Female leadership and ESG rating disagreement: Evidence from China

This study investigates the impact of female leadership on ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) rating disagreement among Chinese listed companies from 2015 to 2023. We find that female leadership significantly mitigate ESG rating disagreement. These findings remain robust after conducting a range of tests to solve the issue of selection bias and reverse causality. The role of female leadership in mitigating ESG disagreement is attributed to three aspects, such as the promotion in environmental investment (E), the improvement of customer protection (S), and the enhancement in corporate internal governance (G). The curbing impact of female leadership on ESG rating disagreement is more pronounced for non-state-owned firms, firms in low-pollution industries, firms located in eastern regions, and firms at earlier life-cycle stages. These results may reflect that female leaders exert different governance effects under varying institutional environments, market pressures, industry characteristics, and stages of corporate development. Our study contributes to the literature on the role of female leadership in corporate governance and sustainable development.