Dr. Santo Jose
Commerce
April 2025
This research presents a holistic analysis of the interactions between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities and corporate financial performance, with particular focus on the mediating effect of investor sentiment in the dynamic Indian business context. Based on a descriptive study design, 150 primary data from purposively chosen investors were gathered consisting of individual investors, portfolio managers, and financial analysts through an organised online survey-based questionnaire structured for measuring tastes with respect to numerous CSR categories along with their estimated influence from a CSR point of view from numerous industrial categories. The evidence reported a highly focused preference for Investors towards Environmental Initiatives (42%), marking significant global awareness being given towards environment-friendly strategies alongside sustainability of concern. Social Welfare programs (32%) and Ethical Governance initiatives (18%) were also identified to play a lesser role in influencing investor trust. Sectoral research also illustrated that CSR activities within Manufacturing (26%) and Energy & Utilities (24%) industries were most capable of generating favorable investor sentiment, possibly because of their large-scale environmental and social impacts. Conversely, CSR efforts in the Financial Services industry (14%) were less impactful, possibly due to lower visibility or perceived effect. These insights imply that both the thematic emphasis of CSR and industry context play key roles in determining investor perceptions and financial results. The research holds that well-aligned and truly enacted CSR programs have the potential to be effective tools for reputational capital building, investor confidence enhancement, and long-term corporate sustainability and profitability. The research presents the findings with practical recommendations for business executives, investors, and policymakers to utilize CSR as a foundation of value creation in emerging markets.
99- 109
© Airo Journals 2021
