Heterogeneity In The Relationship Between Corporate Social Performance And Corporate Performance In China:a Meta-analysis

The relationship between corporate social performance (CSP) and corporate performance (CP) has been the focus of many prior studies. However, there have been many theoretical and empirical debates on the heterogeneity in the CSP-CP nexus. Some scholars have quantitatively integrated existing empirical researches on this topic with meta-analysis technique, which can arrive at universal and general conclusions that cannot be achieved by single research.In this paper, existing studies of Chinese firms on CSP-CP relationship is reviewed and summarized to examine the characteristics of this relationship in China. Then, a meta-analysis of164empirical studies on Chinese firms is conducted and compares with results in western contexts. The results suggest that:(1)CSP and CP in China is positively correlated in general and a virtuous circle. Although the overall correlation coefficient is small, relationship between CSP and CP has gradually strengthened over time;(2)besides, several moderators are examined including sources of data, operationalizations of CSP and CP, and sample characteristics.These factors can in part explain the heterogeneity of the results of existing empirical studies;(3)effects of CSP on CP are very different across various stakeholder groups.In view of the cross-national differences between China and Western countries, some results of meta-analysis on Chinese firms compare with results in western contexts. The correlation between CSP and CP is0.1535for Chinese corporations, which is significantly lower than that of meta-analytic results in western context. The comparison also shows that differences exist in other research characteristics.Finally, this paper summarises the conclusions, and the limitations and future research prospects are also discussed.