Social capital and firm resilience during COVID-19: Evidence from listed firms in Vietnam
-
DOIhttp://dx.doi.org/10.21511/imfi.23(4).2026.11
-
Article InfoVolume 23 2026, Issue #4, pp. 170–184
- 38 Views
-
6 Downloads
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Type of the article: Research Article
Abstract
The issue of firm resilience to systemic shocks is gaining importance in emerging markets, where weak institutions force companies to rely on social capital as a proxy for legitimacy and resources. Yet it remains to be seen whether social capital functions as a uniform shield or as a more selective, context-dependent anchor under extreme stress. The study examines whether four components of firm social capital: CSR disclosure, CEO networks, political connections, and bank connections, are associated with firm performance in the crisis and recovery phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam. The study estimates pooled OLS models with sector and year fixed effects and one-year lagged social capital measures using an unbalanced panel of 338 firms listed on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange from 2019 to 2024, with the post-crisis recovery period (2022–2024) as the reference category. During the recovery period, the composite social capital index is positively related to both operating performance and market valuation. Our results show that CEO networks are positively related to operating performance during the crisis, whereas bank connections are significantly and negatively related to market valuation. Political connections are not significantly related to performance during the crisis, but are strongly related to higher market valuation during the recovery. These results suggest that the value of social capital is not monolithic but depends on the particular relational channel and the phase of the crisis, with practical implications for managers, investors and policymakers in emerging markets.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge the support of the University of Economics and Law, Vietnam National University – Ho Chi Minh City (VNU – HCM).
- Keywords
-
JEL Classification (Paper profile tab)G32, G01, O16, M14
-
References44
-
Tables9
-
Figures0
-
- Table 1. Summary of variables
- Table 2. Descriptive statistics
- Table 3. Social capital and firm performance (composite index)
- Table 4. Social capital and firm performance (component level)
- Table 5. Robustness checks (composite index)
- Table A1. CSR disclosure scoring criteria
- Table A2. CSR keyword dictionary development process
- Table A3. Inter-method reliability test results by year
- Table A4. CEO social capital scoring criteria across ten dimensions
-
- Al-Dah, B., Dah, M., & Jizi, M. (2018). Is CSR reporting always favorable? Management Decision, 56(7), 1506-1525.
- Anh, D. L. T., & Gan, C. (2021). The impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on stock market performance: evidence from Vietnam. Journal of Economic Studies, 48(4), 836-851.
- Attig, N., Hu, W., Rahaman, M., & Zaman, A. (2022). Word speaks louder than action: Do firms window dress their social capital? SSRN.
- Bae, K.-H., El Ghoul, S., Gong, Z. J., & Guedhami, O. (2021). Does CSR matter in times of crisis? Evidence from the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Corporate Finance, 67, 101876.
- Bourdieu, P. (2018). The forms of capital. In The sociology of economic life (pp. 78-92). Routledge.
- Butt, S., Mubeen, I., & Ahmed, A. (2022). Corporate social responsibility and firm financial performance: Moderating role of ethical leadership and social capital. JISR Management and Social Sciences & Economics, 20(1), 165-186.
- Chen, Y., Shan, Y. G., Wang, J., Yang, X., & Zhang, J. (2024). Social capital and cost of debt: Evidence from Chinese CEO network centrality. Emerging Markets Review, 60, 101131.
- Chen, Z., Li, Y., & Zhang, J. (2016). The bank–firm relationship: Helping or grabbing? International Review of Economics & Finance, 42, 385-403.
- Coleman, J. S. (1988). Social capital in the creation of human capital. American Journal of Sociology, 94, S95-S120.
- Coltman, T., Devinney, T. M., Midgley, D. F., & Venaik, S. (2008). Formative versus reflective measurement models: Two applications of formative measurement. Journal of Business Research, 61(12), 1250-1262.
- da Silva, E. J., Ramos, F. M., Cembranel, P., & Witt, C. (2024). Ties that bind: exploring corporate networks, decision-making dynamics in the financial market, labor-management relations, and organizational performance. Future Business Journal, 10(1), 31.
- Degli Antoni, G., & Sacconi, L. (2011). Modeling cognitive social capital and corporate social responsibility as preconditions for sustainable networks of relations. In L. Sacconi & G. Degli Antoni (Eds.), Social capital, corporate social responsibility, economic behaviour and performance (pp. 161-239). Palgrave Macmillan.
- Dong, K. T. P., Hoa, N. T. N., Hiep, T. C., & Truc, T. V. T. (2023). The impact of banking relationship on firm performance: Evidence from Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, Vietnam. International Journal of Business and Society, 24(2), 711-726.
- Fang, Y., Francis, B., & Hasan, I. (2012). More than connectedness–Heterogeneity of CEO social network and firm value (Bank of Finland Research Discussion Paper No. 26/2012). Bank of Finland.
- Gannon, B., & Roberts, J. (2020). Social capital: exploring the theory and empirical divide. Empirical Economics, 58(3), 899-919.
