In a recent article in the British Journal of Management (Mustafa & Khatri, 2025), researchers examined how cultural values and norms shape the relationship between board gender diversity (BGD) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance. Using data from 5,135 firms in 25 countries over 20 years, they explored two key cultural factors:
- Harmony vs. mastery orientation – whether a society values fitting in and protecting the welfare of all stakeholders (harmony) or prioritises competitiveness and profit maximisation (mastery).
- Cultural tightness vs. looseness – the strength and enforcement of social norms, from strict adherence (tight) to greater tolerance for deviation (loose).
Their analysis confirmed that gender-diverse boards tend to improve CSR performance, but this effect is stronger in harmony-oriented cultures and weaker in mastery-oriented ones. The impact is amplified when harmony is combined with cultural tightness, where strong norms reinforce pro-social behaviour. For example, Norway (high harmony, high tightness) showed particularly strong synergy between BGD and CSR outcomes.
Conversely, in mastery cultures – especially tight mastery ones – women directors may be appointed for symbolic reasons, limiting their influence on CSR. The United States (loose mastery) and India (tight mastery) illustrate contexts where the CSR benefits of BGD are less pronounced.
The study also found that in harmony cultures, stronger CSR performance is linked to financial benefits such as higher stock prices, lower costs of debt, and greater market liquidity. This suggests that aligning governance practices with societal values is not only socially beneficial but financially advantageous.
For organisations and policymakers, the implications are clear: efforts to enhance board diversity should be matched with initiatives that strengthen cultural support for social responsibility. In mastery cultures, this may mean emphasising the long-term business case for CSR and embedding diversity in strategic decision-making.
You can access the original article here.
