Abstract

This study investigates the influence of “board gender diversity” on corporate social responsibility (CSR) over-investment and the extent of CSR reporting. The data are collected from listed companies in Mauritius for the period of 2007–2016. Content analysis is used to quantify CSR reporting in annual reports. The main finding of this study is that gender-diverse boards are associated with higher levels of CSR reporting and also with companies spending beyond the mandated requirements. This study also finds that firm size is positively associated with CSR reporting and CSR over-investment. There is no association between profitability and CSR reporting and particular industries have no impact on such relationship. The paper is among the first to consider CSR over-investment measured using objective criteria. The paper contributes to the scant literature on gender diversity in emerging economies. The findings have implications for companies and policy makers. For companies, it shows the importance of having gender-diverse boards to meet the CSR information needs of stakeholders and the expectations of society in general. Policy makers can use the findings when drafting regulations regarding board composition.

摘要

这项研究调查了“董事会性别多样性”对企业社会责任（CSR）过度投资的影响以及CSR报告的范围。数据是从毛里求斯的上市公司收集的2007-2016年期间的数据。内容分析用于量化年度报告中的CSR报告。这项研究的主要发现是，性别多元化的董事会与更高水平的企业社会责任报告相关，也与超出法定要求的公司支出相关。这项研究还发现，企业规模与企业社会责任报告和企业社会责任过度投资呈正相关。盈利能力和CSR报告之间没有关联，特定行业对此关系没有影响。该论文是最早考虑使用客观标准衡量的企业社会责任过度投资的论文之一。该论文为新兴经济体中关于性别多样性的文献不足做出了贡献。该发现对公司和政策制定者有影响。对于公司而言，它表明了设立性别多元化董事会来满足利益相关者对CSR信息的需求以及整个社会的期望的重要性。政策制定者可以在起草有关董事会组成的法规时使用调查结果。