Corporate Social Responsibility of Chinese Multinational Enterprises: A Review and Future Research Agenda

Abstract

This study analyzes papers on the corporate social responsibility (CSR) of Chinese multinational enterprises (CMNEs) published in top-tier management and international business journals. We extracted six key constructs from these studies, examined their interconnections, and identified five themes. These themes are (1) the relationship between corporate governance and CSR practice, (2) the relationship between institutional environments and CSR practice, (3) the relationship between resources and capabilities and CSR practice, (4) the relationship between strategy/activity and CSR practice, and (5) the relationship between corporate performance and CSR practice. Our study aim is to reveal research gaps that have not been identified in other previous review articles. Thus, based on the research gaps identified through a review of previous studies, we identified that there is a strong relationship between CSR and national cultural contexts; however, most current research on CSR has focused on Western cultural contexts. Thus, to further explore how CSR of CMNEs may differ from other countries (e.g., Western countries) that is our review aim, we provide five directions for future CSR research on CMNEs. Finally, we theoretically and conceptually analyze recent studies on the impacts of corporate governance, resources, and capabilities on CMNEs’ CSR practices in relation to corporate performance through a theoretical framework and identify future research directions on Chinese MNEs’ CSR by reviewing various theories and perspectives over the last 13 years.

1. Introduction

With the development of the global economy and the increasing diversity of discussions about balancing corporate and societal interests, the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has evolved [1]. In most research, CSR has been defined as a society’s expectations for enterprises in terms of economy, law, ethics, and discretion [2]. Some scholars believe that CSR supplements corporate, economic, and legal responsibilities, while corporate shareholders maximize profits and maintain and promote social interests [3]. However, some see CSR primarily as an approach to raising profits [3]. Our paper argues that CSR is reflected in a company’s pursuit of economic profitability along with environmentally and socially responsible practices [4].

Multinational enterprises (MNEs) need to respond to the complex needs of multiple stakeholders and be socially responsible to different host communities [5,6], i.e., (1) CSR in a home country, (2) CSR in different host countries, and (3) global international CSR [7]. CSR activities conducted by MNEs not only contribute to the economic growth of the host country but also to the general welfare of society. Therefore, CSR as a non-market coping mechanism can help subsidiaries reduce stakeholder pressure from unfamiliar host countries and facilitate the acquisition of local legitimacy [8], especially for emerging market MNEs [6]. To respond better to isomorphic pressures from various host communities and gain internal and external legitimacy for MNEs operating in emerging Asian markets [9], a global CSR strategy aligned with the home country and a local CSR strategy aligned with local needs must be adopted [10].

Some current studies have illustrated the significance of CSR from different perspectives, such as the examination of the necessity of CSR from the perspective of institutional theory, agency theory, and upper echelons theory [8,11,12,13], and the relationship between CSR and corporate social, financial, and environmental performance based on stakeholder theory, resource-based view, and resource dependence theory [14,15]. Under the influence of global trade processes and the COVID-19 epidemic, the field of CSR research in the context of MNEs is trending towards the dynamic characteristics of social expectations, the non-fixed needs of stakeholders, the factors that impede CSR, and the integration of dynamic corporate capabilities with social needs [14,16].

Our study aim is to reveal research gaps that have not been identified in other previous review articles on the relevant topics. Thus, in this way, our study contributes to filling the Chinese MNEs’ (CMNEs’) CSR literature research gap that is the focus of our review article. Many studies have explored the concept of CSR. Research on CSR practices of MNEs is also increasing, but most studies focus on Western cultural contexts [16]. The CSR of MNEs involves the home country, host country, and the entire international community, which distinguishes it from the CSR of non-MNEs [17]. Given the relationship between CSR and national cultural background, Chinese firms’ CSR dimensions may differ from those of other countries (e.g., Western countries) [18]. We highlight prior literature on CSR in CMNEs, which contributes to a better understanding of MNE CSR activities in emerging Asia. Additionally, by reviewing the literature, we identified the factors that influence CMNEs’ CSR and the effect of CSR practices on corporate performance, which can provide some direction for corporations in the design and implementation of CSR strategies.

In the global trade market, China’s outbound investment has increased with the support of the Chinese government’s Belt and Road Initiative and other policies. From January to May 2022, China’s domestic investors’ cumulative non-financial investment in overseas enterprises reached USD 44.6 billion, up 3% year on year. The investment range includes 3302 abroad firms from 157 countries and regions [19]. While the average net worth of companies in mainland China (including Hong Kong) (USD 43.18 billion) exceeds the Fortune 500 average in 2022, the average return on sales (at 5.1%) and return on net assets (at 9.5%) still lag the Fortune 500 average [20].

In terms of the CSR practices of CMNE, most studies use the SNAI (Shanghai National Accounting Institute) Chinese firms’ social responsibility index to assess Chinese CSR through SA8000 (Social Accountability International), GRI3 (Global Reporting Initiative), and the “Global Compact” project (The United Nations) [21]. In this system, a listed company’s CSR index is divided into eight areas and 36 subcategories as follows: environment, energy savings, employees, employment and fair promotion, social problems, consumers, other stakeholders, law, and business ethics [21]. While Chinese enterprises’ CSR practices are constantly standardized due to a lack of global responsibility awareness and ineffective governance mechanisms, some enterprises fail to fulfill their responsibilities in overseas investment [22]. Based on the background of China’s multinational business development, CSR issues in CMNEs show a variety of trends.

This study has at least three contributions and implications. First, we learn about the application of CSR-related theories and concepts to the study of Chinese MNEs by reviewing research published in top journals over the last 13 years. Second, we categorize the existing research and present each topic in the form of a conceptual framework to analyze studies on the impacts of Chinese MNEs’ governance structures, resources, and capabilities, including institutional environments and strategies, on CSR practices and corporate performance, providing a systematic overview of the most recent research on the subject. Third, based on previous research, we identify future research directions for CSR in CMNEs, such as the adaptation of CSR practices to emergency responses under the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a review and extension of the literature, we argue that the research area is rich, and we hope that this study will contribute to the development of CSR theory related to CMNEs.

