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1 – 10 of 639Thanh Thi Hoang and Huu Cuong Nguyen
This study aims to investigate whether the extent of corporate disclosure, proxied by COVID-19-related disclosure, affects the dividend policy of listed firms.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate whether the extent of corporate disclosure, proxied by COVID-19-related disclosure, affects the dividend policy of listed firms.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a multinomial logistic regression model to examine the relation between corporate disclosure and the dividend policy of the 100 largest market-cap firms in Vietnam in 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its unique impact on business operations, serves as the backdrop for this analysis.
Findings
The findings indicate that firms with more extensive COVID-19-related disclosure are more inclined to distribute dividends in the form of stocks or cash instead of omitting them.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the understanding of how corporate disclosure practices influence a firm’s financial decisions, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings hold implications for corporate financial decision-making during times of macroeconomic shock.
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Municipalities have the potential to become models of the circular economy (CE). This paper aims to examine the impact of the municipal council’s characteristics on municipal CE…
Abstract
Purpose
Municipalities have the potential to become models of the circular economy (CE). This paper aims to examine the impact of the municipal council’s characteristics on municipal CE disclosure and promotion.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is based on the resource dependence and upper echelons theories. For a sample of the 100 largest cities in Canada, a mixed methodology is used to code and analyze data and test the hypotheses.
Findings
Municipal councillors’ education and experience related to the environment or sustainability are both likely to affect CE disclosure, and their sector membership (public or private) moderates the relationship between CE disclosure and councillors’ experience. This experience may be reinforced by membership in the private sector, which has applied CE principles more extensively than the public sector has. Municipal councils with a greater number of councillors from the private sector appear to perform better in matters of transparency and to disclose more CE information on their public websites.
Practical implications
Municipalities could use the findings to foster their transition to CE by implementing a CE-related training plan for their councillors. A CE-dedicated section on their websites could improve transparency and inform and educate residents about CE.
Social implications
The public sector could learn from the private sector’s best practices regarding CE.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence of the transparency and engagement of municipalities toward CE. The authors extend the resource dependence and upper echelons theories to a new context, that of public organizations.
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Olayinka Adedayo Erin and Barry Ackers
In recent times, stakeholders have called on corporate organizations especially those charged with governance to embrace full disclosure on non-financial issues, especially…
Abstract
Purpose
In recent times, stakeholders have called on corporate organizations especially those charged with governance to embrace full disclosure on non-financial issues, especially sustainability reporting. Based on this premise, this study aims to examine the influence of corporate board and assurance on sustainability reporting practices (SRP) of selected 80 firms from 8 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
To measure the corporate board, the authors use both board variables and audit committee variables. Also, the authors adapted the sustainability score model as used by previous authors in the field of sustainability disclosure to measure SRPs. The analysis was done using both ordered logistic regression and probit regression models.
Findings
The results show that the combination of board corporate and assurance has a positive and significant impact on the sustainability reporting practice of selected firms in sub-Saharan Africa.
Practical implications
The study places emphasis on the need for strong collaboration between the corporate board and external assurance in evaluating and enhancing the quality of sustainability disclosure.
Originality/value
The study bridged the gap in the literature in the area of corporate board, assurance and SRP of corporate firms which has received little attention within sub-Saharan Africa.
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Rahma Torchani, Salma Damak-Ayadi and Issal Haj-Salem
This study aims to investigate the effect of mandatory international financial reporting standards (IFRS) adoption on the risk disclosure quality by listed European insurers.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the effect of mandatory international financial reporting standards (IFRS) adoption on the risk disclosure quality by listed European insurers.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a content analysis of the annual reports and consolidated accounts of 13 insurance companies listed in the European market between 2002 and 2007 based on two regulatory frameworks, Solvency and IFRS.
Findings
The results showed a significant effect of the mandatory adoption of IFRS and a clear improvement in the quality of risk disclosure. Moreover, risk disclosure is positively associated with the size of the company.
Research limitations/implications
The authors can consider the relatively limited size of the sample as a limitation of this study. Moreover, the manual content analysis used to be considered subjective.
Practical implications
The findings of this study provide useful insights to professional and regulatory bodies about the consequences of IFRS adoption to enhance transparency and particularly risk disclosure.
Originality/value
The research contributes to the existing literature. First, the authors have shown that companies are improving in the quality of risk disclosure even before 2005. Second, the authors have shown that the year 2005 is distinguished by a marked improvement in disclosure trends, with companies aligning themselves with coercive and mimetic regulatory forces. Third, the authors highlight the significant effect of mandatory IFRS adoption even in highly regulated industries, such as the insurance industry.
