The Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility on Gender Diversity in the Workplace: Econometric Evidence from Japan

Abstract

Using panel data on corporate social responsibility (CSR) matched with corporate proxy statement data for a large and representative sample of 1,492 publicly traded firms in Japan over 2006–2014, we provide fixed effect estimates on the positive and significant effects on gender diversity of CSR. Such effects are, however, felt only after two to three years. The CSR effects are larger and more significant for firms that adhere more closely to the participatory Japanese management system. Our findings are robust to the inclusion of controls capturing the mediating effects of various work–life balance practices, pointing to the direct impact of CSR on gender diversity.

The Influence of the Characteristics of the National Business System in the Disclosure of Gender-Related Corporate Social Responsibility Practices

“…Indeed, few of these companies feature women as members of groups responsible for the governance. These results refer to the findings of Kato and Naomi (2016) and Celis et al (2015) on CSR and women in open government bodies in Japan and Spain, respectively, which highlight the importance of women in these bodies to the achievement of national gender equality objectives.…”

“…It is important to emphasize that there are few studies in the literature that investigate the actions of CSR specifically geared to reducing inequalities of opportunities for gender: many investigate motivations for the adoption of CSR practices and disclosure in general or environmental practices (Chen and Bouvain 2009;Lattemann et al 2009;Alon et al 2010;Cahan et al 2015), others relate aspects of corporate governance as the composition of the board (size, diversity, etc.) with the adoption and dissemination of the RSC (Fuente et al 2017;Kirsch 2017;Ben-Amar et al 2017;Helfaya and Moussa 2017;Kassinis et al 2016;Hyun et al 2016;Liao et al 2015;Setó-Pamies 2015;Amran et al 2014;Giannarakis et al 2014;Fernandez-Feijoo et al 2012;Celis et al 2015;Kato and Naomi 2016); therefore, this study innovates by investigating the phenomenon of adoption of CSR practices geared towards gender using the NBS as theoretical support in companies of Latin America, which in its turn is little studied in literature.…”

The influence of social disclosure on the relationship between Corporate Financial Performance and Corporate Social Performance*

“…In addition to these factors, China is one of the countries with the most D-CSP regulations . e Japanese companies have given importance to CSR, with the adoption of various measures related to CSR policies, such as the introduction into their corporate structures of speci c departments for addressing this policy and the inclusion of statements related to it into their missions (Kato & Kodama, 2017).…”

Strategic CSR for innovation in SMEs: Does diversity matter?

“…To extend existing insights, we investigate CSR as a vehicle for valuing such diversity. At the organizational level, Kato and Kodama (2018) identify a direct impact of CSR on gender diversity, providing empirical evidence of that effect 7 . In particular, they leverage signaling theory (Greening and Turban, 2000) to predict that female workers consider strong CSR (or strategic CSR) signals that the firm engages in ethical behaviors and workplace fairness.…”