This paper is organized as follows. First, we discuss the CSR theories used to study CME. Next, we review 16 top-tier journals’ articles in the management and international business (IB) fields, summarize the research topic, and outline the research framework. We then identify CSR concepts from these articles. Finally, we provide suggestions for future research based on previous studies and describe our contributions in the conclusion.

2. Literature Review Methodology

We used a semi-systematic analysis to review theories, concepts, and findings from the literature and identified themes [12]. First, we selected journals or articles published by reputable publishers to exclude technical reports and online presentations [23]. To more efficiently map the direction of the research area, we focused on the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) list of top 24 journals in the business administration field, from UTD the Top 100 Business School Research Rankings in 2020 for management and IB journals (i.e., Academy of Management Journal, Administrative Science Quarterly, Journal of International Business Studies, Management Science, Organization Science, and Strategic Management Journal) and nine highly reputed journals primarily in the field of IB and area studies listed on the 2021 UK Chartered Association of Business Schools Research Rankings (ABS) 3 or 4 (e.g., Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Global Strategy Journal, International Business Review, Journal of International Management, Business Ethics Quarterly, Journal of World Business, Journal of Business Ethics, and Management and Organization Review).

Then, by referring to the PRISMA guidelines and the keyword search algorithm created by Pisani [24] using standard Boolean operators, we identified the keywords: “corporate social responsibility”, “CSR”, “social responsibility”, “corporate social irresponsibility”, “CSIR”, “environment sustainable”, “environmental sustainability”, “social sustainable”, “social sustainability”, “economic sustainable”, “economic responsibility”, “stakeholder”, “multinational enterprise“, “MNE”, “multinational corporation“, “MNC”, “Chinese multinational enterprise”, “Chinese MNE”, Chinese multinational corporation”, “Chinese MNC”, “Chinese firm”, “corporate ethics”, “corporate philanthropy”, “international”, “multinational”, “transnational”, and “global”. To ensure the timeliness of the research findings, we searched for papers between 2010 and 2022 by Google Scholar and Web of Science using the above keywords in the titles, abstracts, and keywords of the journals [25,26], and after removing those that appeared more than once in the different searches, we obtained a total of 82 articles. Next, we screened the literature. In the first stage, we read the title and abstract of each paper to check if the topic was related to MNEs’ CSR, which reduced the initial number of articles to 72. In the second step, we removed CSR studies of MNEs that were not relevant to the Chinese context. Based on these two screenings, 55 papers were selected for review [27,28].

The authors completed the framework of CMNE’s CSR literature review using the following steps. First, based on the title, abstract, keywords, theoretical lens, and logical structure of the paper, two authors created initial tables summarizing the journal sources, years, theoretical perspectives, and core viewpoints of previous related research, and drew the initial frame. The three authors then worked together to examine and modify the framework and tables. Then, all authors made several more adjustments to the framework in the subsequent writing process, resulting in the Figure and Tables [28]. Figure 1 depicts the distribution of research topics in CMNE CSR over the last ten years, with research gaps or rarely studied or understudied issues noted in grey. In order to clearly represent the relationships between the constructs, we indicated the causal relationships with numbers [27]. We can easily find abundant academic literature to propose new ideas for future agendas [12].

Table 1. Journal and year of the articles on Chinese MNEs’ CSR 2010–2022.

Journal	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	Total
Academy of Management Journal								2			1			3
Administrative Science Quarterly														0
Asia Pacific Journal of Management					1	1			1	1	2	2		8
Business Ethics Quarterly							2							2
Global Strategy Journal														0
International Business Review												1		1
Journal of International Business Studies											1			1
Journal of International Management														0
Journal of Business Ethics	6	4	2	1		3	2				2	1	1	22
Journal of World Business	1				1									2
Management and Organization Review						3	1	2			1			7
Management International Review	1			1										2
Management Science														0
Organization Science				2										2
Strategic Management Journal				1	1				1	1			1	5
Total	8	4	2	5	3	7	5	4	2	2	7	4	2	55

presents the number of journal publications over time. According to the statistics in the table, the number of papers on CSR in Chinese firms shows a relatively stable fluctuation each year. Since 2010, every five years has increased to a maximum number comparable to the previous fifth year; for example, in 2010, 2015, and 2020, the numbers were 8,7, and 7, respectively. Furthermore, business ethics and Asian journals have the most publications, except for the Strategic Management Journal (5). Next, we provide statistics on the number of times each theory is used every year, as shown in

Table 2. Theory and year of the articles on Chinese MNEs’ CSR.

Theory	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	Total
Agency theory	1			1	1		1		1					5
Attention-based view										1				1
Boundary-spanning learning													1	1
Chief sustainability officer view										1	1			2
Collective action theory	1													1
Corporate social irresponsibility										1				1
Critical mass theory									1					1
Cross-cultural perspective													1	1
direct benefits/indirect costs											1			1
Elaboration Likelihood Model		1												1
Grounded-theory-building			2											2
Human capital management perspective													1	1
Information asymmetry theory			1								1			2
Information Theory		1							1					2
Institutional Theory	1			3	1	2	1	2	1		3	2	1	17
Integrative social contracts theory							1							1
International business theory		1												1
legitimacy theory							1				2		1	4
Neoclassical trade theory						1								1
Organizational Theory							1	2						3
Portfolio theory		1												1
Product classification theory		1												1
Reputation risk view											1			1
Resource-based View													1	1
Resource dependence theory					1									1
Risk mitigation theory		1												1
Signaling theory								1					1	2
Societal marketing perspective				1										1
Social stratification view												1		1
Stakeholder theory	1	1		1	4	5	2	1				1	1	17
Strategic view													1	1
Task interdependence													1	1
Type II agency problem	1													1
Upper echelons theory						2					2	1		5
Total	5	7	3	6	7	10	7	6	4	3	11	5	10	84

. As mentioned above, Institutional theory and Shareholder theory are the most frequently used theories in the research field of CMNE CSR, followed by agency theory, upper echelons theory, legitimacy theory, and resource dependence theory.

We classify six research topics and several key concepts based on the core ideas of each paper, which are examined in detail below.

Table 3. Topic and year of the articles on Chinese MNEs’ CSR.

