scholarly journals Gender diversity on boards and forward-looking information disclosure: evidence from Jordan

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zakaria Ali Aribi ◽  
Rateb Mohammad Alqatamin ◽  
Thankom Arun
Keyword(s):  
Information Disclosure ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Financial Information ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Financial Reports ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Final Sample ◽  
Forward Looking

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical evidence of the relationship between female representation on the board and forward-looking information disclosures (FLIDs). Design/methodology/approach The study uses the content analysis to analyze the narrative evidence from the annual financial reports of non-financial Jordanian companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange. The final sample consists of 1,206 firm-year observations during the period 2008-2013. Findings The study provides evidence that gender diversity on boards positively affects the level of FLIDs. Further to this, the study reveals that family firms disclose more information than non-family firms. Practical implications Results of this study could be beneficial for a number of users of financial information such as, regulators, investors, auditors and lenders. The users might consider the findings of this study when they are using the company’s financial information. Consequently, users of this information could be better assisted to make right decisions. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by identifying the role of gender on the level of FLID, particularly on family and non-family, a relatively little researched area.

scholarly journals What determines forward-looking information disclosure in Bangladesh?

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-239
Author(s):  
Pappu Kumar Dey ◽  
Manas Roy ◽  
Mohsina Akter
Keyword(s):  
Information Disclosure ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Small Sample Size ◽  
Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Multiple Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Forward Looking

PurposeThe study aims to examine the level and extent of forward-looking information (FLI) disclosure and identify the determinants driving the FLI disclosure (FLID) in the context of an emerging and developing economy.Design/methodology/approachThe sample includes annual reports of the top 30 listed companies in Bangladesh for the years 2013–2017. The content analysis approach is used to examine the practice of FLID and to determine the extent of FLID based on the index. Multiple linear regression analysis is performed to identify the determinants of FLID.FindingsThis research finds that board size, auditor's global affiliation, leverage and profitability have a substantial positive impact on FLID. By contrast, firm size and listing age have a significant negative association with FLID. Moreover, contrary to our expectation, female representation in the boardroom has an inverse effect on FLID. This study, however, does not suggest any significant impact of board independence.Research limitations/implicationsSmall sample size may limit the generalizability of the findings. Besides, the FLID index score may be affected by the subjective judgment while analyzing the content of the annual report.Practical implicationsThe findings of this paper may assist the regulators and policymakers in incorporating this new reporting paradigm in regulations. Alternatively, the current research can serve as a basis to further understand the importance of FLID for the stakeholders.Originality/valueThis empirical study contributes to the current FLI literature in Bangladesh. A handful of studies have been done to examine the nature and level of FLID and find out the determinants of FLID in the developing countries. To the best of the authors' knowledge, no study yet has been explored on FLID and its determinants by classifying them as qualitative and quantitative in Bangladesh.

How do investors view information disclosure quality rating?

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 210-230
Author(s):  
Youchao Tan ◽  
Yuyu Liu
Keyword(s):  
Information Disclosure ◽  
Financial Information ◽  
Economic Research ◽  
Research Database ◽  
Investment Efficiency ◽  
Disclosure Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Quality Rating ◽  
High Information ◽  
Forward Looking

Purpose Following Cheng et al. (2012) and Tan et al. (2015), this paper aims to investigate how does the forward-looking information disclosure quality affect the investors’ decisions and then the investment efficiency. Design/methodology/approach The authors obtain the information disclosure quality rating data from the official website of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE), and firm financial information is mainly from the China Center for Economic Research (CCER) and China Stock Market and Accounting Research Database (CSMAR). The authors choose firms that publicly traded on the SZSE during the period from 2004 to 2010, and the final sample consists of 2,415 firm-year observations for 345 unique firms. Findings The authors find that a firm with a high information disclosure quality rating is trusted by investors more. Forward-looking non-financial information (FNFI) disclosure alleviates financial constraints and improves investment efficiency, including alleviating underinvestment and preventing overinvestment to a larger extent for firms with high information disclosure quality rating, especially for the firms rated A (excellent) or B (good) every year since 2001, when the rating began. Moreover, this study proves that investors trust the firms rated high more but do not guard against the firms rated low enough. Research limitations/implications The authors only considered the quantity of FNFI disclosed by firms and ignored other characteristics of FNFI. Limited by the data of information disclosure quality rating, the research sample is just from the SZSE. Originality/value This paper extends the research of Cheng et al. (2012) and Tan et al. (2015) to show that one of the reasons behind the extant mix results of the relationship between FNF disclosure and investment efficiency is different information disclosure quality. High-quality FNFI disclosure can alleviate underinvestment and prevent overinvestment at same time.

