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Impact of family involvement on internal and external corporate social responsibilities: Evidence from Chinese publicly listed firms

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  • Yan Ye
  • Kongyue Li

Abstract

This study differentiates between internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) and external CSR to investigate the impact of family involvement on different dimensions of CSR. Using a sample of 2,114 Chinese listed firms, we show that family involvement is positively related to the level of firms' participation in external CSR but negatively related to the level of firms' participation in internal CSR. We further explore the roles of internal ownership structure and external institutional environment in influencing the incentives of family firms to invest in internal and external CSR. Results show that high levels of ownership balance and regional institutional development attenuate the negative effect of family involvement on internal CSR while a high level of regional institutional development strengthens the positive effect of family involvement on external CSR. These findings contribute to our understanding on the internal and external CSR strategies in family firms in emerging markets.

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  • Yan Ye & Kongyue Li, 2021. "Impact of family involvement on internal and external corporate social responsibilities: Evidence from Chinese publicly listed firms," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 352-365, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:corsem:v:28:y:2021:i:1:p:352-365
    DOI: 10.1002/csr.2053
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    2. Benjiang Ma & Yanlin Wang & Zhifang Zhou & Yu Lai & Zhongmin Zhou & Muhammad Farhan Bashir, 2022. "Can controlling family involvement promote firms to fulfill environmental responsibilities?—Evidence from China," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(2), pages 569-592, March.
    3. James J. Cordeiro & Ambra Galeazzo & Tara Shankar Shaw, 2023. "The CSR–CFP relationship in the presence of institutional voids and the moderating role of family ownership," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(1), pages 137-163, February.
    4. Stefania Veltri & Romilda Mazzotta & Franco Ernesto Rubino, 2021. "Board diversity and corporate social performance: Does the family firm status matter?," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(6), pages 1664-1679, November.
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    6. M. Isabel Sánchez-Hernández & Jose Luis Vázquez-Burguete & Maria P. García-Miguélez & Ana Lanero-Carrizo, 2021. "Internal Corporate Social Responsibility for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-14, July.
    7. Kaiyang Sun & Rumintha Wickramasekera & Alvin Tan, 2022. "Exploring the Relationship Between Family Involvement and Innovative Capability in Chinese Family SMEs: The Role of HR Redundancy," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(2), pages 21582440221, May.
    8. Sabeen Hussain Bhatti & Kamran Iqbal & Gabriele Santoro & Fabio Rizzato, 2022. "The impact of corporate social responsibility directed toward employees on contextual performance in the banking sector: A serial model of perceived organizational support and affective organizational," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(6), pages 1980-1994, November.
    9. Leonidou, Leonidas C. & Eteokleous, Pantelitsa P. & Christodoulides, Paul & Strømfeldt Eduardsen, Jonas, 2023. "A dynamic capabilities perspective to socially responsible family business: Implications on social-based advantage and market performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 155(PA).
    10. Saier Su & Fei Zhu & Haibo Zhou, 2022. "A Systematic Literature Review on Ownership and Corporate Social Responsibility in Family Firms," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-25, June.
    11. Peggy M. L. Ng & Tai Ming Wut & Kam Kong Lit & Cherry T. Y. Cheung, 2022. "Drivers of corporate social responsibility and firm performance for sustainable development—An institutional theory approach," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(4), pages 871-886, July.
    12. Ying Zhang & Yuting Guo & Aiman Nurdazym, 2023. "How do female CEOs affect corporate environmental policies?," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(1), pages 459-472, January.
    13. Nick Lin-Hi & Xiaohan Gao-Urhahn & Torsten Biemann & Irmela F. Koch-Bayram, 2023. "Internal CSR and blue-collar workers’ attitudes and behaviors in China: a combination of a cross-sectional study and a field experiment," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(3), pages 1185-1213, July.
    14. Zhong, Xi & Ren, Ge, 2023. "Independent and joint effects of CSR and CSI on the effectiveness of digital transformation for transition economy firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    15. Lozano, M. Belén & Martínez-Ferrero, Jennifer, 2022. "Do emerging and developed countries differ in terms of sustainable performance? Analysis of board, ownership and country-level factors," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    16. Sang‐Joon Kim & Jongwan Bae & SoHyeon Kang, 2024. "The cross‐cutting pursuit of family values: When and how do family firms engage in corporate environmental responsibility," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(4), pages 2749-2769, July.
    17. Liu, Feng & Huang, Wanying & Zhang, Jing & Fang, Mingjie, 2024. "Corporate social responsibility in family business: Using machine learning to uncover who is doing good," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).

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