Title: Do women on boards drive sustainability strategies: evidence from the S&P 500

Authors: Anna Vysotskaya; Katherine Taken Smith; Lawrence Murphy Smith

Addresses: University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UK ' College of Business, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412, USA ' Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX, USA

Abstract: Sustainability is a major issue in modern-day business. This study evaluates the role of gender diversity on corporate boards of directors and its relationship to the management of sustainability strategies, as measured by environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risk. Findings indicate that sustainability reporting practices, as measured by ESG risk at the top 30 companies listed on the S&P 500 (measured by market capitalisation), are not significantly different based on degree of gender diversity of boards. Even so, it is notable that women are well represented on corporate boards, averaging 32.2% of the sample firms. Thus, women play vital roles in corporate leadership, along with their male counterparts, to help companies succeed financially and at the same time to achieve ESG goals.

Keywords: sustainability reporting; gender diversity; women on boards; environmental, social, and governance; ESG; risk.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCA.2026.154613

International Journal of Critical Accounting, 2026 Vol.15 No.1, pp.105 - 117

Received: 24 Mar 2025
Accepted: 11 Feb 2026
Published online: 07 Jul 2026 *

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