Elections and CSR Engagement: International Evidence

Journal of Business Ethics · 2023 · Volume 184 · Issue 1

Abstract

Using a large panel of elections in 44 countries, we show that national elections affect CSR in contrasting ways. We posit and find that in strong institutional environments CSR engagement responds negatively to uncertainty and decreases during election periods relative to non-election periods. However, in the context of institutional weakness, characterized by incomplete and captured national institutions, we find that CSR engagement increases in electoral periods, consistent with rent-seeking behavior. We discuss the implications of these results for both theory and practice.

Keywords

Corporate social responsibility, Corruption, Elections, Government effectiveness, Institutional weakness

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