Determinants of corporate social performance disclosure: a literature review

Abstract

Purpose

This review aims to identify the determinants of voluntary disclosure of corporate social performance (CSP) and to analyze and consolidate previous quantitative studies to identify the theoretical perspectives and the variables used in measuring the determinants of CSP disclosure (CSP-D).

Design/methodology/approach

A literature review of articles published from 1987 to 2015 was conducted using the three databases, Ebsco, ISI and Jstor, with CSP-D as the dependent variable. The goal was to identify the theoretical perspectives underlying the studies and the independent variables.

Findings

The literature revealed a set of variables and their general measures, but the consensus confirmed that there was no single explanation for what determined CSP-D. The published theories that support a relationship between CSP-D and its determinants are legitimacy, institutional, stakeholder, agency and voluntary disclosure theory.

Originality/value

The results allowed us to identify the perspectives underlying the major theories and disclosed a set of factors considered by the literature as the ones that influence CSP-D. This information will be useful for researchers interested in developing their own studies on CSP-D because it presents the evolution of CSP-D factors over time and organizes the findings of multiple studies developed since the emergence of the theme.

Citation

Garcia, E.A.d.R., Carvalho, G.M.d., Boaventura, J.M.G. and Souza Filho, J.M.d. (2021), "Determinants of corporate social performance disclosure: a literature review", Social Responsibility Journal, Vol. 17 No. 4, pp. 445-468. https://doi.org/10.1108/SRJ-12-2016-0224