Exploring the Relationship Between Board Characteristics and CSR: Empirical Evidence from Korea

Young Kyun Chang (), Won-Yong Oh (), Jee Hyun Park () and Myoung Gyun Jang ()
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Young Kyun Chang: Sogang University
Won-Yong Oh: University of Calgary
Jee Hyun Park: Sogang University
Myoung Gyun Jang: Sogang University

Journal of Business Ethics, 2017, vol. 140, issue 2, No 3, 225-242

Abstract: Abstract Previous studies in Western contexts have examined the relationships between various board characteristics and CSR, yet the relationships need to be re-examined in non-Western contexts given differential theoretical premises across contexts. We specifically propose that the effects of board characteristics on CSR in Korea should be patterned distinctively from Western-based existing literature, focusing on three important board characteristics, such as a board’s independence, social ties, and diversity. Using a panel dataset from large Korean firms, we found that various relationships between board characteristics and CSR were non-linear, whereas most of the previous research on Western contexts found that the same relationships were linear. Specifically, curvilinear relationships were found between CSR and board independence (i.e., exponentially growing shape), CEO-outside director social ties (i.e., inverted U-shape), and educational diversity (i.e., U-shape). Our findings suggest that there is no universal feature of CSR-supportive board characteristics due to the unique characteristics of various institutional contexts.

Keywords: Board characteristics; Corporate social responsibility; Curvilinear relationship; Korea (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (80)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10551-015-2651-z

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