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Environmental, social, and governance activities, managerial efficiency, and firm performance: Evidence from Asian economies

  • Received December 19, 2025;
    Accepted June 22, 2026;
    Published July 2, 2026
  • Author(s)
    Link to ORCID Index: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6501-2323
    Ngoc Bich Thi Duong
    ORCID Researcher ID ,
    Link to ORCID Index: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7649-5113
    Vinh Khuong Nguyen
    ORCID Researcher ID ,
    Link to ORCID Index: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3998-9242
    Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    ORCID Researcher ID
  • DOI
    http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.24(2).2026.47
  • Article Info
    Volume 24 2026, Issue #2, pp. 686-703
  • TO CITE АНОТАЦІЯ
  • 13 Views
  • 4 Downloads

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Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
This study aims to examine the impact of environmental, social, and governance activities on financial performance, with the moderating role of managerial efficiency, using the data from 19,430 observations across Asian economies during 2004–2023. Ordinary least squares regression has been used for panel data analysis with fixed effects for industry, year, and country. The findings reaffirm the positive influence of environmental, social, and governance performance on financial performance (measured by Tobin’s Q and Return on Equity). All three pillars show a positive relationship with financial performance. Moreover, the study shows that managerial efficiency plays a moderating role in increasing the positive impact of these activities on financial performance. Robustness tests include substituting the dependent variable and conducting regression analyses on sub-samples to compare the impact between developed and developing countries within Asian economies, thereby providing guidance for optimal investment decisions. In general, the study stresses the importance of managerial efficiency as a moderating factor. This is especially true in Asia, where ownership structures are often concentrated, and boards of directors have little independence. These findings provide practical implications for policymakers and firm managers in formulating sustainability strategies to optimize financial performance.

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  • PAPER PROFILE
  • AUTHORS CONTRIBUTIONS
  • FIGURES
  • TABLES
  • REFERENCES
  • Keywords
    Asian economies, environment, firm performance, managerial efficiency, moderation effect, social and governance
  • JEL Classification (Paper profile tab)
    G30, G34, M14, G32
  • References
    39
  • Tables
    11
  • Figures
    1
    • Figure 1. Research model
    • Table 1. Country-wise distribution of firms in the sample
    • Table 2. Sample distribution across industries
    • Table 3. Variables in the model
    • Table 4. Descriptive statistics of the variables
    • Table 5. Pearson’s correlation coefficient matrix (Pairwise correlations)
    • Table 6. Regression results of ESG (ENV, SOC, and GOV) on TOBINQ
    • Table 7. Moderating role of managerial efficiency (M_score)
    • Table 8. Alternative measurement of financial performance using ROE
    • Table 9. ESG effect on financial performance for developed and developing countries
    • Table 10. Comparative impact of ESG on financial performance in the full sample and the sample excluding Chinese firms
    • Table 11. Results using the one-period lagged ESG variable
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    • Conceptualization
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Data curation
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Vinh Khuong Nguyen, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Formal Analysis
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Vinh Khuong Nguyen, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Investigation
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Vinh Khuong Nguyen, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Methodology
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Vinh Khuong Nguyen, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Project administration
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Resources
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Software
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Vinh Khuong Nguyen, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Supervision
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Vinh Khuong Nguyen, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Validation
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Visualization
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Writing – original draft
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
    • Writing – review & editing
      Ngoc Bich Thi Duong, Vinh Khuong Nguyen, Ngoc Tien Nguyen
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