The debt-to-equity ratio is useful for showing a company ́s financial capacity. As a result of the accompanying risks that a high level of leverage entails, most companies strive to be financed by equity as much as possible. However, tax benefits obtained through debt financing add complexity to the issue as a trade-off between risk and reward should be carefully considered. Previous empirical literature has shown that there is a relationship between the composition of the board, the gender of the CEO and the company’s capital structure.  The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze the relationship between the composition of the board and the CEO’s gender as well as the company’s capital structure in Swedish listed companies of Large, Mid and Small Cap between the years 2016 – 2020. This is done through a quantitative method where secondary data is analyzed through a multiple regression analysis. The result shows that there is no statistically significant relationship between the composition of the board and the company’s debt-to-equity ratio, while there is a negative statistically significant relationship between the CEO’s gender and the company’s debt-to-equity ratio. This leads to one of the study’s two hypotheses being rejected while the other hypothesis is accepted.

This paper is focused on the effect board gender diversity has on firm risk-taking behaviour within the domain of mergers and acquisitions (M&A). As existing literature has produced mixed findings concerning board effectiveness in the corporate context, it is suggested that external contingencies might have an impact on the influence of female board representativeness. In response, this study examines the impact of board gender diversity on the degree of acquisitiveness by taking a crosscultural perspective. Building on social identity theory, this paper predicts that female representativeness at the board level is negatively associated with a firm’s acquisitiveness. Additionally, this study theorizes and empirically tests the moderating effect of culture in terms of gender egalitarianism and uncertainty avoidance. The panel data used in this analysis consists of 111 Global 500 firms from 17 different countries, covering the period 2012 - 2016. Results in this paper support the notion that board gender diversity is negatively associated with acquisitiveness and that culture in terms of gender egalitarianism has a weakening effect on this relationship. Moreover, this paper contributes to existing research by offering new insights onto the role culture plays in the relationship between board gender diversity and firm risk-taking behaviour and, as a result, helps to reconcile mixed findings of previous literature focused on this topic.

This paper investigates the relationship between board gender diversity and financial performance. Previous work in this area has focused on providing evidence for a direct link between the two factors, which has resulted in mixed, inconclusive evidence. This study includes corporate social responsibility as a moderating influence on this relationship. The dataset consists of 5,077 firm-year observations with 839 firms present. The study was done with data from six emerging markets as identified by S&P Dow Jones Global Equity Index Series. The results indicate a positive interaction between board gender diversity and a firm’s corporate social responsibility engagement and a strong positive association between corporate social responsibility engagement and financial performance.

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Diversity is a multi-billion-dollar business. Dating back to the pre-Civil Rights era, what scholars now call discursive strategy–the language and meaning that shape phenomena–has shaped the diversity landscape. Over the past 75 years, we have witnessed a pattern of strategic maneuvering of the discursive strategy concerning diversity from the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) of the 1970s to affirmative action (1980s) to diversity management (1990s) to inclusiveness (2000s) and most recently to Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG). However, in response to reactions from its stakeholders, firms, e.g., Bud Light and Target have been forced to rethink the word choices, and subsequent actions, that reflect its attention to diversity. To frame these issues for strategy research, I propose that firms expand their strategies to include discursive diversity strategy, which I define as word choices among top leadership that reflect the firm's attention to diversity, equity, and inclusion. / Doctor of Philosophy / Diversity is not just a buzzword—it is big business. From the pre-Civil Rights era to today, language and meaning have been pivotal in shaping diversity initiatives. This study examines the evolution of what scholars term "discursive strategy" within the diversity landscape over the past 75 years. We trace a trajectory from the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), affirmative action, diversity management, inclusiveness, and the recent focus on Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG). Recent events, such as reactions from stakeholders, have prompted firms like Bud Light and Target to reassess their word choices and subsequent actions regarding diversity. This research proposes a novel framework for strategy analysis: discursive diversity strategy. This framework expands traditional strategy models to include top leadership's language and word choices, reflecting a firm's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Through a qualitative analysis of corporate communications and actions, we explore how firms strategically position themselves in the discourse surrounding diversity. Our findings suggest that firms' discursive diversity strategies reflect not only their internal policies but also deeply intertwined with their external reputations and stakeholder relationships. Understanding the nuances of a discursive diversity strategy is crucial for firms seeking to navigate an increasingly complex and diverse business landscape. By adopting a more comprehensive approach that considers words and actions, firms can better align their diversity initiatives with broader organizational goals and societal expectations.

Background: Corporate governance is crucial for organizational success, with the board of directors as the leading factor. Gender diversity in the boardroom and its impact on companies’ financial performance is a hot topic as legal gender quotas are present in some countries. In Sweden, other regulations are in place though. Research shows that diverse boards enhance decision-making and performance, with gender-balanced boards often leading to increased profitability and turnover. However, some studies suggest negative financial impacts due to a phenomenon known as tokenism.  Purpose: The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of gender diversity on the stock performance of Swedish industrial and healthcare firms during the crisis periods 2008-2009 and 2020-2021 and to compare the sectors’ outcomes. By studying this relationship, the thesis aims to contribute to existing literature about corporate governance.  Method: This study uses a sample of Swedish industrial and healthcare companies for a panel regression analysis. Data has been collected from Yahoo Finance and the companies’ annual reports. A positivist deductive approach using a quantitative strategy is utilized to test whether the theories are supported by the results. Control variables include firm size, board size, and average age, while the dependent variable is cumulative return, and the independent variable is the percentage of women on the board of directors. Conclusion: The findings suggest that gender diversity influences cumulative returns, particularly benefiting the industrial sector during 2020-2021 and the healthcare sector during 2008-2009. These results illustrate the importance of gender diversity within the board of directors during financial crises, especially in male-dominated sectors in the modern era.