Topic	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	Total
Corporate Governance → CSR	2					2	2	1	1		2		1	11
CSR → Performance	2	3	1	2	1	3	1	1	1		2	1	1	19
Institutional environments → CSR	2		1	1	2	1	2	2	1		3	1	1	17
Resource and Capability → CSR					1						2		1	4
Strategy/Activity → CSR				2		1					1			4
Total	6	3	2	5	4	7	5	4	3	0	10	2	4	55

shows the number of times each topic was studied each year. From this table, we can observe the influence of the institutional environment and corporate government on CSR practices and the relationship between CSR and corporate performance is the largest number. In

Table 4. Concepts related to Chinese MNEs’ CSR.

Concepts	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	Total
Corporate ethics					2				1					3
CSR assurance									1	1				2
CSR Commitment						1		1	1					3
CSR communication				1			1					1		3
CSR donation				1					1	1	1		1	5
CSR diffuse			1					1			2	1		5
CSR disclosures					1				1	1	2	2		7
CSR security					1			1						2
CSR initiatives legitimacy			1			1	2	1						5
CSR reporting					1		1	1	2	2	2	1	1	11
CSR strategies				1	1	1	2	1	1	2	1	1	1	12
CSR suspension						1			1					2
Corporate philanthropy	1	1	1	1	1			1	1					7
Corporate volunteer assignments											1			1
Environmental CSR						1			2			1		4
external-oriented CSR practices.								1			1			2
Globalization of CSR							1				1	1		3
intangible assets												1		1
Internal CSR structures								1			2			3
Rankins CSR Ratings		2					1				2			5
Reputation risk spillover													1	1
Self-Presentation of CSR				1			1							2
Total	1	3	3	5	7	5	9	9	12	7	15	9	4	88

, we select concepts related to CMNEs’ CSR from each study. CSR disclosures, legitimacy, reporting, and strategies have appeared most often. Additionally, in Appendix A, we list all the papers discussed in the form of a table.

On this basis, we also found that the existing research is divided into two main areas: one part is the research that discusses the factors that influence CSR practices in the Chinese context, such as corporate governance, resource and capability, institutional environment, and corporate strategy (Figure 1). Most of them have been concluded through quantitative studies by collecting data from Chinese companies or by comparing the differences with Western CSR practices using qualitative methods; the other part discusses the role of corporate CSR practices on corporate performance; the other part discusses the effect of corporate CSR practices on corporate performance, as in Figure 1, mainly regarding the impact on financial and legitimacy performance, through quantitative analysis.

3. Research on the CMNEs’ CSR

CSR implementation by MNEs in the world has always been an interesting topic for scholars in the field of business ethics [25]. We focus on CMNEs in emerging Asian markets implementing global CSR activities. As a result, we classify six research topics and several key concepts based on the core ideas of each paper, which are examined in detail below. First, we found that, with the exception of non-MNEs, MNEs may consider stakeholders such as the home country, the host country, and even the entire world in a more complex political, economic, and cultural environment [6].

Second, many studies have proposed that CSR performance in China differs from that in Western countries because of the sociocultural context [18]. Besides similar dimensions, i.e., economic, legal, environmental, consumer, employee, and social charity dimensions, the Western CSR system regarding profits for shareholders also has dimensions in racial and gender equality, as well as equal opportunity for underprivileged groups and regional development, which are of less concern to Chinese corporations. For Chinese corporations, the first dimension that is of greater concern is good faith, which is reflected in the sense of cooperation and business ethics related to fair prices and genuine goods. The second is employment, which is typically required by firms to provide more jobs to alleviate China’s labor shortage. The third distinct dimension is social stability and progress, which is like Gallo’s [29] “correcting or stopping a behavior that is detrimental to social matters,” but also has its own unique meaning related to China, i.e., ensuring social stability and harmony [18]. Next, we will analyze in detail the key findings of the six themes.

3.1. The Relationship between Corporation Governance and CSR Practices

Since the governance structure of MNEs demonstrates multiple trends [30], it is more conducive to directly comprehending the CSR implementation process of MNEs [11], which is useful for CSR analysis in the Chinese context. Most previous studies, from the perspective of the CMNE governance structure, such as board composition and firm ownership, as well as top management team (TMT) characteristics, examine its role in the implementation of CSR strategies, CSR evaluation, and CSR disclosure. In Table 5, we list the main findings of the current studies on CSR in CMNEs, including theories and concepts. As it can be seen from the table, the main theories used on this theme are institutional theory, agency theory, stakeholder theory, upper echelon theory, etc. The concepts related to it that are discussed more frequently are CSR strategies, CSR reporting, CSR disclosures, and the legitimacy of CSR initiatives. We can see from Figure 1 for 1–2 that there is a bidirectional relationship between corporate and CSR practice.

Based on the upper echelons theory, Wang et al. [31,32] proposed that government, customer, competitor, employee, and shareholder pressures all influence corporate CSR managerial decision making. In the implementation of CMNEs’ CSR practices, the issue concerning the role of government and public ownership is still a concern for many scholars, since it influences the adoption of corporate internationalization strategies and the relationship with stakeholders [33,34]. Khalid et al. [35], according to legitimacy theory and stakeholder theory, proposed that the laws and regulations promulgated by a country’s legislative body serve as the foundation for the execution of the country’s CSR policies, concluding that when the government is both a stakeholder and the organization’s owner, it applies different rules to state-owned enterprises than it does to non-state-owned enterprises; this may also lead to the different international performance of SOEs and non-SOEs in terms of environmental, social and governance. Based on institutional and agency theory, Lau and Lu [11] emphasized the unique characteristics of corporate governance structures and mechanisms in the Chinese context and proposed that the structure of state ownership has an impact on CSR discolors and that ownership concentration reduces the diversity of CSR activities. Therefore, state-controlled firms with dispersed equity perform better than private enterprises with concentrated equity. This finding implies that in a diverse governance environment, Chinese MNEs may broaden the scope of CSR in internationalization [35].

