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

Abstract

This study’s general objective is to investigate the moderating effect of Corporate Social Performance Disclosure (D-CSP) on the relationship between Corporate Social Performance (CSP) and Corporate Financial Performance (CFP). Based on this objective, the study presented a model in which D-CSP acts as a moderator in relation to primary stakeholders (employees, community, and suppliers). D-CSP is a mechanism through which the various social aspects involved in discretionary policies, actions, and activities identified in the management for stakeholders process can be evaluated. A sample of 1,147 companies belonging to 10 different sectors and five continents was used to test the model. Data were collected from the Bloomberg database, totaling 5,735 observations, from 2010 to 2014. The relationship was tested using the multiple linear regression model involving panel data with fixed effects, and the Newey-West robust standard errors correction. Three constructs, D-CSP, CSP, and CFP, were used to perform the tests. As a CSP measure, the CSP of the employee, supplier, and community stakeholders was used. As a D-CSP measure, the CSP disclosure scores available from the database were used, and return on assets (ROA) was used as a CFP measure. The tests carried out indicated the existence of a positive moderating effect of disclosure on the relationship between the CSP of primary stakeholders and CFP. Besides presenting a positive CSP in relation to the primary stakeholders the results enable it to be inferred that these results need to be disclosed, thus contributing to higher corporate financial performance.