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1 – 10 of over 5000Maher Jeriji and Waël Louhichi
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between hard, negative corporate social responsibility (CSR) information disclosure and corporate social performance.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between hard, negative corporate social responsibility (CSR) information disclosure and corporate social performance.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a generalised least squares panel data analysis based on a sample of firms ranked in the Fortune Global 500 for the period 2013–2016. Robustness check tests were conducted to limit endogeneity concerns.
Findings
The results show that in line with strategic legitimacy theory, agency theory and organisational stigma theory, poor sustainability performers disclose a low quality of hard, negative CSR information.
Practical implications
This paper provides guidance for stakeholders to identify good and poor CSR performers by better understanding whether corporate CSR reports are more likely to be symbolic or substantive when considering the amount of hard, negative content in their CSR stand-alone reports.
Social implications
The research highlights the opportunistic behaviour of CSR reporting, which is used more as a legitimation device than as an accountability mechanism. Thi
Originality/value
Although numerous studies have investigated the association between the level of corporate social disclosure (CSD) and corporate social performance, no research has focussed on hard, negative CSD. Also, an index that captures the disclosure quality rather than the quantity of negative CSR information was constructed.
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Sabine A. Einwiller and Craig E. Carroll
This study aims to reveal the quantity, quality and cultural differences of negative corporate social performance (CSP) disclosures in large firms' corporate social responsibility…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to reveal the quantity, quality and cultural differences of negative corporate social performance (CSP) disclosures in large firms' corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports. Firms are expected to be transparent about the impacts and outcomes of their CSP. A central aspect of transparency is balance, which means disclosing both positive and negative CSP.
Design/methodology/approach
Content analysis was applied to 75 CSR reports of large firms chosen from the Forbes Top 500 list. The firms belong to three cultural clusters: Anglo, Confucian Asia and Germanic/Nordic Europe.
Findings
Firms made few negative CSP disclosures, yet the quantity of negative CSP disclosures varied among cultural clusters. Reports from Germanic/Nordic Europe showed the highest number of negative CSP disclosures, reports from Confucian Asia showed the lowest number and the Anglo cluster's number fell in between. The Asian firms communicated corrective actions more often than firms from the other clusters.
Research limitations/implications
This study focused on negative CSP disclosures in the CSR reports – not omitting negative CSP. The practice of self-laudatory CSR communication decreases the likelihood that relevant stakeholders will believe what firms report about.
Originality/value
Studies on the quality and quantity of negative disclosures are rare; by examining cultural differences, this study contributes to the limited body of knowledge.
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Kleber Vasconcellos de Oliveira, Paulo Roberto B. Lustosa, Fatima de Souza Freire and Frederico A. de Carvalho
This study examines the factors which affect the adoption of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure practices in line with Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines the factors which affect the adoption of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure practices in line with Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines in Brazil's banking industry.
Design/methodology/approach
The analysis comprised the deposits (demand and savings), fee income, employee expenses, regulatory capital (Basel ratio) and ownership structure of all Brazilian banks from 2006 to 2017. The sample totalled 1,613 firm-year observations. The authors used three binary regression models (logit, probit and complementary log-log) in order to choose the one that best fits the model proposed. The authors controlled for size, profitability, leverage and liquidity.
Findings
The main results show positive relationships between CSR reporting and both savings deposits and fee income. The authors also found that state-owned (foreign private-owned) banks have a positive (negative) relationship with probability of CSR disclosure. A negative relationship was found between CSR disclosure and regulatory capital, indicating that banks are more likely to publish GRI reports as they approach the minimum levels of the Basel ratio.
Research limitations/implications
Some banks may disclose CSR reports which do not adhere to the GRI guidelines; these were not captured in this study.
Practical implications
The estimated model aids understanding of factors influencing CSR disclosure in the banking industry in an emerging economy, which may help bank regulators to adopt new approaches in their supervisory and regulatory roles.
Originality/value
This work is the first to document that both fee income and banks' regulatory capital are related to CSR disclosure. Furthermore, this study investigates the entire banking industry of a Latin American country over the longest and most up-to-date period the authors are aware of.
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Petros Vourvachis, Thérèse Woodward, David G. Woodward and Dennis M Patten
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the literature investigating disclosure reactions to legitimacy threats by analyzing the corporate social responsibility (CSR…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the literature investigating disclosure reactions to legitimacy threats by analyzing the corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure reactions to catastrophic accidents suffered by major airlines.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors use content analysis to examine changes in annual report disclosure in response to four separate airline disasters. The authors adopt two classification schemes and two measurement approaches to explore these changes.
