Corporate Social Responsibility and Profitability: The Moderating Role of Firm Type in Chinese Appliance Listed Companies

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is among the dominant multi-attribute methods of comprehensively representing the competitiveness of a company. A large number of studies have commonly found that profitability can positively affect CSR. However, positivity depends on firm type and the economy,...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Xiaojuan Wu, Dana Dluhošová, Zdeněk Zmeškal
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-01-01
Series:Energies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/1/227
Description
Summary:Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is among the dominant multi-attribute methods of comprehensively representing the competitiveness of a company. A large number of studies have commonly found that profitability can positively affect CSR. However, positivity depends on firm type and the economy, and there is little research in this area. The objective of this paper is to study and verify whether the profitability of different types of companies has a comparable impact on CSR measures in Chinese appliance listed companies. A specific multi-attribute AHP (analytic hierarchy process) model was proposed to determine the CSR for the conditions of Chines appliance listed companies. The interactive regression model serves to analyse the impact of a firm type. The specific multi-attribute AHP model was verified as a suitable tool for CSR evaluation of Chines appliance listed companies. The regression results show that for family firms, the impact of profitability on CSR is significant, while for non-family firms, the impact was not confirmed. Thus, evidence that family firms fulfil better CSR than non-family firms in the investigated Chinese sector is offered. The findings provide proof that it is essential to distinguish firm types, and the generalised findings are simplified and not valid.
ISSN:1996-1073