儒家文化对企业管理费用影响的实证研究

An Empirical Study on the Impact of Confucian Culture on Corporate Management Expenses

儒家文化作为中国传统文化的重要组成部分,对当代中国社会产生了重要影响。儒家文化强调的“勤俭节约”可能降低企业的管理费用,而儒家文化固有的“官本位”思想则可能增加管理费用,由此产生完全相反的影响机制。基于2007-2018年A股上市企业数据,以企业注册地半径300公里范围内孔庙的数量测度儒家文化。实证研究发现,儒家文化越浓厚的地区,企业的管理费用支出越多。稳健性与内生性分析表明,这一结果是可靠的;机制检验结果表明,儒家文化中的官本位思想在影响管理费用的过程中起着主导作用。进一步分析发现,儒家文化的这种作用对北方地区企业、民营企业以及男性高管更加显著。因此,当制度改革难以产生预期效果时,企业应该进行更深刻的文化反思,努力消除会导致管理费用增加的文化因素(如对官本位观念的固有认同),以便让制度改革发挥出更大的效用。

As an important part of traditional Chinese culture,Confucian culture has always had a significant impact on contemporary China.The emphasis on "diligence and frugality" in Confucian culture may reduce management expenses for enterprises,whereas the inherent "official-oriented" mindset in Confucian culture might increase management expenses,thus generating a completely opposite impact mechanism.Based on the data of the A-share listed companies from 2007 to 2018,Confucian culture is measured by the number of Confucian temples within a 300-kilometer radius of the company's registered address.Empirical research has found that in regions with stronger Confucian culture,the expenses of corporate management tend to be greater.Robustness and endogeneity analyses indicate that this result is reliable.The results of the mechanism test show that the official-oriented ideology in Confucian culture plays a dominant role in the process of influencing management expenses.Further analysis shows that this effect is more significant in enterprises in the northern region,in private enterprises,and among male executives.Therefore,when institutional reforms fail to produce the expected results,enterprises should conduct a deeper cultural reflection,striving to eliminate cultural factors that may increase management expenses(such as the inherent identification with the official-oriented ideology),thereby enabling institutional reforms to achieve greater effectiveness.