The role of corporate social responsibility sustainable practices in driving economic growth in Malaysia

Economic growth is the motive of every economy around the globe. With the change in the business landscape of Malaysia, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a key factor influencing economic growth. Investigating the relationship between CSR factors and economic growth is crucial, as environmental concern throughout the world is for achieving the sustainable development goal (SDG) 2023 of Malaysia. By taking the significance of the problem into account, the objective of this study is to examine the role of sustainable corporate social responsibility practices in the economic development of Malaysia. We used the 492-respondent data randomly collected from different firms through a questionnaire. Smart partial least Squares -structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used for the statistical analysis. Our findings indicate that economic sustainability practices have the strongest positive influence on economic development, followed by social, philanthropic, ethical, and environmental practices, while the impact of technological sustainability practices is not significant. The findings also concluded that a holistic approach to sustainability is necessary, guaranteeing that social and environmental factors are interconnected with solely economic objectives and fostering long-term growth. This study advocated the implications for business, government, and investors. The business and the government can improve the CSR sustainable practices by using the findings through matching sustainability plans with financial results as well as to legislators aiming to promote equitable and sustainable growth.