Findings
The authors find that for three events the organizations appear to have responded with considerable increases in CSR disclosure that are consistent with attempts of legitimation. For one of the events examined, the authors find no disclosure response and suggest that this could be due to the company’s unwillingness to accept responsibility.
Research limitations/implications
The study’s focus on major airlines that have suffered an accident with available annual reports in English meant that other companies had to be excluded from the analysis.
Practical implications
The findings demonstrate the use of the annual report as a legitimation tool and further highlight the need for greater transparency and comparability across publications.
Originality/value
The paper adds to the scarce literature examining corporate disclosure reactions following threats to their social legitimacy.
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Dinesh Ramdhony, Saileshsingh Gunessee, Oren Mooneeapen and Pran Boolaky
This study examines the bi-directional relationship between corporate social responsibility disclosure (CSRD) and ownership structure through a dynamic empirical framework in an…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines the bi-directional relationship between corporate social responsibility disclosure (CSRD) and ownership structure through a dynamic empirical framework in an emerging economy context.
Design/methodology/approach
Data over 10 years are used to investigate the response of disclosure to ownership structure variables and vice versa. Dynamic bi-directional relationships are hypothesised and empirically investigated using a panel vector autoregressive (PVAR) model. The ownership structure variables used are government ownership, block ownership and director ownership, while CSRD is constructed as a score through content analysis.
Findings
A bi-directional negative relationship between CSRD and government ownership is found, revealing a preference for the state to invest in companies with opaque disclosure. CSRD is found to respond negatively to block ownership, albeit weakly. Results also show that directors prefer to own shares in the company they manage when there are low levels of CSRD.
Research limitations/implications
The current empirical set-up of using a small emerging economy may not carry to the context of larger emerging economies where the institutional context may differ. Thus, future research could use this dynamic empirical approach to re-examine the questions raised in this paper using data from other emerging economies. The use of a longer time series makes it feasible to explore further analysis what was not possible in this study, such as an impulse response analysis examining the reaction of the variables of interest, CSRD and ownership variables for a specific time horizon to particular changes or shocks associated with one of the endogenous variables in the PVAR.
Practical implications
A major implication is that expecting disclosure practices to improve due to government and director initiatives would be less likely in emerging economies. State and director shareholders prefer to invest in opaque companies because they may purposely choose to keep the minimum disclosure levels. The paper calls for a transparent process and ethical guidelines to guide government investment in firms.
Originality/value
The study investigates the bi-directional relationship between ownership structure and CSRD in contrast to the existing literature's presupposed one-way relationship between these variables by demonstrating that bi-directionality does matter. This paper also contributes to the CSRD literature in the emerging economy context. The bi-directional negative relationship between CSRD and government ownership calls for a transparent selection process of board members as representatives of the state in those companies where the government has an ownership stake. It also calls for a transparent process and ethical guidelines to guide government investment in firms.
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George Balabanis, Hugh C. Phillips and Jonathan Lyall
This paper investigates the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the economic performance of corporations. It first examines the theories that suggest a…
Abstract
This paper investigates the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the economic performance of corporations. It first examines the theories that suggest a relationship between the two. To test these theories, measures of CSR performance and disclosure developed by the New Consumer Group were analysed against the (past, concurrent and subsequent to CSR performance period) economic performance of 56 large UK companies. Economic performance included: financial (return on capital employed, return on equity and gross profit to sales ratios); and capital market performance (systematic risk and excess market valuation). The results supported the conclusion that (past, concurrent and subsequent) economic performance is related to both CSR performance and disclosure. However, the relationships were weak and lacked an overall consistency. For example, past economic performance was found to partly explain variations in firms’ involvement in philanthropic activities. CSR disclosure was affected (positively) by both a firm’s CSR performance and its concurrent financial performance. Involvement in environmental protection activities was found to be negatively correlated with subsequent financial performance. Whereas a firm’s policies regarding women’s positions seem to be more rewarding in terms of positive capital market responses (performance) in the subsequent period. Donations to the Conservative Party were found not to be related to companies’ (past, concurrent or subsequent) financial and/or capital performance.
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Benedetta Esposito, Maria Rosaria Sessa, Daniela Sica and Ornella Malandrino
This paper aims to explore how the Italian wine industry discloses corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices and quality certifications and the corresponding determinants…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how the Italian wine industry discloses corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices and quality certifications and the corresponding determinants via websites. The study also aims to investigate the relationship between CSR practices and financial performance. The information consistency between the quality certificates reported on corporate websites and official database statements is also explored. Lastly, the paper investigates how the relationship between the size of wineries and CSR disclosure changes according to firms' geographic location.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper analyses CSR corporate communication via the websites of a sample of Italian wineries by adjusting the theoretical framework developed by Amran (2012) to the wine sector's peculiarities. Moreover, a cross-certification analysis and a moderation analysis were performed to fulfil the purpose of the research.
