Do female executives play a role in corporate green business philosophy?

Abstract

Based on a sample of listed Chinese firms in heavily polluting industries, we investigate the role of female executives in corporate green business philosophy using information extracted from management discussion and analysis sections of annual reports. Our results indicate that female executives have a significant positive effect on corporate green business philosophy. Additional analyses show that women possess a stronger concept of environmental protection and are more willing to participate in environmental protection activities than men and have superior communication skills and social capabilities, which is the potential mechanism through which female executives influence corporate green business philosophy. We also report that the intensity of environmental regulation from the local government moderates this effect. Moreover, the impact of female executives on a firm's green business philosophy is more pronounced in firms with smaller management heterogeneity, non-state-owned firms, those with high institutional investor shareholdings, and those with low shareholdings of the largest shareholder. Last, the corporate green business philosophy significantly reduces negative news of enterprises and enhances the individual stock return rate.