Regarding the implementation of CSR activities at the company’s board and TMT levels, according to Lau and Lu [11], board members are external supervisors or representatives from the perspective of stakeholders. In comparison to the internal TMT level, the board may elicit the CMNE’s social responsibility to serve the public’s performance positively and effectively. For board CSR performance, some studies, based on resource dependence theory, mention that joint ventures need to connect to more external resources to provide support for CSR activities [36,37]. Liao et al. [36], from an agency perspective, also mention that a larger board size, more female directors, and increased international experience of CEOs can devote more energy and resources to social responsibility assurance. Indeed, the above incentives also stimulate CSR performance at the TMT level at the same time; moreover, philanthropy in CSR also has an impact on the legitimacy of external stakeholders and the persistence of internal stakeholders [38].

Furthermore, Fu et al. [39] proposed that establishing a chief sustainability officer (CSO) in a corporation can increase CSR activities while decreasing socially irresponsible activities (CSIR). However, if initiatives are not enhanced, it may even lead to governance failure. For example, some MNEs in the oil and gas industry may experience governance failures owing to insufficient CSR and policy initiatives [40]. As a result, the approach to addressing the issue will require additional research in the future.

Table 5. Research on the effect of corporation governance on CSR practices.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Lau et al. [11]	2016	Institutional theory, Agency theory, Upper echelons theory	CSR disclosures, CSR strategies	Compared to TMT, board may have a more active and effective elicit CMNE’s CSR to serve the performance of public
Khalid et al. [35]	2021	Legitimacy theory Stakeholder Theory	Environmental CSR, Globalization of CSR	Chinese non-state-owned MNEs outperform their peers on environmental and governance performance.
Wang et al. [31]	2015	Upper echelons theory	CSR donation	Pressure from stakeholders influences the perception of corporate charitable giving management decisions
Zamir1 and Saeed [41]	2020	Legitimacy theory and institutional theory	CSR disclosures, CSR reporting	MNEs close to financial centers exhibit more CSR disclosure.
Liao et al. [36]	2018	Resource dependence theory, agency theory, and critical mass theory	CSR assurance	MNEs with larger boards, more women directors can devote more energy and resources.
Fu et al. [39]	2020	Upper echelons theory	CSR Commitment	The presence of a chief sustainability officer (CSO) increases CSR activities and reduces corporate social irresponsibility activities (CSIR)

Table 5. Research on the effect of corporation governance on CSR practices.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Lau et al. [11]	2016	Institutional theory, Agency theory, Upper echelons theory	CSR disclosures, CSR strategies	Compared to TMT, board may have a more active and effective elicit CMNE’s CSR to serve the performance of public
Khalid et al. [35]	2021	Legitimacy theory Stakeholder Theory	Environmental CSR, Globalization of CSR	Chinese non-state-owned MNEs outperform their peers on environmental and governance performance.
Wang et al. [31]	2015	Upper echelons theory	CSR donation	Pressure from stakeholders influences the perception of corporate charitable giving management decisions
Zamir1 and Saeed [41]	2020	Legitimacy theory and institutional theory	CSR disclosures, CSR reporting	MNEs close to financial centers exhibit more CSR disclosure.
Liao et al. [36]	2018	Resource dependence theory, agency theory, and critical mass theory	CSR assurance	MNEs with larger boards, more women directors can devote more energy and resources.
Fu et al. [39]	2020	Upper echelons theory	CSR Commitment	The presence of a chief sustainability officer (CSO) increases CSR activities and reduces corporate social irresponsibility activities (CSIR)

3.2. The Relationship between Institutional Environment and CSR Practices

Institutional logic aims to understand how the cognition and behavior of organizations and individuals are influenced by various belief systems as well as being reshaped [6]. Institutional infrastructure and cultural ethics will have a long-term impact on emerging economies’ CSR approaches and when faced with global isomorphic challenges, Chinese MNEs will adapt to corresponding strategies [14,42]. Through a review of the literature, we also find that in addition to institutional theory, scholars have drawn on stakeholder theory, upper echelons theory, and Grounded-theory-building to analyze topics related to CSR practices, involving concepts such as CSR strategies, CSR diffuse, CSR reporting, external-oriented CSR practices, globalization of CSR, CSR disclosures and CSR initiatives legitimacy, as shown Table 6. This section discusses the role of the national institutional environment in CMNE CSR implementation from political, economic, and social perspectives, as shown in Figure 1 for 3–5.

Among the studies about the political-institutional environment on CSR, Miska et al. [43] believe that the characteristics of the home country are decisive factors for MNEs to implement CSR strategies in emerging Asian markets. The political environment in China also has an impact on the adoption of CSR strategies. Most studies concentrate on the degree of connection with the state. Ge and Zhao [44] examined that corporations with a closer bureaucratic linkage to the state are more likely to focus on external-oriented CSR practices, while those with closer relationships with states through political or semi-political associations with the state are more likely to adopt strategies to improve the internal structure of CSR [44].

Regarding the motivation of corporations to implement government CSR initiatives, Li and Lu [45] from the institutional view developed a dual-agency model, explored the interplay of corporate motivation to implement CSR initiatives and human agents (government officials, corporate CEOs), and conclude that corporations are more likely to increase CSR when public agents are more motivated to seek promotion to central government or when private agents are more concerned with legitimacy. Liu et al. [14], from upper echelons theory and stakeholder theory, examined that private Chinese enterprises with a high social status are more willing to expand their national connections through CSR activities to maintain their dominant position in the local market. Furthermore, Marquis et al. [33] established a state-mediated globalization mechanism based on institutional theory to guide corporations on how to adopt and adapt to global CSR practices to meet the adaptability abroad and legitimacy in home countries for CMNE’s overseas subsidiaries.

Based on some studies, CMNEs’ CSR practices are influenced by local economic circumstances during the globalization process [46]. For example, a company in a region with a weaker economic institutional environment can reduce the quality of CSR disclosure and increase the cost of corporate bonds [47]. Companies in Asian economic markets located closer to financial centers exhibit more CSR disclosures than their counterparts located further away [41]. Sun et al. [48], from the perspective of institutional theory, discovered that banks are more likely to actively publish CSR reports in communities where enterprises generally publish more CSR reports or where CSR report guidelines. Moreover, at the industry level, large firms affiliated with the extractive and manufacturing industries, typically China’s SOEs state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which have more government-funded projects, perform more and higher-quality CSR activities [49].

