LGBTQ and Finance

Abstract

Recent changes in workplace and corporate board diversity policies and a series of court rulings have signalled a fundamental change in the treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (henceforth LGBTQ) people in the corporate world. In this paper, we survey the burgeoning literature on the role of sexual orientation in finance. We show that LGBTQ-friendly policies affect organizational outcomes and enhance the quality of corporate governance. We also provide evidence that sexual preferences play an important role in leadership styles in the household. Overall, our review suggests that LGBTQ research allows novel insights regarding how LGBTQ policies create value for the firm, insights that can help identify several directions for future research.

Keywords: LGBTQ policies, finance, firm performance, corporate governance, workplace diversity

JEL Classification: J16, G50, D10, G38, L25