Board of directors characteristics and performance in family firms and under the crisis

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabete Simões Vieira
Keyword(s):  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Family Firm ◽  
Family Businesses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
And Performance ◽  
And Gender

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between board of directors’ characteristics and performance in family businesses. It offers evidence to the question of whether a family firm (FF) differs from a non-family firm and looks at the possibility of asymmetrical effects between periods of stability and economic adversity. Design/methodology/approach A panel data approach was applied to a sample of Portuguese firms listed the on Euronext Lisbon exchange between 2002 and 2013. Findings The results show that FFs are likely to have a lower proportion of independent members and higher gender diversity on their boards than non-family firms. FF performance is positively related to ownership concentration and gender diversity. There are performance premiums for family businesses, which have more gender diversity than their counterparts. These effects also depend on whether the economy is in recession. The evidence suggests that the presence of women on the board and the leverage and size of the FFs have a more significant impact on the performance in periods of economic adversity. Research limitations/implications One limitation of this study is the small size of the sample as it was drawn from the Euronext Lisbon exchange, a small stock exchange market. Originality/value This study provides input into the academic discussion on corporate governance and FF, an area which is in need of research. In addition, the authors examine this issue in conjunction with generalised economic adversity, focusing on the possible asymmetrical effects that the nature of the board of directors may have on performance in periods of stability and those of economic adversity. The role of board of directors is crucial to the understanding of corporate behaviour and the setting of the policy that regulates corporate activities.

Corporate governance and quality of forward-looking information

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen Qu ◽  
Mong Shan Ee ◽  
Li Liu ◽  
Victoria Wise ◽  
Peter Carey
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Information Disclosure ◽  
Financial Information ◽  
Mandatory Disclosure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Good Corporate Governance ◽  
Sales Forecasts ◽  
Corporate Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Forward Looking

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the association between corporate governance mechanisms and quality of forward-looking information in the Chinese stock market which presents a mandatory disclosure environment for forward-looking information. Design/methodology/approach – Using sales forecasts to proxy forward-looking information and using precision and accuracy to measure the quality of information disclosure, the authors investigate the impact of corporate governance attributes on the precision and accuracy of sales forecasts made by listed Chinese firms in their 2010 annual reports, using logistics and ordinary least squares regressions. Findings – The authors find good corporate governance has a positive and significant impact on the precision choice of sales forecasts disclosure. Firms with good corporate governance are more likely to disclose more precise sales forecasts than providing qualitative discussions on firms’ sales trend. In addition, good corporate governed firms are found more likely to provide precise non-financial information. The authors also find that good corporate governance is positively associated with making more conservative sales forecasts disclosure. However, the authors find no significant relationship between good corporate governance and smaller forecast error. Research limitations/implications – The study makes significant contributions to corporate disclosure literature. The authors investigate the determinants of the quality of forward-looking information in a mandatory disclosure regime while most forward-looking information disclosure literature have been conducted in a voluntary-based disclosure environment. The authors examine whether in a mandatory disclosure regime, corporate governance mechanisms can play a positive role in precision choices and accuracy of forward-looking information. Further, the study is the first to examine corporate governance and the quality of non-financial forward-looking information (sales target and production goal). The research findings therefore extend forward-looking information disclosure research from financial information to non-financial information. Practical implications – The empirical findings will provide regulators with evidence on the quality of forward-looking information in a mandatory disclosure regime and the influence of corporate governance on forward-looking disclosure. The properties of forward-looking information disclosure in China should be of interest to policy makers, investors and financial analysts in other international jurisdictions. Originality/value – The study investigates forward-looking information in a mandatory disclosure regime while most extant forward-looking information studies have been conducted in a voluntary disclosure environment. The study is the first to examine the quality of non-financial forward-looking information such as operational goals and plans, and to investigate the association between the quality of non-financial forward-looking information and corporate governance mechanisms. The research findings extend forward-looking information disclosure research from quantitative financial information to quantitative non-financial information.

Forward-Looking Information Disclosure and Corporate Governance: Empirical Evidence from Year 2013 Listed Firms in Ghana

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 311-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben K. Agyei-Mensah
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Information Disclosure ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Significant Variable ◽  
Financial Reports ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Future Performance ◽  
Ghana Stock Exchange ◽  
Forward Looking

Abstract This study investigated the influence of corporate governance on the disclosure of forward looking information by firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The forward-looking information used in this study were obtained from statements made for management in either the Managing Director or Board Chairman’s reports regarding future operating outcomes. The results of the extent of disclosure of forward looking information, mean of 35%, indicate that most of the firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange did not disclose sufficient forward looking information in their annual reports. The low level (35%) of forward looking information disclosure will also make it very difficult for the firms’ stakeholders to determine future performance of the company. In a country where corruption, even within the judiciary, is high one way of hiding corrupt practices is to hide information from the users of the financial reports. The results of the regression analysis indicate that board ownership concentration is the significant variable that explain the level of forward looking information disclosure.

