分心的獨立董事對公司有何影響？兼論企業型態之差異

The Effects of Distracted Independent Directors on Companies and a Comparative Analysis of Firm Types

本研究從不同面向探討分心的獨立董事對台灣上市公司之影響，樣本期間為2010年至2019年。有別過往文獻，本研究以獨立董事受到外部干擾事件數（如：其他任職公司是否發生重大事件）來識別其忙碌程度，並界定其是否為分心獨立董事。實證發現若公司董事會的分心獨立董事比例較高，則公司有較差的財務績效、較低的公司價值與下滑的經營效率，但對會計品質並不具一致顯著的影響，結果支持忙碌董事假說。且主要結果在不同公司型態上亦有所差異。大型集團企業與非家族企業的分心獨立董事比例較高時，對公司價值有較顯著的負面效果。公司財務績效與經營效率方面，分心獨立董事的影響在不同公司型態中皆存在。本研究並未發現獨立董事是否分心會影響其出席董事會的頻率；據此，本文推論分心獨立董事對公司的負向影響較可能是來自於其決策品質下降而非其監督頻率的減少。

This study investigates the impact of distracted independent directors on companies, utilizing Taiwan-listed companies as research subjects during the period between 2010 and 2019. To alleviate the endogeneity, we identify distracted independent directors based on the number of external interference events occurring in other companies where they hold positions to ascertain their level of distraction. The empirical results reveal that a high proportion of distracted independent directors on a company’s board is associated with lower financial performance, decreased operating efficiency, and reduced firm value. However, no significant impact on accounting quality is observed. Taken together, these findings support the busyness hypothesis. Our primary empirical findings differ among various types of companies. A higher proportion of distracted independent directors in large group enterprises and non-family businesses has a more substantial negative effect on company value. The impact of distracted independent directors on company financial performance and operating efficiency exists across different types of companies. Additional analysis indicates that the distraction of independent directors does not affect their attendance frequency at board meetings. Therefore, the adverse impact of distracted independent directors on companies is more likely attributable to a decline in their decision-making quality rather than a reduction in their supervision frequency.