IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v116y2013i1p49-65.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Impact of Operational Diversity on Corporate Philanthropy: An Empirical Study of U.S. Companies

Author

Listed:
  • Jean Kabongo
  • Kiyoung Chang
  • Ying Li

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of diversity on corporate philanthropy. Compared to previous studies that have considered the influence of board diversity and CEO gender on corporate philanthropy, this study introduces the concept of operational diversity, which is the implementation of diversity programs at management, employee, and supply chain levels, and further, it explains why operational diversity influences corporate philanthropy, by using the premises of resource dependence theory. Second, this study also investigates the influence of board diversity on corporate philanthropy. Third, this study uses a large sample of U.S. firms over the period of 1991–2009 and tries to mitigate possible omitted variables and endogeneity problems that are often overlooked in previous research. We demonstrate that firms with operational diversity programs are likely more dependent on a broad variety of resources and give more to community as a strategic maneuver; hence, operational diversity is a better indicator for predicting future corporate giving than board diversity alone. However, having a woman or a member of a minority as a company’s chief executive officer is not sufficient to impact its charitable giving. A battery of robustness tests support our conclusion and confirm that our results are not driven by a firm’s general corporate social responsibility (CSR) score, gender or independence of board members, or firm ownership. This paper will assist researchers, practitioners, and other stakeholders in deepening their understanding of the predictors of corporate giving. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2013

