Framing of the research. We draw from behavioral theory of the firm and neo-institutional theory to investigate the antecedents of human rights abuses by emerging country firms. Purpose of the paper. We study the relationship between firms’ performance relative to their industry peers and the probability to commit human rights abuses. We also explore how this relationship is moderated by the regulatory pressure firms face at home and in the countries where they internationalize through foreign direct investments and the adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies. Methodology. We estimate a dynamic correlated random effect probit model on a sample of 125 large public companies from two important Asian economies - China and India - which we observe in the period 1992 to 2012. Results. We find that high-performing Chinese and Indian firms are more likely to abuse human rights than their low-performing peers. However, this effect is mitigated by the presence of strong external (i.e. rule of law) and internal (i.e. CSR) institutions. Research limitations. As prior research on corporate misconduct, we rely only on human rights abuses that have been discovered by the media Managerial implications. Our findings shed light on the causal conjunctions between emerging country firms’ performance, internationalization, home and host country institutions, pro-social behavior, and their involvement in abusive behavior. Originality of the paper. We contribute to the literature on emerging country firms by studying the antecedents of their involvement in human rights abuses as form of misconduct, which can potentially threaten their efforts to overcome the liability of origin and acquire legitimacy with international stakeholders.
Business-related human rights abuses: a study of chinese and indian corporations
NIERI FEDERICA;GIULIANI ELISA;
2022-01-01
Abstract
Framing of the research. We draw from behavioral theory of the firm and neo-institutional theory to investigate the antecedents of human rights abuses by emerging country firms. Purpose of the paper. We study the relationship between firms’ performance relative to their industry peers and the probability to commit human rights abuses. We also explore how this relationship is moderated by the regulatory pressure firms face at home and in the countries where they internationalize through foreign direct investments and the adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies. Methodology. We estimate a dynamic correlated random effect probit model on a sample of 125 large public companies from two important Asian economies - China and India - which we observe in the period 1992 to 2012. Results. We find that high-performing Chinese and Indian firms are more likely to abuse human rights than their low-performing peers. However, this effect is mitigated by the presence of strong external (i.e. rule of law) and internal (i.e. CSR) institutions. Research limitations. As prior research on corporate misconduct, we rely only on human rights abuses that have been discovered by the media Managerial implications. Our findings shed light on the causal conjunctions between emerging country firms’ performance, internationalization, home and host country institutions, pro-social behavior, and their involvement in abusive behavior. Originality of the paper. We contribute to the literature on emerging country firms by studying the antecedents of their involvement in human rights abuses as form of misconduct, which can potentially threaten their efforts to overcome the liability of origin and acquire legitimacy with international stakeholders.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