Cultural traditions and ethical differences play leading roles in CSR implementation. Hah and Freeman [6,50], based on stakeholder theory and institutional theory, suggest that MNEs are driven to engage in socially responsible activities by host country stakeholders when the ethical standards of the host country differ from those of the home country. According to Barin Cruz and Boehe [51], China adapts headquarters CSR practices to respond to the needs of local host societies to be regarded as locally responsive to particular cultural circumstances. Furthermore, regarding the ideological elements of religion and law, Du et al. [52] found that the religious climate has a positive effect on CSR behavior and that the religious climate of the informal system and law enforcement of the formal system has a substitutable effect.

In general, institutional environment factors influence corporate CSR strategies, and some studies have found that CSR activities may assist Chinese MNEs in better adapting to the global homogeneous model while complying with the requirements of home institutions, thereby promoting the diversification of CSR evaluation criteria in the Chinese context [43].

Table 6. Research on the effect of Institutional Environment on CSR Practices.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Marquis et al. [33]	2017	Stakeholder theory	CSR diffuses, CSR reporting	The political mechanisms of state-mediated globalization allow corporations to adopt and adapt global normative practices while meeting the political legitimacy needs of key stakeholders.
LI and LU [53]	2020	Institutional theory	CSR reporting, external-oriented	Corporations are more likely to increase CSR when public agents are more motivated to seek promotion to the central government, or when private agents are more concerned with legitimacy.
Du et al. [52]	2016	Legitimacy theory	Rankins CSR Ratings	Religious climate plays an important role in strengthening CSR and has a substitute role with law enforcement.
Yin and Zhang [42]	2012	Grounded theory-building	CSR diffuses, Corporate philanthropy	Institutional infrastructure and cultural ethics have a continuing impact on the approach to CSR in emerging economies
Liu et al. [14]	2021	Upper echelons theory and stakeholder theory,	CSR strategies	Entrepreneurs with higher social status in China are more inclined to CSR efforts.
Hah and Freeman [6]	2014	Stakeholder theory and institutional theory	Corporate ethics, CSR security	MNEs are pressured by host country constituencies to engage in CSR activities when the ethical standards of the host and home countries differ.

Table 6. Research on the effect of Institutional Environment on CSR Practices.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Marquis et al. [33]	2017	Stakeholder theory	CSR diffuses, CSR reporting	The political mechanisms of state-mediated globalization allow corporations to adopt and adapt global normative practices while meeting the political legitimacy needs of key stakeholders.
LI and LU [53]	2020	Institutional theory	CSR reporting, external-oriented	Corporations are more likely to increase CSR when public agents are more motivated to seek promotion to the central government, or when private agents are more concerned with legitimacy.
Du et al. [52]	2016	Legitimacy theory	Rankins CSR Ratings	Religious climate plays an important role in strengthening CSR and has a substitute role with law enforcement.
Yin and Zhang [42]	2012	Grounded theory-building	CSR diffuses, Corporate philanthropy	Institutional infrastructure and cultural ethics have a continuing impact on the approach to CSR in emerging economies
Liu et al. [14]	2021	Upper echelons theory and stakeholder theory,	CSR strategies	Entrepreneurs with higher social status in China are more inclined to CSR efforts.
Hah and Freeman [6]	2014	Stakeholder theory and institutional theory	Corporate ethics, CSR security	MNEs are pressured by host country constituencies to engage in CSR activities when the ethical standards of the host and home countries differ.

3.3. The Relationship between CSR Practice and Corporate Performance

This theme examines how CSR practices affect corporate performance (finance and operational legitimacy), as shown in Figure 1 for 5–6. As shown in Table 7, we could identify from the review that scholars more commonly use stakeholder theory, agency theory, institutional theory, information theory, and signaling theory, and that CSR reporting, CSR disclosure, CSR donation, CSR strategies, corporate philanthropy, environmental CSR, and CSR initiatives legitimacy are the concepts that are more frequently mentioned in relation to corporate performance studies. We discovered that scholars mainly examine the relationship in two directions: financial and legitimacy, with financial performance, being the most studied.

In the review, we found that CSR improves enterprise performance by positively influencing a firm’s reputation, particularly in the context of ethical leadership. Many studies have found that companies that actively engage in CSR activities can improve their performance [54,55,56]. However, as a potential component that may conflict with shareholder interests in management, some studies have found that high CSR performance may result in undesirable outcomes in corporate operations [57,58].

For corporate financial performance, we find that it mainly involves effects on market valuation, bank credit, and the cost of debt financing. Hah, and Freeman [6] use shareholder theory to further conclude that CSR sponsors with high-quality CSR reports have higher market valuations. From the perspectives of stakeholder theory and signaling theory, Huang et al. [47] explained that CSR can reflect external stakeholders’ evaluations of the corporation and thus have an impact on the corporation’s access to loans. Gong et al. [56] used information asymmetry theory and verified that conducting CSR activities can partially offset CMNE’s negative impact on the cost of debt due to corporate law violations. On the other hand, other studies have suggested that CSR practices may have negative effects on financial investment and too high or too low CSR performance may result in adverse investor reactions [58,59].

As for the performance of business and political legitimacy of corporations, many studies explain it from the perspective of institutional theory. Its application is primarily discussed from two aspects: institutional isomorphism and institutional logic [8,60]. Institutional isomorphism emphasizes the various isomorphic pressures that host countries exert on foreign subsidiaries, often persuading them to change or reshape their operations according to local social values. From the perspective of contending, institutional logic emphasizes the social ethical norms of how foreign subsidiaries balance heterogeneity and homogeneity while maintaining their expectations [8,61]. Hah and Freeman [6] explored how subsidiaries adopt CSR strategies (global/local strategy) to build internal/external legitimacy in the smaller Asian emerging market context while facing isomorphic pressures. They provided four specific approaches (negotiation, camouflage, compliance, and defiance) to balance the gambling relationship between CSR security in the parent company and local ethical pressure in a host country.

