TY - JOUR

T1 - Female Chief Executive Officers and Corporate Social Responsibility

T2 - A Literature Review on Upper Echelons Theory

AU - Velte, Patrick

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2025 The Author(s). Sustainable Development published by ERP Environment and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

PY - 2025/9/30

Y1 - 2025/9/30

N2 - This study addresses the impact of female Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) on corporate social responsibility (CSR) outcomes. Based on upper echelons theory, a structured literature review of empirical research on CEO gender, CSR performance, reporting, and assurance was conducted. Country-specific studies were differentiated according to their board structure and board gender quotas. This literature review indicates a positive impact of female CEOs on CSR performance in regimes with a one-tier system and voluntary board gender quotas. Research results on other regimes, other CSR outcomes, and cross-country designs are low in number or inconclusive. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first literature review with a focus on female CEOs and CSR. Key research gaps and recommendations for future research are mentioned, such as linking female CEOs with other demographic, social capital, and human capital attributes, including CSR reporting quality and moderator variables. Moreover, the study supports regulatory bodies and business practice to promote the selection of female CEOs for successful CSR transformation processes.

AB - This study addresses the impact of female Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) on corporate social responsibility (CSR) outcomes. Based on upper echelons theory, a structured literature review of empirical research on CEO gender, CSR performance, reporting, and assurance was conducted. Country-specific studies were differentiated according to their board structure and board gender quotas. This literature review indicates a positive impact of female CEOs on CSR performance in regimes with a one-tier system and voluntary board gender quotas. Research results on other regimes, other CSR outcomes, and cross-country designs are low in number or inconclusive. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first literature review with a focus on female CEOs and CSR. Key research gaps and recommendations for future research are mentioned, such as linking female CEOs with other demographic, social capital, and human capital attributes, including CSR reporting quality and moderator variables. Moreover, the study supports regulatory bodies and business practice to promote the selection of female CEOs for successful CSR transformation processes.

KW - CEO gender

KW - corporate governance

KW - CSR performance

KW - CSR reporting

KW - gender diversity

KW - upper echelons theory

KW - Management studies

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105017413998&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1002/sd.70277

DO - 10.1002/sd.70277

M3 - Scientific review articles

AN - SCOPUS:105017413998

JO - Sustainable Development

JF - Sustainable Development

SN - 0968-0802

ER -