The linear and Non-linear Relationship between CEO Narcissism and Corporate Social Activity Considering the Moderating Role of Ownership of Institutional Investors

Moral characteristics, including narcissism, have a great impact on managers' actions. Studies show that it is possible that the severity of narcissism has different effects on the corporate social activity. Considering the role of institutional investors' perspectives regarding the company's decisions, some of studies have emphasized the impact of ownership of institutional investors on corporate social activity. The purpose of this research is to investigate the linear and non-linear relationship between CEO narcissism and corporate social activity with the moderating role of ownership of institutional investors. In the present research, 60 companies admitted to the Tehran Stock Exchange were examined in a period of 7 years. To measure the narcissism of CEO, the results of two criteria (WHR ratio and signature area) have been used. To measure corporate social activity, a checklist including 44 options in six dimensions has been used. The results shows that the CEO narcissism has a negative linear relationship with corporate social activity, and the ownership of institutional investors weakens this negative relationship. Also, there is a significant U-shaped nonlinear relationship between CEO narcissism and corporate social activity, and the ownership of institutional investors widens the curve and weakens the effect of narcissism on corporate social activity at different levels.