Findings
The analysis revealed the extensive use of CSR disclosure via websites. It was found that company size positively affects CSR disclosure and Quality Certification Disclosure (QCD), while geographic location slightly moderates the relationship between the two variables. In addition, a negative relationship between CSR disclosure and corporate financial performance and its reverse causality emerged. Moreover, for most wineries, information consistency between the quality certificates reported on corporate websites and official database statements was observed.
Research limitations/implications
The study's main limitation is that the search process was performed during lockdown. Therefore, the examined issues could change in the near future due to the shift in priorities that the COVID-19 pandemic is determining.
Practical implications
The results can help managers implement CSR disclosure and QCD practices to enhance stakeholder legitimacy and enable their companies to compete in strongly competitive international markets.
Originality/value
The paper represents the first study investigating online QCD and its consistency in the Italian wine sector.
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The author's objective is to reveal the consumer responses to information disclosure strategies regarding controversial ethical issues.
Abstract
Purpose
The author's objective is to reveal the consumer responses to information disclosure strategies regarding controversial ethical issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The author is interested in how voluntary disclosure of questionable business practices by chocolate manufacturers regarding child labor exploitation at cocoa plantations influences consumer behavior. A total of 120 students participated in an experimental study in which the author manipulated awareness of ethical issues in the chocolate industry and corporate disclosure strategy. The author measured willingness to pay (WTP) and consumer perceptions about the firm's commitment to corporate social responsibility.
Findings
The study found that voluntary disclosure of unethical business practices by a firm was not damaging in terms of consumer perceptions. When public awareness was limited, disclosing participation in unethical behavior did not influence WTP for the firm's products. When public awareness was high, disclosing this negative information is even more beneficial than no disclosure and generates similar responses to including only positive elements in the firm's communication, provided that the firm commits to eliminate its unethical practices.
Research limitations/implications
Voluntary negative social disclosure will not hurt a firm's performance in terms of sales, given the disclosure is transparent and this suggests a credible commitment to improve its practices regarding the issue.
Originality/value
The author investigates the optimal strategy for a firm to disclose ethical infractions. She demonstrates that being open about them does not necessarily damage a firm's reputation and suggests under which conditions this is the case.
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William D. LaGore, Lois S. Mahoney and Linda Thorne
Prior research shows that after financial restatement, firms' corporate governance practices are strengthened (Farber, 2005; LaGore, 2008) as firms respond by increasing their…
Abstract
Prior research shows that after financial restatement, firms' corporate governance practices are strengthened (Farber, 2005; LaGore, 2008) as firms respond by increasing their disclosure practices and making executives more accountable (Arthaud-Day, Certo, Dalton, & Dalton., 2006). Nevertheless, it has not been established whether the impact of restatement extends to the domain of voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosures. To address this question, we compare firms CSR scores and the association between executives' compensation and firms CSR scores before and after restatement. We use a sample of 44 U.S. firms in the two-year period before and after a financial restatement announcement. In firms that had undergone restatement, we found a significant increase in CSR strengths and CSR weaknesses that resulted in a net decrease in total CSR. In addition, we found a stronger association between bonus and CSR after restatement. This contributes by furthering our understanding by suggesting that voluntary CSR disclosures are indirectly impacted by restatement. Our findings are useful in understanding the pervasiveness of restatement on a firm's disclosures and operations and also in gaining insight into the comparability of CSR disclosures after restatement.
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Dominik Dienes, Remmer Sassen and Jasmin Fischer
The purpose of this paper is to systematise the research field of sustainability reporting. The authors contribute to closing this research gap and, on the basis of this…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to systematise the research field of sustainability reporting. The authors contribute to closing this research gap and, on the basis of this systematisation, address the research question of what are the drivers of sustainability reporting.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper systematically reviews existing studies and analyses drivers of sustainability reporting using a qualitative approach. The authors intend to demonstrate and discuss the wide range of approaches used in literature.
Findings
The review suggests that firm size, media visibility and ownership structure are the most important drivers of the disclosure of sustainability reports, while corporate governance only seems to have an influence on the existence of audit or sustainability committees. In contrast, other determinants such as profitability, capital structure, firm age or board composition as an indicator of corporate governance do not show a clear tendency.
Originality/value
The authors systemise the research field related to sustainability reporting to give an overview of the current research landscape that is not influenced by environmental or social reporting and discuss the identified determinants and the related variables. This results in a comprehensive report of what is known and unknown about the questions addressed in the systematic review.
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