A Study on the Relationship between Board Behaviors and Board Performance: Evidence from China

The literature on the relationships between board attributes and corporate performance is mixed, and one important reason is that the intermediate variable, i.e., board behaviors is ignored. This paper empirically researches the impact of board behaviors on board performance based on a survey in China. Our results show that the conflict of the board has significant positive effect on the strategic role of the board and insignificant positive effect on the monitoring of the board, and that the use of knowledge and effort norms of the board have insignificant positive effects on board performance. Based on our empirical investigation, the monitoring of China Securities Regulatory Commission on board behaviors is meaningful largely in terms of the form rather than the substance. Thus, there is a long way to go to regulate the board behaviors of listed companies in China.