This paper empirically examines the impact of female directors on corporate ESG disclosure scores based on upper echelons theory and women’s ethics of care theory by conducting a multiple regression analysis on 8193 observations of Chinese listed companies from 2010 to 2020. Our results demonstrate the importance of female directors’ participation in promoting corporate ESG practices. We conclude that the higher the proportion of female directors on the board, the higher the corporate ESG practice score. Further analysis also revealed that a favorable institutional environment and non-state enterprises positively moderate the relationship between female directors and corporate ESG practices. These results highlight the significant contribution of female directors to corporate ESG practices. Our paper sheds additional light on issues related to female directors and corporate ESG practices in Chinese listed companies, expands the theoretical knowledge of ethical decision-making and institutional environments in listed companies, enriches research in the area of female directors’ decision-making, and has important implications for corporate governance related policy-making in China.

We examined the impact of public environmental concerns (PEC) on corporate environmental governance (CEG). Using Chinese listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen stock market as our research sample, we find that the higher the regional PEC, the better the level of CEG, and the positive effect of PEC on CEG is more significant in the sample of non-state owned enterprises. An examination of the influence mechanism finds that PEC increase government environmental attention and therefore more stringent government environmental regulations are developed to constrain corporate environmental decisions. This study will help us better understand the unique role of the public in corporate environmental strategy in the Internet era.

This study empirically examines the relationship between CEO social capital and corporate ESG practices using a sample of A-share listed companies on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges from 2009 to 2021. The research findings indicate that CEO social capital significantly enhances the level of corporate ESG practices, and the results are robust. Building upon this foundation, the study further reveals that CEO tenure and CEO overconfidence positively moderate the impact of CEO social capital on ESG practice levels. Furthermore, the additional research findings indicate that corporate ESG practices under the influence of CEO social capital contribute positively to enhancing the overall value of the firm. Our research results deepen the understanding in both academic and practical realms regarding the value creation function of CEO social capital. This provides empirical evidence for listed companies to recognize and leverage CEO social capital to enhance the level of sustainable development within the organization.