Transparency: panacea or Pandora's box

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to share with executives, public policy makers, and securities analysts some key behavior constraints on transparency seldom addressed in the professional literature. Focus is on unexpected and perhaps counterintuitive issues of transparency and full disclosure.

Design/methodology/approach

Recent contributions from management research are presented to inform behavioral constraints on transparency and full disclosure. A number of studies are reported including research on the herd instinct in market volatility, the private information paradox in competitive strategy, insider trading in technology‐intensive companies, symbolic corporate governance reform, and attribution theory and corporate responsibility.

Findings

Executives, public policy makers, and securities analysts should focus on the latest research that impacts their duties.

Originality/value

The paper reports new research which questions “conventional wisdom” that there are few, if any, negative aspects to transparency and full disclosure.

Citation

Welch, T.C. and Rotberg, E.H. (2006), "Transparency: panacea or Pandora's box", Journal of Management Development, Vol. 25 No. 10, pp. 937-941. https://doi.org/10.1108/02621710610708568