#4638. CEO early-life disaster experience and corporate social performance

July 2026publication date
Proposal available till 21-05-2025
4 total number of authors per manuscript0 $

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Journal’s subject area:
Strategy and Management;
Business and International Management;
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Abstract:
Despite an extensive upper echelons literature on how CEOs prior experiences influence firm behaviour, we know little about the influence of traumatic experiences early in CEOs lives. Drawing on post-traumatic growth theory, we describe how traumatic experiences early in CEOs lives influence corporate social performance. We develop and test our arguments in the context of large-scale disasters experienced early in the CEOs life. The findings advance strategic management research on the relationship between CEO experiences and firm outcomes. Our findings suggest that CEOs who have had to deal with traumatic early-life events may gain psychological strength from such experiences and that their psychological growth informs firm conduct. Specifically, our findings indicate that experience of trauma early in the CEOs life is positively associated with corporate social performance. The implication is that boards aspiring to enhance this aspect of corporate performance may wish to consider the early-life experiences of prospective CEOs.
Keywords:
chief executive officers; corporate social performance; imprinting; post-traumatic growth; upper echelons

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