Suggested Citation

  • Jean Kabongo & Kiyoung Chang & Ying Li, 2013. "The Impact of Operational Diversity on Corporate Philanthropy: An Empirical Study of U.S. Companies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 116(1), pages 49-65, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:116:y:2013:i:1:p:49-65
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-012-1445-9
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s10551-012-1445-9
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-012-1445-9?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. Linda Kamas & Anne Preston & Sandy Baum, 2008. "Altruism in individual and joint-giving decisions: What's gender got to do with it?," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(3), pages 23-50.
    2. Amy J. Hillman & Albert A. Cannella & Ramona L. Paetzold, 2000. "The Resource Dependence Role of Corporate Directors: Strategic Adaptation of Board Composition in Response to Environmental Change," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(2), pages 235-256, March.
    3. Eckel, Catherine C & Grossman, Philip J, 1998. "Are Women Less Selfish Than Men? Evidence from Dictator Experiments," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 108(448), pages 726-735, May.
    4. Boatsman, James R. & Gupta, Sanjay, 1996. "Taxes and Corporate Charity: Empirical Evidence from Micro-Level Panel Data," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association, vol. 49(2), pages 193-213, June.
    5. Dwyer, Sean & Richard, Orlando C. & Chadwick, Ken, 2003. "Gender diversity in management and firm performance: the influence of growth orientation and organizational culture," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 56(12), pages 1009-1019, December.
    6. James Andreoni & Lise Vesterlund, 2001. "Which is the Fair Sex? Gender Differences in Altruism," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 116(1), pages 293-312.
    7. Daily, Catherine M. & Dalton, Dan R., 2003. "Are Director Equity Policies Exclusionary?," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 13(4), pages 415-432, October.
    8. Usha C. V. Haley, 1991. "Corporate Contributions As Managerial Masques: Reframing Corporate Contributions As Strategies to Influence Society," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(5), pages 485-510, September.
    9. James C. Cox & Cary A. Deck, 2006. "When Are Women More Generous than Men?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 44(4), pages 587-598, October.
    10. 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.
    11. Roberto Garcia-Castro & Miguel Ariño & Miguel Canela, 2010. "Does Social Performance Really Lead to Financial Performance? Accounting for Endogeneity," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 92(1), pages 107-126, March.
    12. Brian Boyd, 1990. "Corporate linkages and organizational environment: A test of the resource dependence model," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(6), pages 419-430, October.
    13. Walter O. Simmons & Rosemarie Emanuele, 2007. "Male‐female giving differentials: are women more altruistic?," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 34(6), pages 534-550, November.
    14. Stephen Brammer & Andrew Millington, 2004. "The Development of Corporate Charitable Contributions in the UK: A Stakeholder Analysis," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(8), pages 1411-1434, December.
    15. Navarro, Peter, 1988. "Why Do Corporations Give to Charity?," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 61(1), pages 65-93, January.
    16. Orlando C. Richard & B. P. S Murthi & Kiran Ismail, 2007. "The impact of racial diversity on intermediate and long‐term performance: The moderating role of environmental context," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(12), pages 1213-1233, December.
    17. Louis Amato & Christie Amato, 2007. "The Effects of Firm Size and Industry on Corporate Giving," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 72(3), pages 229-241, May.
    18. John A. Pearce & Shaker A. Zahra, 1992. "Board Composition From A Strategic Contingency Perspective," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(4), pages 411-438, July.
    19. 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.
    20. Ross, Stephen A, 1973. "The Economic Theory of Agency: The Principal's Problem," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 63(2), pages 134-139, May.
    21. 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.
    22. Stephen Bear & Noushi Rahman & Corinne Post, 2010. "The Impact of Board Diversity and Gender Composition on Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Reputation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 97(2), pages 207-221, December.
    23. Boatsman, James R. & Gupta, Sanjay, 1996. "Taxes and Corporate Charity: Empirical Evidence from Micro Level Panel Data," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association, vol. 49(2), pages 193, June.
    24. Dufwenberg, Martin & Muren, Astri, 2006. "Generosity, anonymity, gender," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 42-49, September.
    25. Boatsman, James R. & Gupta, Sanjay, 1996. "Taxes and Corporate Charity: Empirical Evidence From Micro Level Panel Data," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 49(2), pages 193-193, June.
    26. Baruch Lev & Christine Petrovits & Suresh Radhakrishnan, 2010. "Is doing good good for you? how corporate charitable contributions enhance revenue growth," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(2), pages 182-200, February.
    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. David K. Ding & Echo Su Chen, 2018. "The market impact of the appointment of female directors in listed companies in New Zealand," Journal of Administrative and Business Studies, Professor Dr. Usman Raja, vol. 4(5), pages 247-257.
    2. Kiyoung Chang & Incheol Kim & Ying Li, 2014. "The Heterogeneous Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility Activities That Target Different Stakeholders," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 125(2), pages 211-234, December.
    3. Elshandidy, Tamer & Bamber, Matthew & Omara, Hossam, 2024. "Across the faultlines: A multi-dimensional index to measure and assess board diversity," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    4. Truc (Peter) Do & Kathleen Herbohn, 2024. "The impact of board ethnic diversity and Chief Executive Officer role on corporate social responsibility," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 64(1), pages 575-605, March.
    5. Cristina Gaio & Tiago Cruz Gonçalves, 2022. "Gender Diversity on the Board and Firms’ Corporate Social Responsibility," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-16, February.
    6. Raquel Garde Sánchez & Jesús Mauricio Flórez-Parra & María Victoria López-Pérez & Antonio Manuel López-Hernández, 2020. "Corporate Governance and Disclosure of Information on Corporate Social Responsibility: An Analysis of the Top 200 Universities in the Shanghai Ranking," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-22, February.
    7. Al-Shammari, Marwan & Rasheed, Abdul & Al-Shammari, Hussam A., 2019. "CEO narcissism and corporate social responsibility: Does CEO narcissism affect CSR focus?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 106-117.
    8. Jenna J. Burke & Rani Hoitash & Udi Hoitash, 2019. "The Heterogeneity of Board-Level Sustainability Committees and Corporate Social Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 154(4), pages 1161-1186, February.
    9. Kiyoung Chang & Jean Kabongo & Ying Li, 2021. "Geographic proximity, long-term institutional ownership, and corporate social responsibility," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 56(1), pages 297-328, January.
    10. Nooraisah Katmon & Zam Zuriyati Mohamad & Norlia Mat Norwani & Omar Al Farooque, 2019. "Comprehensive Board Diversity and Quality of Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure: Evidence from an Emerging Market," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 157(2), pages 447-481, June.
    11. 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.
    12. Young Kyun Chang & Won-Yong Oh & Jee Hyun Park & Myoung Gyun Jang, 2017. "Exploring the Relationship Between Board Characteristics and CSR: Empirical Evidence from Korea," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 140(2), pages 225-242, January.
    13. Lourdes Arco-Castro & Maria Victoria López-Pérez & Maria Carmen Pérez-López & Lázaro Rodríguez-Ariza, 2020. "Corporate philanthropy and employee engagement," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 705-725, August.
    14. Mariasole Bannò & Emilia Filippi & Sandro Trento, 2023. "Women in top echelon positions and their effects on sustainability: a review, synthesis and future research agenda," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 27(1), pages 181-251, March.
    15. Giovanna Campopiano & Patricia Gabaldón & Daniela Gimenez-Jimenez, 2023. "Women Directors and Corporate Social Performance: An Integrative Review of the Literature and a Future Research Agenda," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 182(3), pages 717-746, January.

