The social and environmental aspects of business investment and financing are becoming increasingly important. Most studies on corporate social responsibility (CSR) focus on analysing the relationship between company performance in the financial and social fields. However, the results obtained have not been conclusive, mainly due to the variables used to measure CSR. In order to simplify its measurement, in this work we used an empirical analytical method to determine possible differences between the financial variables of firms considered to be socially responsible and those not considered to be such. The results obtained show that socially responsible corporations obtain higher profits for the same level of systematic risk and show greater sensitivity to market changes, leverage levels and company size. This pioneering study is the first to make use of the first, and at the present time only, Spanish sustainability index, the FTSE4Good IBEX.

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To identify the combinations of the economic and social aspects related to female entrepreneurship in OECD countries, we carried out a cross-national analysis of female entrepreneurship using fsQCA methodology. We analyzed 2015 data from 29 OECD countries, covering different geographical areas. Data were retrieved from three databases (Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, Country Risk Score, and Glass Ceiling Index) and the relationship between entrepreneurship by gender and the conditions in a country were studied, especially those socially related to gender under female labor working conditions. The results show that the combination of good country risk score conditions and the low presence of women in power positions is related to high female entrepreneurship and low gender labor-force gap. By contrast, low female entrepreneurship is reached through a combination of high gender labor-force and wage gaps.

Companies should be interested in implementing corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices not only for ethical reasons, but also for their potential profits. Considering the need to confirm this relationship more thoroughly, this research is based on the only stock market index in Spain which is an objective indicator of best business practices. The purpose of this study is to find out whether being listed in the FTSE4Good IBEX explains a different ulterior financial performance. To this end, the potential accounting and stock market differences between two groups of companies listed in the Spanish IBEX are analysed: those classified as responsible due to their inclusion in the responsible company index and those companies which, as they are not in it, do not receive this denomination. The study, conducted according to the CSR strategic approach, covers 2008–2013. Its outcomes confirm the presence of significant differences between the two groups. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment

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Microblogging services can enrich the information investors use to make financial decisions on the stock markets. As liquidity has immediate consequences for a trader’s movements, this risk is an attractive area of interest for both academics and those who participate in the financial markets. This paper focuses on market liquidity and studies the impact on liquidity and trading costs of the popular Twitter microblogging service. Sentiment analysis extracted from Twitter and different popular liquidity measures were gathered to analyze the relationship between liquidity and investors’ opinions. The results, based on the analysis of the S&P 500 Index, found that the investors’ mood had little influence on the spread of the index.

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