Does social trust promote corporate social security contributions?: evidence from China

Using data from Chinese listed companies between 2012 and 2019, this study examines the effect of social trust on corporate social security contributions. From the perspective of informal institutions, social trust increases the level of corporate social security contributions, and it is more significant in non-state-owned enterprises and strong legal and institutional environments. Based on the analysis of motivation for corporate social responsibility, we find that under the influence of egoism motivation, social trust can promote corporate social security contributions by lowering financing constraints, and it can also promote corporate social security contributions by raising corporate agency costs. Under the influence of altruistic motives, social trust can promote corporate social security contributions by reducing corporate violations.