The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Financial Performance and Brand Value

Abstract

In recent years, there has been an increasing amount of theoretical research on corporate social responsibility and its influence on practical activities. The impact of corporate social responsibility on business performance has received attention from scholars and managers. However, the existing research lacks the empirical analysis concerning the moderating effects of long-term business performance (brand value) and social capital. This study was based on the relevant data from listed, Chinese companies and conducted regression analysis on the impact of corporate social responsibility on financial performance and brand value, exploring its moderating effects under different social capital. The results showed that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) was significantly positively correlated with financial performance and brand value. Both horizontal and vertical social capital played a positive moderating role in the impact of CSR on financial performance and brand value. These conclusions differed between companies that were required to disclose and those that had voluntarily disclosed, as well as between heavily polluting industries and non-heavily polluting industries. This article enriches the existing theoretical framework and provides decision-making references for business managers on whether to take on corporate social responsibility, contributing to the theoretical understanding of corporate sustainable development from a social responsibility perspective.