Affective Orchestration at the Helm! Unraveling CEO Affects' Effect on Corporate ESG Performance

ABSTRACT The role of CEO affects in influencing corporate ESG performance is underexplored, despite the growing importance of ESG factors in modern business strategy. Previous literature suggests that CEO emotions can impact corporate decisions, but the specific relationship between CEO affects and ESG outcomes remains unclear. Using panel data from 35,078 firm‐year observations spanning from 2010 to 2022, we examine the nonlinear relationship between CEO positive and negative affects and corporate ESG performance. Our results reveal that CEO positive affects exhibit an inverted U‐shaped relationship with ESG performance, where moderate positive affects enhance ESG outcomes, while excessive positivity undermines them. Additionally, we find that CEO negative affects are negatively correlated with ESG performance. Media pressure moderates these relationships, amplifying the negative effects of negative affects and mitigating the impact of extreme positive affects on ESG performance. This investigation contributes significantly to our understanding of how CEO affects impact ESG performance and provides guidance for achieving sustainable development objectives.