Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Firm Performance, Moderating Role of Ownership Structure.

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and firm performance while investigating the moderating role of ownership structure in shaping this relationship. The study focuses on three ownership types, managerial, government, and foreign ownership, to understand their impact on CSR-related financial outcomes. Between 2013 and 2022 this analysis studies 180 Pakistani non-financial market stocks through an unbalanced panel dataset with a Dynamic Panel Data Model and GMM estimation. We estimate company performance through Tobin's Q and determine CSR by examining social contribution per share. The different types of ownership show up as managerial stake percentage plus government stake number plus foreign stake amount. The study shows that CSR has no important direct influence on company results. Both management and government ownership prove ineffective at altering the relationship, which points to governance problems and conflicts of interest. When foreign investors take over, they tend to lower a company's CSR benefits because they put money results ahead of social responsibility. The study shows that ownership structure controls how effective CSR investments translate into financial results. The research adds to discussions about CSR success by showing that companies need to match their CSR approach with how they are owned. Authorities need to build rules that promote CSR practices and fix inefficient management systems in companies owned by managers or the state. This study shows new patterns in how the structure of corporate ownership affects CSR performance by linking three key theoretical approaches. The study presents valuable information that helps business leaders and financial stakeholders develop better CSR programs to boost profit and social value.