Do ESG Practices Promote Financial Performance? Comparison of English, Chinese, and Korean Papers Through Bibliometric and Meta-Analysis

Companies engaged in ESG practices to enhance financial performance and demonstrate a commitment to sustainable development. However, the relationship between ESG and financial performance remained unclear, as prior studies were replete with contradictory paradoxes. This study aimed to comprehensively analyze the evolution of ESG practices and their impact on financial performance by comparing English, Chinese, and Korean papers. This study employed a mixed-methods approach and conducted a bibliometric analysis on 2659 ESG-related papers to unveil temporal trends and conduct a meta-analysis. Stratifying by language, linguistic and cultural nuances influencing the relationship were identified. The bibliometric analysis revealed a significant turning point in ESG research around 2019, marked by a surge in publications across languages. Keyword co-occurrence networks highlighted distinct focal points, with financial performance appearing in all the research themes. The meta-analysis indicated a low overall positive correlation between ESG and financial performance. However, Chinese and Korean papers demonstrated a moderate correlation, while English papers showed no significant correlation. This study informed scholarly, managerial, and policy discourse on sustainable business practices, contributing to the evolving ESG landscape.