vs. Status as a Liability in the PGA and NASCAR," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 23(2), pages 416-433, April.
    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. Li, Quan & Sun, Haodan & Tao, Yunqing & Ye, Yongwei & Zhan, Kaiyan, 2023. "The fault-tolerant and error-correction mechanism and capital allocation efficiency of state-owned Enterprises in China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 80(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. Marco Caiffa & Vincenzo Farina & Lucrezia Fattobene, 2020. "All that glitters is not gold: CEOs' celebrity beyond media content," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 25(3), pages 444-460, July.
    2. Zhang, Lida & Cai, Wenwu, 2023. "Star CEOs and investment efficiency: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    3. Lee, Gilsoo & Cho, Sam Yul & Arthurs, Jonathan & Lee, Eun Kyung, 2020. "Celebrity CEO, identity threat, and impression management: Impact of celebrity status on corporate social responsibility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 69-84.
    4. Zhe Li & Oksana Pryshchepa & Bo Wang, 2023. "Financial experts on the top management team: Do they reduce investment inefficiency?," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(1-2), pages 198-235, January.
    5. Kim, Jeong-Bon & Liao, Shushu & Liu, Yangke, 2021. "Married CEOs and Stock Price Crash Risk," QBS Working Paper Series 2021/09, Queen's University Belfast, Queen's Business School.
    6. Huiqi Gan, 2019. "Does CEO managerial ability matter? Evidence from corporate investment efficiency," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 1085-1118, May.
    7. Qing Wan & Xiaoke Cheng & Kam C. Chan & Shenghao Gao, 2021. "Born to innovate? The birth‐order effect of CEOs on corporate innovation," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(9-10), pages 1846-1888, October.
    8. BENKRAIEM, Ramzi & GAAYA, Safa & LAKHAL, Faten, 2024. "Tax avoidance, investor protection, and investment inefficiency: An international evidence," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    9. Ahmed, Mohamed Shaker & Kumar, Satish & Gupta, Prashant & Bamel, Nisha, 2024. "CEO media coverage and cash holdings," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    10. Sam Y. Cho & Jonathan D. Arthurs & David M. Townsend & Douglas R. Miller & Jeffrey Q. Barden, 2016. "Performance deviations and acquisition premiums: The impact of CEO celebrity on managerial risk‐taking," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(13), pages 2677-2694, December.
    11. Gaurav Gupta & Jitendra Mahakud & Vivek Verma, 2020. "CEO's education and investment–cash flow sensitivity: an empirical investigation," International Journal of Managerial Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 17(4), pages 589-618, December.
    12. Xueman Xiang & Carl R. Chen & Yue Liu & Azhar Mughal & Qizhi Tao, 2024. "Are directors with foreign experience better monitors? Evidence from investment efficiency," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 62(2), pages 799-840, February.
    13. Zhongbo Jing & Shiyu Lu & Yang Zhao & Jun Zhou, 2023. "Economic policy uncertainty, corporate investment decisions and stock price crash risk: Evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 63(S1), pages 1477-1502, April.
    14. Thanh Ngo & Tu DQ Le & Dat T Nguyen & Tin H Ho, 2023. "Determinants Of Bank Performance: Revisiting The Role Of Ceo’S Personality Traits Using Graphology," Bulletin of Monetary Economics and Banking, Bank Indonesia, vol. 26(2), pages 289-310, May.
    15. Bao, Xin & Sun, Baiqing & Han, Meini & Lin, Han & Lau, Raymond Y.K., 2023. "Quantifying the impact of CEO social media celebrity status on firm value: Novel measures from digital gatekeeping theory," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    16. Nga Trinh, 2024. "Economic Policy Uncertainty and Corporate Investment Efficiency: Evidence from Australian Energy Companies," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 14(1), pages 53-60, January.
    17. Tran Phuong, Thao & Le, Anh-Tuan & Ouyang, Puman, 2022. "Board tenure diversity and investment efficiency: A global analysis," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    18. King, Timothy & Srivastav, Abhishek & Williams, Jonathan, 2016. "What's in an education? Implications of CEO education for bank performance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 287-308.
    19. Aydin Ozkan & Roberto J. Santillán‐Salgado & Yilmaz Yildiz & María del Rocío Vega Zavala, 2020. "What Happened To The Willingness Of Companies To Invest After The Financial Crisis? Evidence From Latin American Countries," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 43(2), pages 231-262, May.
    20. O'Toole, Conor M. & Morgenroth, Edgar L.W. & Ha, Thuy T., 2016. "Investment efficiency, state-owned enterprises and privatisation: Evidence from Viet Nam in Transition," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 93-108.

    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:finana:v:87:y:2023:i:c:s1057521923001527. 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/620166 .

    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.