Does Gender Diversity Matter? Study of Female Directors and Corporate Performance

Abstract

With the improvement of women's social status, women try to seek higher positions in firms. The female perspective is prevalent in corporate governance researches. This study aims to figure out does gender diversity on boards influences corporate performance in China. The researcher uses panel regression to analyze 24,108 firm-year observations from the Chinese Securities Market and Accounting Research database from 2010 to 2020. This study uses standard error and lagged board variables to test robustness. The researcher concludes that gender diversity on boards significantly improves parent firms' performance but does not significantly influence the corporation's performance. This study uses the latest data, providing a recent view for policymakers and regulators to discuss whether it is necessary to set a mandatory requirement or recommended best practice to promote gender diversity on boards. This research helps firms understand the importance of gender diversity on boards and promote the adjustment of gender structure on boards.