Do independent boards pay attention to corporate sustainability? Gender diversity can make a difference

Purpose Using the attention-based view, this paper aims to examine whether and how board composition might influence the allocation of board attention to corporate sustainability. Design/methodology/approach This is a conceptual paper that uses a theoretical perspective pointing to the importance of generating a board composition that might benefit both business case framing and paradoxical framing, a typology introduced in managerial cognition literature to explain managerial decision-making. Findings The conclusions emerging from the reviewed literature suggest that boards that have realized an independence of perspective focus on shareholder profit maximization at the expense of considerations of corporate sustainability. It emerges that women directors who have adopted paradoxical framing can enable boards to consider not only economic but also environmental and social issues of sustainability during board decision-making. Further, it is noted that the effect of gender diversity on allocation of board attention to corporate sustainability is contingent upon contextual (board openness) and structural (chairperson leadership) factors that facilitate social interactions inside boardrooms. Originality/value By considering alternative cognitive frames as well as social interactions, the propositions contribute to a better understanding of the allocation of board attention regarding ambiguous sustainability issues.