In terms of other aspects of corporate performance, such as market performance, Zhang et al. [62] suggest from an agency theory perspective that corporate philanthropic activities can enhance advertising intensity and thus increase corporate competitiveness. From the perspective of partnership identification and institutional learning, Gatigno [63] explored how developing employees’ awareness of CSR values can reduce the risk of interdependence with nonprofit organizations due to boundary-spanning CSR programs. Furthermore, some studies have suggested that CSR activities should adapt to different environments rather than remain constant; for example, when facing a business recession, firms may reduce or suspend CSR initiatives [53]. Duanmu et al. [59] proposed a negative relationship between firms’ environmental performance and current market competition. The causes and manifestations of CSR’s negative impact on corporate performance could be explored further.

Table 7. Research on the effect of CSR Practice on Corporate Performance.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Wang et al. [58]	2011	Portfolio theory Stakeholder theory	Rankins CSR Ratings	Too low or too high CSR performance may lead to adverse reactions from investors.
Huang et al. [47]	2022	Signaling theory Stakeholder theory	CSR disclosure	CSR performance is associated with access to bank credit facilities, and this positive relationship is more pronounced in long-term loans
Zhang et al. [62]	2010	Agency theory	Corporate philanthropy	Advertising intensity is positively correlated with the category of CSR
Gong et al. [56]	2021	Information asymmetry theory	CSR reporting	Conducting CSR activities can partially offset CMNE’s negative impact on the cost of debt due to corporate law violations.
Zhao [49]	2012	Grounded theory	CSR initiatives legitimacy	MNEs may regard CSR as an extension of their efforts to seek legitimacy in the state.
Zhang et al. [64]	2020	Institutional theory	CSR legitimacy	Conformity in CSR legitimizes enterprises in the analyst group and positively affects analyst coverage.
Ye and Zhang [65]	2011	Risk mitigation theory	CSR reporting Corporate philanthropy	The u-shaped relationship between CSR and the cost of debt financing in China in the context of emerging markets.
Liu et al. [53]	2015	stakeholder theory.	CSR suspension	Suspension of CSR can harm stakeholder relationships and threaten the survival of the business.

Table 7. Research on the effect of CSR Practice on Corporate Performance.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Wang et al. [58]	2011	Portfolio theory Stakeholder theory	Rankins CSR Ratings	Too low or too high CSR performance may lead to adverse reactions from investors.
Huang et al. [47]	2022	Signaling theory Stakeholder theory	CSR disclosure	CSR performance is associated with access to bank credit facilities, and this positive relationship is more pronounced in long-term loans
Zhang et al. [62]	2010	Agency theory	Corporate philanthropy	Advertising intensity is positively correlated with the category of CSR
Gong et al. [56]	2021	Information asymmetry theory	CSR reporting	Conducting CSR activities can partially offset CMNE’s negative impact on the cost of debt due to corporate law violations.
Zhao [49]	2012	Grounded theory	CSR initiatives legitimacy	MNEs may regard CSR as an extension of their efforts to seek legitimacy in the state.
Zhang et al. [64]	2020	Institutional theory	CSR legitimacy	Conformity in CSR legitimizes enterprises in the analyst group and positively affects analyst coverage.
Ye and Zhang [65]	2011	Risk mitigation theory	CSR reporting Corporate philanthropy	The u-shaped relationship between CSR and the cost of debt financing in China in the context of emerging markets.
Liu et al. [53]	2015	stakeholder theory.	CSR suspension	Suspension of CSR can harm stakeholder relationships and threaten the survival of the business.

3.4. The Relationship between Strategy/Activity and CSR Practice

This topic discusses the effect of strategies or activities carried out by a country or enterprise on CSR practices such as national macro-development policies, as shown in Figure 1 for 4–5. Through the literature review, as shown in Table 8, we found that the most used theories related to this theme are institutional theory, shareholder theory, and stakeholder theory, and the concepts discussed with them are self-presentation of CSR, CSR donation, corporate philanthropy, etc. Next, we review both strategies and activities.

The impact of strategy on corporate CSR is mainly based on national policies. China’s sustainability strategy emphasizes that the focus of economic development should shift from resource-based expansion to CSR initiatives [16]. Hence, the government implements some agendas related to this issue, and Ma and Bu [16] apply institutional theory and confirmed this result. Yang et al. [5] also indicated that the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) would have a significant and positive impact on Chinese MNEs’ overall CSR, especially for Chinese state-owned MNEs [5].

In the study of CSR practices by corporate strategies or activities, Zhang and Luo [66,67], from the viewpoint of social movement and taking the MNE online charitable donation event during the Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan, China in 2018 as an example, proposed that an online campaign can support MNEs in establishing a response mechanism to social issues. Corporate philanthropy activities would compensate for the absence of CSR standards and regulations, as well as market institutions [66]. Moreover, Zeng et al. [68] applied institutional theory and proposed that corporate societal marketing activities enable multinational corporations to establish a CSR image in their home country or the host country, which can not only directly improve the company’s operational performance but also benefit foreign subsidiaries by gaining external and internal legitimacy [68].

Table 8. Research on the effect of Strategy/Activity on CSR Practice.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Yang et al. [5]	2020	Institutional theory	CSR strategies	The positive impact of Belt and Road on the CSR performance of MNEs is stronger in host countries with higher levels of institutional pressure
Zhang and Luo [66]	2013	Agency theory and institutional theory	Self-Presentation of CSR, CSR donation, and corporate philanthropy	CSR increase the importance of external social forces that motivate MNEs to act.
Zeng et al. [68]	2013	Institutional theory	CSR reporting, Environmental CSR	Conducting marketing activities contribute to building CSR legitimacy

Table 8. Research on the effect of Strategy/Activity on CSR Practice.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Yang et al. [5]	2020	Institutional theory	CSR strategies	The positive impact of Belt and Road on the CSR performance of MNEs is stronger in host countries with higher levels of institutional pressure
Zhang and Luo [66]	2013	Agency theory and institutional theory	Self-Presentation of CSR, CSR donation, and corporate philanthropy	CSR increase the importance of external social forces that motivate MNEs to act.
Zeng et al. [68]	2013	Institutional theory	CSR reporting, Environmental CSR	Conducting marketing activities contribute to building CSR legitimacy

3.5. The Relationship between Resource/Capacity and CSR Practice

This theme explores the impact of resources and capabilities on the implementation of CSR, as shown in Figure 1 for 2–5. Through a literature review, as shown in Table 9, we found that network capabilities, human capital, international education, and work experience were the most discussed in past studies. Regarding the application of theories on this theme, there are legitimacy theory, stakeholder theory, a resource-based view, the upper echelons theory, and CSR-related concepts such as CSR diffuse, CSR disclosures, and CSR Commitment. Compared with other topics, the number of studies on this topic is still relatively small, and subsequent studies can continue to expand corporate resource capabilities and deepen the changes in CSR practices.

