Female board representation and corporate acquisition intensity. (4th November 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Chen, Guoli; Crossland, Craig; Huang, Sterling
• Is Part Of: Strategic management journal. Volume 37:Number 2(2016:Feb.)
• Page Start: 303
• Page End: 313
• Publication Date: 2014-11-04
• Subjects: board characteristics -- director gender -- mergers and acquisitions -- corporate governance -- strategic leadership; Business planning -- Periodicals; Management -- Periodicals; Business -- Periodicals; 658.401205
• DOI: 10.1002/smj.2323
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0143-2095

Abstract

Abstract : This study examines the impact of female board representation on firm‐level strategic behavior within the domain of mergers and acquisitions (M&A). We build on social identity theory to predict that greater female representation on a firm's board will be negatively associated with both the number of acquisitions the firm engages in and, conditional on doing a deal, acquisition size. Using a comprehensive, multiyear sample of U.S. public firms, we find strong support for our hypotheses. We demonstrate the robustness of our findings through the use of a difference‐in‐differences analysis on a subsample of firms that experienced exogenous changes in board gender composition as a result of director deaths . Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.