    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. 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.
    2. 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.
    3. Cowan, Adrian & Huang, Chia-Hsing & Padmanabhan, Prasad & Wang, Chi-Hui, 2013. "The determinants of foreign giving: An exploratory empirical investigation of US manufacturing firms," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 407-420.
    4. Iatridis, George Emmanuel, 2015. "Corporate philanthropy in the US stock market: Evidence on corporate governance, value relevance and earnings manipulation," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 113-126.
    5. Ateeq ur Rehman Irshad & Nabeel Safdar & Wajiha Manzoor, 2023. "Predicting Efficiency of Innovative Disaster Response Practices: Case Study of China’s Corporate Philanthropy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-15, January.
    6. Uzma Bashir, 2017. "Determinants of Corporate Philanthropy: A Case of Karachi Stock Exchange," International Econometric Review (IER), Econometric Research Association, vol. 9(1), pages 19-36, April.
    7. Duquette, Nicolas J. & Ohrn, Eric C., 2018. "Corporate charitable foundations, executive entrenchment, and shareholder distributions," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 235-253.
    8. Cheng-Li Huang & Ju-Lan Tsai, 2015. "Managerial Morality and Philanthropic Decision-Making: A Test of an Agency Model," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 132(4), pages 795-811, December.
    9. Uzma Bashir, 2017. "Determinants of Corporate Philanthropy: A Case of Karachi Stock Exchange," International Econometric Review (IER), Econometric Research Association, vol. 9(1), pages 21-38, April.
    10. Hongmin Chun & Jaeyon Chu & Yongsuk Yun, 2019. "The Impact of Corporate Charitable Contributions on Audit Hours," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-12, February.
    11. 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.
    12. Asatryan, Zareh & Joulfaian, David, 2022. "Taxes and Business Philanthropy in Armenia," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 914-930.
    13. Byungki Kim & Jinhan Pae & Choong-Yuel Yoo, 2019. "Business Groups and Tunneling: Evidence from Corporate Charitable Contributions by Korean Companies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 154(3), pages 643-666, February.
    14. Hao Liang & Luc Renneboog, 2017. "Corporate donations and shareholder value," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 33(2), pages 278-316.
    15. Manseek Choi & Soonwook Hong, 2022. "Another Form of Greenwashing: The Effects of Chaebol Firms’ Corporate Governance Performance on the Donations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-12, March.
    16. Petrovits, Christine M., 2006. "Corporate-sponsored foundations and earnings management," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 335-362, September.
    17. Cuili Qian & Xinzi Gao & Albert Tsang, 2015. "Corporate Philanthropy, Ownership Type, and Financial Transparency," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 130(4), pages 851-867, September.
    18. 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.
    19. 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.
    20. Won-Yong Oh & Young Kyun Chang & Gyeonghwan Lee & Jeongil Seo, 2018. "Intragroup Transactions, Corporate Governance, and Corporate Philanthropy in Korean Business Groups," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(4), pages 1031-1049, December.

    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:kap:jbuset:v:116:y:2013:i:1:p:49-65. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.