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Waris Ali, J. George Frynas and Jeffrey Wilson
This research investigates the influence of corporate–NGO collaborations on corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure measured in three different ways (i.e. extent, level…
Abstract
Purpose
This research investigates the influence of corporate–NGO collaborations on corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure measured in three different ways (i.e. extent, level and quality) in low-income developing economies. Additionally, it examines the moderating effect of corporate profitability in the relationship between corporate–NGO collaborations and CSR disclosure.
Design/methodology/approach
This research uses multivariate regression analysis based on data collected from 201 non-financial firms listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE).
Findings
The findings reveal that corporations with NGO partnerships are more likely to disclose CSR information and provide high-quality information regarding workers, the environment and community-related issues. Further, corporate profitability positively moderates the corporate–NGO collaborations and CSR disclosure relationship.
Research limitations/implications
Research limitations are presented in the conclusion section.
Practical implications
The findings underline the crucial significance of NGOs and their associated normative isomorphism logics for CSR disclosure in low-income countries with weak law enforcement and relatively ineffective state institutions, which were previously believed to lack such institutions.
Originality/value
While some research has suggested that companies in developing countries perceive significant pressure from NGOs to adopt social disclosure, no study has specifically explored how internally driven corporate–NGO collaboration (as opposed to external NGO activist pressures) promotes CSR disclosure specifically in developing economies.
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Poornima Mishra, Ashish Sharma, Mustafa Raza Rabbani, Asif Khan and Sunil Kumar
Financial and nonfinancial disclosures (sustainable accounting) are crucial in the annual financial reports of many firms. This study aims to explore the dynamic relationship…
Abstract
Purpose
Financial and nonfinancial disclosures (sustainable accounting) are crucial in the annual financial reports of many firms. This study aims to explore the dynamic relationship between sustainability disclosure quality (SDQ) and financial performance (FP) within mandatory disclosure frameworks. SDQ is evaluated across six dimensions, encompassing both the quality and quantity of disclosures, aiming to understand their reciprocal influence.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the generalized method of moments (GMM), this research analyzes data from 2013 to 2019, focusing on 99 listed Indian firms within the S&P Bombay stock exchange (BSE) 500 index. The study uses rigorous measurement criteria to assess SDQ and uses statistical methods to unveil the causal link between SDQ and FP.
Findings
The results show a positive causal connection between SDQ and FP, where organizations with good FP make relatively higher disclosures across FP proxies than their counterparts. Additionally, the study investigates the impact of research and development (R&D) expenditure and dividend payments (DIVD) on SDQ. Notably, lower R&D spending is associated with higher quality SDs, and companies with superior SDQ exhibit increased DIVD.
Practical implications
The findings advocate for strengthened regulatory compliance, incentivized sustainable practices and heightened reporting standards for a transparent business environment and achieving the relevant United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Originality/value
This research contributes original insights by uncovering the intricate relationship between SDQ and FP, shedding light on the impact of R&D expenditure and DIVD on SDQ. These findings contribute to a nuanced understanding of the interplay between FP and sustainability reporting within the context of mandatory disclosure frameworks.
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Peter Kodjo Luh, Miriam Arthur, Vera Fiador and Baah Aye Aye Kusi
This study aims to examine how woman corporate leadership indicators and environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosure in listed banks on Ghana Stock Exchange are related.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine how woman corporate leadership indicators and environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosure in listed banks on Ghana Stock Exchange are related.
Design/methodology/approach
Data was obtained from the audited annual reports of the banks for the period 2006–2020. Empirical result estimation was achieved using Panel Corrected Standard Errors.
Findings
The result revealed that female chief executive officer (CEO), female board chairperson and board gender diversity are associated with higher disclosure of ESG issues in listed banks in Ghana in overall terms. However, in terms of individual disclosures, female board chairperson positively impacts social disclosure, whereas both female CEO and female board chairperson affect governance disclosure positively.
Research limitations/implications
In this era of business where there is much emphasis on green business and investment by various stakeholders for purposes of ensuring business legitimacy, the result implies that banks must consider females to occupy the positions of CEO and board chairperson since that can help to improve ESG performance of banks.
Practical implications
In this era of business where there is much emphasis on green business, socially responsible investment and impact investment by various stakeholders, the result implies that banks must consider improving the representation of women in leadership since that can help to improve ESG performance of banks and hence ability to attract more investors.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to provide empirical evidence from a developing country perspective in Sub-Saharan Africa that gender of bank leadership has implications for ESG disclosure.
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Sourour Hamza and Anis Jarboui
This paper explores how the disclosure quality, measured by the abnormal tone of environmental and social report, may determine the environmental, social and corporate governance…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores how the disclosure quality, measured by the abnormal tone of environmental and social report, may determine the environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) performance of the firm. This study also investigates the impact of the moderator “board of directors” to explore the extent to which a well-balanced board of directors may affect this association within an impression management strategy.
