The moderating effect of women directors on the relationship between corporate social responsibility and corporate tax avoidance? Evidence from Malaysia

PurposeThis study aims to provide a valuable contribution by exploring the moderating effect of women directors on the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate tax avoidance of Malaysian listed companies.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on a sample consisting of 78 Malaysian firms over the 2010–2017 period. A moderation model that specifies the interaction between CSR, women directors and corporate tax avoidance motivates this study.FindingsThe results show that a high level of CSR is negatively associated with corporate tax avoidance in firms with a higher percentage of women on the board.Practical implicationsThe findings may be of interest to the academic researchers, investors and regulators. For academic researchers, it is interested in discovering the dynamic relation between CSR, woman on the board and tax avoidance. For investors, the results show that the existence of female directors on the board reduces the corporate tax avoidance. For regulators, the results advise the worldwide policy maker to give the importance of female roles to improve the engagement firms in CSR reporting.Originality/valueThis paper extends the existing literature by examining the moderating effect of women directors on the relationship between CSR and corporate tax avoidance in the Malaysian context.