Although the current empirical literature has focused predominantly on the direct relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and firm value, in this paper, we aim to explore firm‐level moderators that may contribute to disentangling this relationship. On the basis of a dataset of Western European listed companies, we use a moderation analysis of panel data to examine whether firm size and age drive the impact of CSR on firm value. Our estimations show that the relationship between CSR and firm value is moderated by firm size and age so that it is negatively impacted when small and/or young companies are considered. This finding seems to be consistent with the view that CSR initiatives could be ineffective in smaller and younger companies due to their lack of financial resources, experience, reputation, and so forth. Implications for firms are also discussed.

Purpose Over the past two decades, scholarly attention has focused mainly on a direct and inverse relationship between corporate environmental responsibility (CER) and corporate financial performance (CFP). This study aims to explore the bidirectional causality hypothesis, as good environmental results can lead to good financial results, which makes it possible to invest more resources in projects that improve environmental performance. Design/methodology/approach The authors test the bidirectional causality between CER and CFP on a sample of listed Italian manufacturing firms over the 2005-2014 period. The authors use a fixed effect panel data regression and check the robustness of the results with alternative econometric techniques. Findings Although the findings do not support bidirectional hypothesis, they establish direction/causality from CFP to CER. As a result, environmental responsibility is a consequence of prior financial performance, which supports the slack resources hypothesis. Research limitations/implications Given that companies’ environmental commitment is dictated by economic evaluations or by assessing the availability of resources to invest, it seems that the spread of environmentally responsible behaviours might be supported by different external pressures. Originality/value The paper provides further insights on sustainability management literature by establishing a bidirectional relationship between firm performance and environmental responsibility.

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Purpose -This work seeks to investigate the performance of wine businesses operating in the Campania region in the South of Italy and aims to verify the family power effect on company performance. Design/methodology/approach -The study was conducted on a sample of 114 firms that operate in the quality wines industry. Using a panel data regression model with time fixed effects, the authors analyzed the firm performance during the interval 2007-2010 to detect the effect of family power on the firm performance. Family power was measured through the degree of family involvement in ownership and on the board. Performance was measured in terms of revenue and profitability. Findings -The research highlights a U-shaped relationship between family power and revenue and an inverted U-shaped relationship between family power and profitability. Originality/value -The findings show an empirical framework which could stimulate the academic debate on family effect in order to draw implications for marketing management and policy makers in the wine business and to provide suggestions for further research.

SummaryBackgroundIt is widely accepted that oxidative stress is associated with the physiopathology of type 2 diabetes mellitus. In fact, it has been pointed out as a therapeutic target in T2DM. Fortunately, several papers have reported that long-term training programs improved the antioxidant system in young and adult diabetic rats. Accordingly, this study was designed to assess the influence of a shorter training program in elderly diabetic fatty rats.Material/MethodsStudy subjects were 24 male homozygous Zucker diabetic fatty rats (Gmi, fa/fa) aged 18 weeks with an average weight of 370–450 g. After a 2-week period of environmental adaptation, animals were randomly distributed into the Exercised Group (n=12) that performed a 6-week swimming training protocol and the Sedentary Group (n=12). Animals were sacrificed under anesthesia 24 h after the last exercise session. Serum metabolic profile was determined. Total antioxidant status (TAS), MnSOD expression, glutathione status and ROS generation were assayed in gastrocnemius muscle.ResultsWhen compared with controls, exercised rats significantly improved their metabolic profile. Total antioxidant status (0.19±0.002 vs. 0.13±0.002 μg/mg protein; p<0.001) and MnSOD expression (8471±90 vs. 6258±102 U/μg protein; p=0.003) were also increased in exercised rats.ConclusionsA 6-week swimming training program improved the antioxidant system in elderly fatty diabetic rats. Fortunately, this improvement was enough to reduce oxidative damage, expressed as protein oxidation. A major finding of this study was that our training protocol lasted just 6 weeks, in contrast to longer protocols previously published.