Design/methodology/approach
This work uses a sample of 616 firm-year observations using a sample of French firms indexed on SBF120 index from 2010 to 2017. To test the developed hypotheses, the GLS regression is applied and to control for endogeneity issue and sample selection bias, the authors used, respectively, the two stage least square (2SLS) procedure and the Heckman model.
Findings
Findings suggest that a well-balanced board of directors moderates the relationship between the ESG performance and the disclosure quality. The positive effect of abnormal tone management on ESG is weakened by the presence of a good structure of the board, attenuating impression management initiatives.
Research limitations/implications
The research provides evidence of the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting quality, in particular disclosure tone management, on the level of ESG performance in the French context. As the board of directors may have a major impact on weakening impression management strategies in particular tone management practices, in order to improve CSR report quality, the authors recommend French companies to ensure a well-balanced board of directors.
Originality/value
This study helps investors to comprehensively evaluate the information disclosed on CSR reports. It unveils that a strong board composition induces better quality of CSR report and brings better ESG performance. Thus, the study results point to the importance of a well-balanced board of directors and the regulation of the narrative disclosure of CSR information.
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Xiaoyan Jin, Sultan Sikandar Mirza, Chengming Huang and Chengwei Zhang
In this fast-changing world, digitization has become crucial to organizations, allowing decision-makers to alter corporate processes. Companies with a higher corporate social…
Abstract
Purpose
In this fast-changing world, digitization has become crucial to organizations, allowing decision-makers to alter corporate processes. Companies with a higher corporate social responsibility (CSR) level not only help encourage employees to focus on their goals, but they also show that they take their social responsibility seriously, which is increasingly important in today’s digital economy. So, this study aims to examine the relationship between digital transformation and CSR disclosure of Chinese A-share companies. Furthermore, this research investigates the moderating impact of governance heterogeneity, including CEO power and corporate internal control (INT) mechanisms.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used fixed effect estimation with robust standard errors to examine the relationship between digital transformation and CSR disclosure and the moderating effect of governance heterogeneity among Chinese A-share companies from 2010 to 2020. The whole sample consists of 17,266 firms, including 5,038 state-owned enterprise (SOE) company records and 12,228 non-SOE records. The whole sample data is collected from the China Stock Market and Accounting Research, the Chinese Research Data Services and the WIND databases.
Findings
The regression results lead us to three conclusions after classifying the sample into non-SOE and SOE groups. First, Chinese A-share businesses with greater levels of digitalization have lower CSR disclosures. Both SOE and non-SOE are consistent with these findings. Second, increasing CEO authority creates a more centralized company decision-making structure (Breuer et al., 2022; Freire, 2019), which improves the negative association between digitalization and CSR disclosure. These conclusions, however, also apply to non-SOE. Finally, INT reinforces the association between corporate digitization and CSR disclosure, which is especially obvious in SOEs. These findings are robust to alternative HEXUN CSR disclosure index. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the negative relationship between corporate digitalization and CSR disclosures is more pronounced in bigger, highly levered and highly financialized firms.
Originality/value
Digitalization and CSR disclosure are well studied, but few have examined their interactions from a governance heterogeneity perspective in China. Practitioners and policymakers may use these insights to help business owners implement suitable digital policies for firm development from diverse business perspectives.
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Waqas Anwar, Arshad Hasan and Franklin Nakpodia
Because of growing corporate tax scandals, there is an enhanced focus on corporate taxation by governments, institutions and the general public. Transparency in tax matters has…
Abstract
Purpose
Because of growing corporate tax scandals, there is an enhanced focus on corporate taxation by governments, institutions and the general public. Transparency in tax matters has been identified as critical for effectively managing and promoting socially responsible tax behaviour. This study aims to explore the impact of ownership structure, board and audit committee characteristics on corporate tax responsibility (CTR) disclosure.
Design/methodology/approach
This research collected data from the annual reports of Pakistani-listed firms over 12 years, from 2009 to 2020. Consequently, the data set encompasses a total of 1,800 firm-year observations. This study uses regression analysis to test the relationship between corporate governance and CTR disclosure.
Findings
The results show that board gender diversity, managerial ownership and audit committee independence promote tax responsibility disclosure. In contrast, family board membership, CEO duality, foreign ownership and family ownership negatively impact tax responsibility disclosure. Additional analyses reveal the specific information categories that produce the overall effects on tax responsibility disclosure and assess the moderating impact of family firms on the governance and CTR disclosure nexus.
Practical implications
Corporations can use the results to encourage practices that enhance transparency and improve the quality of disclosures. Regulatory authorities can use the findings to stipulate better protocols. Doing so will be vital for developing countries such as Pakistan to improve tax revenue and cultivate economic growth.
Originality/value
While this research represents, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, one of the first empirical investigations of the association between corporate governance and CTR, the results contribute to the corporate governance literature and offer fresh insights into CTR, an emerging dimension of corporate social responsibility.
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