According to the resource-based view theory, the company controls resources and capabilities that are valuable, rare, difficult to imitate, and not substitutable, which enables the board to develop more effective CSR strategies to maintain the company’s sustained competitive advantage [15]. Li et al. [15] suggested that a director’s network is an important cornerstone for acquiring knowledge, intelligence, and expert resources, and legitimacy theory and stakeholder theory examine independent directors’ network capacity can achieve superior CSR disclosure quality [15].

Some studies have examined the effects of managers’ academic resources, international work, and educational experience on corporate governance. Ma et al. [46] showed that top executives with an academic background not only bring more professional CSR information to stakeholders but also have higher ethical standards for self-regulation in work compared to their non-academic counterparts. This can enable companies to proactively increase voluntary CSR disclosures by having higher ethical standards for self-regulation in work execution [69]. Furthermore, if the company has more directors and TMT members with international education and work experience, it will be better able to adapt to the internationalization process by diversifying its CSR performance [15].

Table 9. Research on the effect of Resource/Capacity on CSR Practice.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Li et al. [15]	2022	Legitimacy theory Stakeholder theory Resource-based view	CSR disclosures	Director network centrality has a significant positive effect on the quality of CSR disclosure, especially when the board devotes less to advertising
Ma et al. [69]	2020	Upper echelons theory	CSR disclosure	Executives with academic backgrounds are more willing to provide stakeholders with more CSR disclosure information
Cui et al. [55]	2015	Stakeholder theory	CSR Commitment	The relationship between private MNE commitment to CSR and average sales growth in the weak institutional environment

Table 9. Research on the effect of Resource/Capacity on CSR Practice.

Authors	Year	Theory	Concepts	Findings
Li et al. [15]	2022	Legitimacy theory Stakeholder theory Resource-based view	CSR disclosures	Director network centrality has a significant positive effect on the quality of CSR disclosure, especially when the board devotes less to advertising
Ma et al. [69]	2020	Upper echelons theory	CSR disclosure	Executives with academic backgrounds are more willing to provide stakeholders with more CSR disclosure information
Cui et al. [55]	2015	Stakeholder theory	CSR Commitment	The relationship between private MNE commitment to CSR and average sales growth in the weak institutional environment

4. Results

Based on the above literature review and our analysis, we summarize our results in the following three points. First, by reviewing past studies published in top-tier journals in the last 13 years, we learned about the most recent trend in CMNEs’ CSR. In terms of the number of studies, we find that the number of papers on CSR in Chinese corporations fluctuates steadily each year, and most papers are published in business ethics journals and Asian journals; in terms of theoretical foundations, the literature mainly focuses on the use of institutional theory, stakeholder theory, agency theory, and upper echelons theory and Resource Dependence Theory. For the frequency of research on concepts related to CSR, the existing studies involving CSR disclosures, legitimacy, and reporting are the most numerous. Regarding the research methods, most of the studies mainly use qualitative or quantitative methods, but quantitative research is the main research method.

Second, we divide the existing research into two main directions: one discusses the factors that influence CSR practices in the Chinese context (corporate governance, resource, and capability, institutional environment, and corporate strategy); the other discusses the role of corporate CSR practices on corporate performance outcomes (finance, legitimacy, etc.). In the following, we propose these relationships as a conceptual framework and summarize five themes, in which the impact of institutional environments and corporate governments on CSR practices is the most frequent.

Thirdly, we believe that CMNEs’ CSR is a timely and critical agenda in IB and CSR, both theoretically and conceptually. Further research in this area is still needed because it can provide a new perspective on the development of CSR theory, for example, from a Chinese perspective, while notifying the exploration of the relationship between globalization and local management. This will help to recognize the specific CSR practices within the context of the Chinese government’s proposed sustainable development strategy policy, for example, by examining the social mandates accomplished by CMNEs to their stakeholders in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are still some limitations of the study in this paper: first, we do not have empirical data to conduct a quantitative analytical analysis, a limitation that is common in other previous review articles including several published in top-tier or high-quality journals (e.g., [70,71,72]). Second, in terms of choosing the range of journals, we mainly focused on articles from 3 and 4/4* of the ABS rankings. For future research, we can collect data and expand the scope by including 1, 2, books, cook chapters, unpublished dissertations, etc., by using quantitative analytical methods to review, thus enlarging our understanding of the relationship between CSR and CMNEs.

5. Suggestions for Future Research Directions

We examined existing CSR articles for CMNEs and concluded with five themes: (1) the relationship between corporate governance and CSR practices, (2) the relationship between the institutional environment and CSR practices, (3) the relationship between corporate governance and CSR practices, (4) the relationship between strategy activities and CSR practice, and (5) the relationship between resource/capacity and CSR practice. Then, based on a large amount of accumulated literature, we explained the relationships between constructs and then illustrated the conceptual framework, as shown in Figure 1.

According to previous research, we found that there is much discussion on how to create a global code for CSR conduct. This is also of profound significance for improving the CSR practices of CMNE, which began to develop late, although from a universalistic rather than a particularistic perspective [16]. Of course, we found research on CSR implementation by enterprises in the context of China in some IB and IBE journals. In addition to research on CMNE’s domestic and foreign operations, research on foreign subsidiaries operating in China is also included. However, considering that national culture is an important factor in the development of CSR, as an emerging economy, Chinese enterprises are still in the preliminary stage of development; therefore, we need to continue to explore issues [16] such as what are the indigenous characteristics of CMNEs` CSR, and how to integrate the Chinese background into the global ·CSR standard with the contextualization approach. Establishing and improving CMNEs’ CSR implementation systems can improve CSR performance in global operations.

