Women on bank boards and risk-taking: A cross-countries analysis on the moderating role of masculinity

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Abstract

This study examines the effects of board gender diversity on a bank’s risk by applying a moderate multiple regression analysis on a dataset covering the years 2008-2017 and comprising 110 banks from Germany, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland. Masculinity, a country-level cultural dimension incorporating the behavioural expectations surrounding men and women in a society, is used as a moderator. Results suggest that high country-level masculinity stresses the risk-aversion of a bank’s women directors, therefore compromising financial performance. To mitigate the negative effects of high country-level masculinity, this paper provides several suggestions. First, banks should change their stereotypical depiction of the “ideal worker”. Second, banks should question the cultural motives underpinning the entrance of women directors in the “boy’s club”. Last, banks should create a more egalitarian workplace where the distribution of rewards does not strengthen the privileges of the established elites.

Keywords: Bank, Board Diversity, Corporate Governance, Gender Diversity, Risk, Women

Authors’ individual contribution: Conceptualization – C.G. and R.S.; Methodology – R.S.; Validation – R.S.; Formal Analysis – R.S.; Investigation – R.S.; Resources – R.T.; Data Curation – R.S.; Writing - Original Draft – R.S. and R.T.; Writing - Review & Editing – R.S.; Visualization – R.S. and R.T.; Supervision – C.G.; Project Administration – C.G.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

JEL Classification: G21, G32, G34

Received: 31.01.2020
Accepted: 19.03.2020
Published online: 20.03.2020

How to cite this paper: Gallucci, C., Santulli, R., & Tipaldi, R. (2020). Women on bank boards and risk-taking: A cross-countries analysis on the moderating role of masculinity. Corporate Ownership & Control, 17(3), 71-83. https://doi.org/10.22495/cocv17i3art5