Research Briefs

RESEARCH BRIEF - Disclosing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information via a CSR report has a positive impact on a company’s financial performance. This effect is stronger for firms with fewer employees.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Researchers overwhelmingly found that social performance positively influences corporate financial performance.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Board-level gender diversity is positively linked with environmental innovation and this impact is particularly pronounced in those firms with particularly tight margins or environmentally sensitive industries.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Companies with superior CSR performance are especially likely to be rewarded by banks with lower loan costs in countries with national cultural values that promote social equality and harmony between natural and social environments.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Companies that engage in economic, environmental, and cultural activities see an increase in consumers’ positive associations with their brands. Brand image is positively related to customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Firms with a track record of addressing slavery risk, especially for firms that face high exposure to slave labor by virtue of their operating environments were rewarded by investors with positive abnormal returns.

RESEARCH BRIEF - In developed economies, improved corporate citizenship performance is linked to improved financial performance. In emerging economies, where institutional and competitive pressures to invest in ESG might be weaker, improved CSR performance is linked to decreased financial performance.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Taking a corporate stance on a polarizing issue can be a differentiator for brands with smaller market share and more competitors, resulting in a potentially increased customer base—however, this effect is weakened if the advocacy is perceived to be inauthentic.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Firms with formally communicated stakeholder engagement policies are more likely to disclose environmental information, however, this relationship does not hold for companies with especially strong financial performance.

RESEARCH BRIEF - CSR messaging that includes storytelling can enhance consumers’ perceptions of the impact, alignment, and commitment of a company’s corporate citizenship, while fact-based, non-narrative CSR messaging can increase purchase and advocacy intent.

RESEARCH BRIEF - The media reports on corporate social irresponsibility events significantly more for strong and well-established brands.

RESEARCH BRIEF - Increased board diversity leads to the adoption of management practices that support diversity—and vice versa—this virtuous cycle can result in a more inclusive culture over time.