We provide potential references and suggestions for future research on CMNEs’ CSR based on previous research. We have highlighted rarely studied or understudied issues in Figure 1 with grey boxes

5.1. Developing CSR Theory on Chinese MNEs

Existing theories are mainly developed from Western to Chinese contexts [16]. We call for more local research to explore CSR theory in the Chinese context. In the future, we can further compare and analyze the differences in CSR implementation between Chinese firms and other countries, focusing on the operation of foreign subsidiaries in host countries, and then extend CSR theory. For example, a study on the CSR strategies of CMNEs for foreign subsidiaries.

Previous research has proposed some ethical approaches that foreign subsidiaries may adopt when faced with homogenization pressure, such as studies on MNEs’ use of CSR strategies to reduce local ethical pressure and reshape their core values in the host country [60]. Some studies have shown that CSR strategy, as a bridge between business and the state, has become a strategy for MNEs to establish legitimacy overseas [49]. We also need to know whether national and local institutional contextualization factors, such as political and economic factors, can be better integrated into decision making and whether they can be used as CSR performance evaluation components for CMNE. Previous studies have discussed the moderating role of institutional factors in the relationship between CSR strategy and firm performance, and in the future, we can explore in depth the impact of different dimensions of CSR strategy on firm performance under the influence of institutional factors. Overall, integrating each unique local context with a globalized economic environment may enable a better extension of the CSR theory.

5.2. The Relationship between Corporate Governance and CSR in CME

A second direction for future research is to gain more insight into the relationship between the CMNE government and CSR. Ownership of equity in Chinese corporations is divided into state-owned, domestic private, and foreign-invested enterprises. Because the ownership structure differs, as does the proportion of state ownership; the scope of CSR differs as well. Future research could compare and analyze the CSR implementation of different companies’ ownership. Specifically, SOEs have a high proportion of state ownership, which carries the universal recognition of the world’s obligations such as economic and legal but also undertakes the responsibility of job creation, social stability, and national progress [73].

Although we found some studies on the CSR performance of state-owned MNEs, the number is limited. We also need to investigate more pertinent issues such as whether CSR activities have changed in China’s changing business environment. How do SOEs’ widely implied social commitments (such as employment stability, childcare, and school provision) interact with the responsibilities of operating in the host country? Furthermore, the influence of SOEs’ degree of political dependency on CSR performance differs from that of other types of ownership, which should be investigated further in the future.

Then, regarding the Board and TMT level research, although previous studies have mentioned that investing in the employee dimension of CSR can increase employee loyalty and organizational identity, which helps companies to gain more value from intangible assets such as knowledge and experience through MNE employees working together across inter-regional departments. However, we also need to understand how intangible assets affect CSR practices, for example, does knowledge transfer and sharing in companies contribute to changes in CSR evaluation criteria? Additionally, does the increase in corporate research and technical staffing increase CSR disclosure voluntariness? This should be investigated further in future research.

5.3. CMNEs’ Corporation Society Irresponsibility

The fourth research direction is the discussion of CMNEs’ corporate society irresponsibility (CSIR). Luo et al. [74] found that CSR investments can be used to provide a function similar to reputational insurance for businesses. For example, increasing CSR donations can reduce the risk of an oil company’s market value falling because of poor performance. CSR investment can compensate for inappropriate outbound investments because of inefficient home-country institutions [75]. Therefore, when implementing CSR activities, businesses may be unmotivated to actively improve social welfare and may also tend to coexist with CSIR behaviors [76]. In today’s global economic depression caused by COVID-19, how companies’ reputations are not affected to maintain good business is an urgent concern. Future research should focus on CSIR behaviors, such as how to improve CSR evaluation standards from a balanced perspective and scientifically explain and measure CSIR behaviors. Answering these questions will help improve CMNEs’ CSIR mechanism of CMNEs.

5.4. Impact of COVID-19 on CSR of Chinese MNEs

The fifth research direction is the practice of CSR in CMNEs during COVID-19. COVID-19 has severely affected the operations of multinational corporations, leading to a new trend in CSR. Cui and Peng [77] confirmed that CSR is more inclined to focus on employees, consumers, communities, and social interests associated with COVID-19. Huang [78] argued that building CSR is the process of redefining China’s social policies, which is not just related to the division of labor between China and the country’s social duties, it also includes a variety of associations and social organizations. Future studies can further explore which CSR practices should be adopted to respond to the new requirements of all stakeholders when companies face changing environments.

Cui and Peng [77] mentioned that the length of CSR reports, framework criteria, and other aspects will be adjusted to follow the changes in the epidemic. However, there is a need to further explore companies’ emergency response capabilities, such as how to adapt CSR strategies quickly and efficiently in response to public health emergencies and how CSR reports should represent the current state of the environment.

Finally, regarding the construction of new CSR evaluation criteria, Tan Yusheng believed that CSR issues should be considered from the perspective of value distribution in the global industry through a more equitable global benefit-sharing mechanism jointly established by global consumers, multinational companies, and local enterprises. Future research could further discuss how to use new technologies, such as data mining, to construct new indices of Chinese MNEs’ CSR in global business in the context of COVID-19.

5.5. Methodological Approaches

Finally, more research is required to investigate the uniqueness of CMNEs’ CSR. For example, an experimental or longitudinal study has been conducted. Most studies on Chinese companies’ CSR use cross-sectional data. Although some studies use different statistical techniques to avoid endogeneity factors, a longer period can improve the restriction of causality [14] and facilitate an understanding of the basic causes of challenges in CSR implementation. For example, some researchers collected specific data on a CMNE’s CSR activities over a long period to gain a better understanding of how companies use CSR activities to improve corporate performance and the quality of their CSR reports. In terms of collecting CMNE CSR cases or sample data, future research should consider the diversification of types, such as collecting multinational companies established in different regions of China and further dividing them according to corporate ownership type (private, state-owned, and foreign-funded enterprises). Tsui [79] observed that Chinese subgroups differ in many ways, including the economic and political environment, values, communication style, personality, and cognitive style. This heterogeneity may have resulted in significant differences between regions. Future research can use the potential heterogeneity characteristics to further investigate CSR-related issues that still require continuous attention or resolution, such as enhancing the indices of Chinese MNEs’ CSR in global business. Furthermore, it can test whether regional heterogeneity in China affects the relationship between enterprise governance and CSR outcomes.