Quality of Corporate Social Responsibility disclosure: Does Diversity in Boardroom Really Matter?

Abstract

The main objective of the study was to examine the relationship that exists between board diversity and quality of corporate social responsibility disclosure (QCSRD) of listed firms in Tanzania. Specifically, the study was set to identify the effects of board’s gender diversity, educational background as well as nationality diversity has on QCSRD of listed firms in Tanzania. The study adopted a descriptive research design. Comprised of thirteen (13) listed financial institutions in the Dar Es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE). The study used secondary data and study variables were collected from audited financial reports and websites. The secondary data obtained in this study was analyzed using both descriptive and inferential analysis using Stata 15 software. The findings indicate that gender diversity and nationality diversity have no statistical significance toward QCSRD while education background diversity has statistical significance to the QCSRD. The study recommends promotion of educational background diversity in Corporate Governance (CG) framework and guidelines to enhance QCSRD. Educational diversity likely contributes a range of perspectives and expertise, leading to more comprehensive decision-making and enhanced ability to address various aspects of CSR. Moreover, recognizing the possibility of sample size limitations, the researcher conducted robustness checks through sensitivity analyses. Nevertheless, comparative studies between firms in various sectors and countries can help identify context-specific factors that influence the relationship between board diversity and QCSRD.

Keywords: QCSRD, Gender diversity, Education background diversity, Nationality diversity, Tanzania