Ownership and corporate social responsibility in Indian firms
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to look at the association between different ownership categories and corporate social responsibility (CSR) spending of selected Indian firms.
Design/methodology/approach
Random-effects Tobit panel regression is performed on a panel of 4,388 firm years of 1,722 unique firms over a three-year period (2014-2016).
Findings
Different categories of institutional investors have different preferences for CSR spending of a firm. Promoters of business-group affiliated and unaffiliated firms also behave differently towards CSR activities of their firms.
Research limitations/implications
Heterogeneous behavior of institutional investors is revealed through the study. Foreign institutions and domestic banks are supportive of CSR investments of a firm. Promoters of family firms and group affiliates also diligently plan CSR activities.
Practical implications
Managers cannot ignore the heterogeneities of institutional investors in their investment decisions. Individual investors can align their philanthropic preferences with those of different types of institutional investors or firms.
Social implications
Family-owned firms play a significant role in CSR activities of emerging economies, while individual promoters are not as attracted by the reputational prospects of CSR.
Originality/value
This paper considers the role of heterogeneities of institutional investors in influencing CSR spending of emerging-economy firms. This heterogeneity has not been previously studied in this context.
Keywords
Citation
Panicker, V.S. (2017), "Ownership and corporate social responsibility in Indian firms", Social Responsibility Journal, Vol. 13 No. 4, pp. 714-727. https://doi.org/10.1108/SRJ-02-2017-0030
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited