Innovators or Risk-Avoiders? The Role of Female Executives in Enterprise Innovation in China

The author examines the relationship between female executives and enterprise innovation in Chinese A-share listed companies. The subject of the study is the impact of female executive representation on research and development (R&D) investment and innovation output in firms . The purpose of the research is to determine whether female executives inhibit innovation performance and to explore the mediating role of R&D investment while also assessing the variation of effects between state-owned and non-state-owned enterprises. The relevance lies in the growing international interest in understanding how gender diversity in top management affects firm-level strategic outcomes, especially in emerging markets with distinct institutional and cultural contexts . The scientific novelty lies in the empirical identification of the mechanism through which female executives affect innovation, using a panel dataset of 3,920 Chinese listed companies over the period 2012 to 2021. As part of the study, the author used the methods of two-way fixed effects, mediation analysis to assess indirect effects through R&D investment, and heterogeneity analysis to compare state- versus non-state-owned enterprises. Based on the results , it was found that female executives are significantly associated with reduced innovation output, primarily due to lower R&D investment. The author concluded that gender-based differences in risk-taking behavior influence innovation outcomes and that these effects may also be shaped by institutional settings and ownership structures.