Between 4.8% and 26% of adults presenting to gender dysphoria clinics have an autism diagnosis. Both autistic people and gender-diverse people have higher rates of mental health conditions including anxiety and depression and more difficulties with executive functioning, all of which impact quality of life. Some work suggests that gender affirmation leads to better mental health outcomes, including better executive functioning, but this has not been studied directly in autistic adults who identify as gender-diverse or transgender. As such, we elected to explore the relationships among these variables at this intersection of gender diversity and autism. In a sample of 54 gender-diverse individuals, almost half of whom were autistic, we found that having planned, scheduled, or completed gender-affirming surgical procedures were associated with improved anxiety and depression symptoms, and with better executive functioning. We noticed that within this group there were high levels of anxiety, so much so that the anxiety appeared to be overwhelming our other analyses. In all of our analyses, increased anxiety was associated with worse executive functioning, and in many of our analyses, further steps in gender affirmation was associated with decreased anxiety. Findings suggest that clinicians can support gender-diverse people by helping them with their mental health, particularly with managing their anxiety.

The full text will be available at the end of the embargo period: 31st December 2026.

The purpose for this paper is to determine whether there is any direct connection between board composition and R&D investments of Swedish listed companies. A century ago, Sweden was among the poorest nations in Europe, yet today Sweden is 3rd among world leaders in innovation. Innovation is approximated as a good proxy measurement for R&D investments. R&D has been the primary source for innovation because of today’s nature of economies in which firms are challenged with competitive advantage. R&D investments have become very essential for every organization as well, yet there is no clear relationship between board composition and R&D investments. The researchers sought to confirm whether the effects of board composition are not only to monitor but also to provide resources since R&D spending requires appropriate forms of control systems and proper level of resources in the form of skill, experience and knowledge. The researchers obtained that the Swedish code of corporate governance is the main form of regulation and control mechanism that are mandatory for the boards of listed companies to adapt and comply with. In this study, the researchers integrated agency theory, resource dependence theory, and stakeholder theory and stewardship theory perspectives to explain the effects of board composition on R&D investments. The hypotheses were derived from these mentioned theories, tested from the sample data of 68 companies extracted from listed firms in Stockholm Stock Market. Board tenure, board interlock, independent directors, and ownership of shares, board size, age diversity and gender diversity were used as the influential factors for R&D investments. Additionally, firm size, ROA, firm age and leverage were adopted as moderating variables to test the effect of board membership composition against R&D spending. However, only board interlock came out to be negative and significantly correlated at 5% level with R&D investments and the remaining variables were detected to have negative low correlations with R&D investment, though no significant associations were found. Out of the control variables chosen only ROA obtained a significantly negative low correlation at 1% level. The epistemological and ontological choices for this study were positivism and objectivism with deductive approach. In order to examine if there is a relationship between board composition and R&D investment, the researchers employed multiple regression analysis. The researchers also identified a research gap since they did not find any evidence of a study that examines board composition in relation to R&D investments in Sweden. As indicated by the results of this study, only board interlock has effect on R&D spending. Therefore, there is need for further research on R&D investments by examining other forms of board composition characteristics such as education and professional experience. Both qualitative and quantitative studies are recommendable in this area. The authors concluded that the board characteristics do not directly matter for Swedish corporations to invest annually in R&D activities. This paper provides full support to stakeholders’ theory and stewardship theory while partially agrees with agency theory and resource dependence theory. Key words: Corporate governance, Research and Development (R&D), board tenure, board interlock, independent directors, ownership, board size, age diversity and gender diversity.

Women are often predominated in so-called "women´s jobs" including nursing, teaching and administration while jobs such as manager, board of director and financier are dominated by men. Hence, the corporate board has been male-dominated. However, in recent decades the number of women entering the boardroom has increased. Women are aware of their opportunites in terms of managerial jobs. Nevertheless, Sweden has one of the highest levels of gender equality in the world. Women with business experience and education are steadily moving upp the corporate ladder. The importance of female directors´ contributions on the corporate board has been recognized. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how women contribute on the corporate board in Sweden. The focus of the study lies on the perspectives of female and male directors. The study was conducted with the use of a qualitative method. It provided us with an understanding of the subject based on respondents´ experience. In order tol fulfill the purpose, eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with male and female directors on the corporate board in Sweden. The empirical data was analyzed by the process of qualitative data analysis (QDA). We have increased the knowledge of female directors´ contributions on the corporate board in Sweden. Female directors do not posses a profound understanding of female customers. There is a strong link between female representatives and enhanced board communication. Furthermore, there is no relation between female directors and companies´ involvement in charitable activities. There is no difference in the way female and male directors monitor the board.