- General Statistics Office of Vietnam (GSO). (2022). Socio-economic situation report in the second quarter and six months of 2022.
- Glavas, D., & Visentin, G. (2025). CSR in times of crisis: a systematic literature review. Management Review Quarterly, 75(3), 2675-2707.
- Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). (2020). Consolidated set of the GRI Standards.
- Gompers, P. A., Ishii, J. L., & Metrick, A. (2003). Corporate governance and equity prices. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 118(1), 107-155.
- Government of Vietnam. (2022). Resolution No. 11/NQ-CP on the Program for Socio-Economic Recovery and Development (Nghị quyết số 11/NQ-CP về Chương trình phục hồi và phát triển kinh tế - xã hội). (In Vietnamese).
- Griffin, P. A., Hong, H. A., Liu, Y., & Ryou, J. W. (2021). The dark side of CEO social capital: Evidence from real earnings management and future operating performance. Journal of Corporate Finance, 68, 101920.
- Ha, P. V., & Frömmel, M. (2020). Political connection heterogeneity and firm value in Vietnam. Cogent Business & Management, 7(1), 1738202.
- Hambrick, D. C., & Mason, P. A. (1984). Upper echelons: The organization as a reflection of its top managers. Academy of Management Review, 9(2), 193-206.
- Ho, T., Phung, D. N., & Nguyen, Y. N. (2021). State ownership and corporate risk‐taking: Empirical evidence in Vietnam. Australian Economic Papers, 60(3), 466-481.
- Huang, W., Chen, S., & Nguyen, L. T. (2020). Corporate social responsibility and organizational resilience to COVID-19 crisis: An empirical study of Chinese firms. Sustainability, 12(21), 8970.
- Jha, A., & Cox, J. (2015). Corporate social responsibility and social capital. Journal of Banking & Finance, 60, 252-270.
- Koo, T. K., & Li, M. Y. (2016). A guideline of selecting and reporting intraclass correlation coefficients for reliability research. Journal of Chiropractic Medicine, 15(2), 155-163.
- Lins, K. V., Servaes, H., & Tamayo, A. (2017). Social capital, trust, and firm performance: The value of corporate social responsibility during the financial crisis. The Journal of Finance, 72(4), 1785-1824.
- Ministry of Finance of Vietnam. (2020). Circular No. 96/2020/TT-BTC guiding the disclosure of information on the securities market.
- Mundlak, Y. (1978). On the pooling of time series and cross section data. Econometrica, 46(1), 69-85.
- Nahapiet, J., & Ghoshal, S. (1998). Social capital, intellectual capital, and the organizational advantage. Academy of Management Review, 23(2), 242-266.
- Parrish, C. L. (2023). Firm Social Capital and the Innovation Process. Annals of Science and Technology Policy, 7(3), 152-325.
- Peng, M. W., & Luo, Y. (2000). Managerial ties and firm performance in a transition economy: The nature of a micro-macro link. Academy of Management Journal, 43(3), 486-501.
- Phung, D. N., & Mishra, A. V. (2016). Ownership structure and firm performance: Evidence from Vietnamese listed firms. Australian Economic Papers, 55(1), 63-98.
- Putnam, R. D. (1993). The prosperous community. The American Prospect, 4(13), 35-42.
- Ruan, R., & Zhu, Z. (2025). Exploring the Relationship Between Corporate Social Responsibility and Organizational Resilience. Systems, 13(10), 878.
- Rupasingha, A., Goetz, S. J., & Freshwater, D. (2006). The production of social capital in US counties. The Journal of Socio-Economics, 35(1), 83-101.
- Servaes, H., & Tamayo, A. (2017). The role of social capital in corporations: a review. Oxford Review of Economic Policy, 33(2), 201-220.
- Sheng, S., Zhou, K. Z., & Li, J. J. (2011). The effects of business and political ties on firm performance: Evidence from China. Journal of Marketing, 75(1), 1-15.
- Su, X., Fu, W., Zou, L., & Wu, J. (2024). CEO social capital, business environment, and the level of corporate risk‐taking in China. Accounting & Finance, 64(2), 1745-1767.
- Thanh, V. H., & Ha, N. M. (2013). The effect of banking relationship on firm performance in Vietnam. International Journal of Economics and Finance, 5(5), 148-158.
- Tihanyi, L., Aguilera, R. V., Heugens, P., Van Essen, M., Sauerwald, S., Duran, P., & Turturea, R. (2019). State ownership and political connections. Journal of Management, 45(6), 2293-2321.
- Tran, N. M., & Tran, M. H. (2022). Corporate social responsibility disclosure and firm performance: Evidence from Vietnam. Investment Management & Financial Innovations, 19(3), 49-59.
- Tran, N. T., Le, N. T., & Nguyen, T. D. (2025). Corporate social responsibility disclosure and financial performance: empirical evidence from Vietnam. Economic and Business Review, 27(3), 141-159.