Gender diversity and innovation in mining – a corpus-based discourse analysis

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 359-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ylva Fältholm ◽  
Cathrine Norberg
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Mining Industry ◽  
Diversity Management ◽  
Business Case ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Gender Patterns ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this study is to gain increased knowledge about gender diversity and innovation in mining by analyzing how women are discursively represented in relation to these two concepts, and in doing so establish how diversity management is received and communicated in the industry. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on analysis of texts including references to gender diversity and innovation in mining found on the web. The tool used to retrieve the data has been WebCorpLive, a tool designed for linguistic analysis of web material. Findings Although increased female representation is communicated as a key component in the diversity management discourse, based on the idea that diversity increases innovation and creativity, closer analysis of texts on diversity and innovation in mining shows that what women are expected to contribute with has little explicit connection with innovation. Research limitations/implications The study contributes with increased knowledge about diversity management by providing an example of how it is received in a traditionally male-dominated industry. Practical implications The findings indicate that for diversity management to have a real effect in mining, it needs to be based on gender equality and social justice motives, rather than on a business case rationale – the principal motive today. To enable this change, stereotypical gender patterns, as shown in this study, need to be made visible and problematized among policy makers, practitioners and actors on all levels of the industry. Originality value The study contributes with new knowledge about gender in the mining industry previously not attended to by using a method which so far has been sparsely used in discourse analysis, although pointed out as promising.

Family ownership and financial reporting quality: Iranian evidence

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahmoud Mousavi Shiri ◽  
Mahdi Salehi ◽  
Fatemeh Abbasi ◽  
Shayan Farhangdoust
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Accounting Information ◽  
Reporting Quality ◽  
Audit Fees ◽  
Financial Reporting Quality ◽  
Family Ownership ◽  
Content Type

PurposeIn the process of reporting accounting information, the auditor’s objective is to detect possible misstatements and errors in accounting information. Audit evidence aids auditors in providing reasonable assurance about the quality of financial reporting. Studying the quality of family firms’ financial reporting is of higher importance relative to non-family firms due to lower risk of accounting manipulation. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between family ownership structure and financial reporting quality from an auditing perspective.Design/methodology/approachTo analyze the research hypotheses, the authors use a sample data consisted of 221 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange (including 52 family and 169 non-family firms) over a five-year span from 2011 to 2015.FindingsUsing multivariate regression analysis of panel data, our results indicate that audit risk in family firms is lower than their counterparts. Likewise, the findings are indicative of lower audit fees paid by family firms as compared to non-family ones. The authors also find that auditors put more effort in family firms and thus audit effort is more significant for these kinds of firms.Originality/valueThe study focuses on family ownership and financial reporting quality in a developing country like Iran and the results of the study may be beneficial to other developing nations, as Iran stock market possesses some unique features which are not normally prevailing in other equity markets, even in the Middle East.

Female directors on corporate boards and their impact on corporate social responsibility (CSR): evidence from China

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Waqas Bin Khidmat ◽  
Muhammad Danish Habib ◽  
Sadia Awan ◽  
Kashif Raza
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
State Ownership ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Self Selection ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose This study aims to examine the determinants of the female representations on Chinese listed firm’s boards. This study also investigates the effect of gender diversity on corporate social responsibility activities. Design/methodology/approach The Tobit regression model is used because the data is censored and using ordinary least square regression can give spurious results. For robust check, the authors also used Heckman’s (1979) two-stage self-selection model to remove the sample self-selection bias. Findings The authors find that the female representations on the corporate board are positively associated with firm age, firm performance, corporate governance, family ownership, institutional ownership and managerial ownership while negatively related to firm size and state ownership. This study also incorporates predictors of the critical mass of women on the Chinese listed firm’s board. The study also tests the female-led hypothesis and concludes that the female representation increases in firms with female chief executive officer (CEO) or female chairpersons. The Chinese listed firms with gender-diverse board are socially responsible. Research limitations/implications The importance of diversity in corporate boards has been demonstrated in light of the agency theory and the resource dependence framework. The results contribute to the previous literature by documenting the determinants of female representations on board, robust by alternative measures of gender diversity, firm size, corporate governance and estimation techniques. Practical implications The economic significance of gender diversity stirred the firms to increase female representation. The policymakers can understand the reasons for female underrepresentation in Chinese boards and can reform the regulation to enhance governance quality, non-state ownership and risk aversion among the listed firms. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence on the key predictor of the world’s largest emerging economy, specifically the study focuses on the firm specific determinants, different governance attributes, ownership structure and firm risk measures. This study also seeks to answer if the presence of a female in the Chairperson or CEO position encourages the firms to hire more female directors or not?

Auditors’ response to readability of financial statement notes

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 463-480
Author(s):  
Mahdi Salehi ◽  
Mahmoud Lari Dasht Bayaz ◽  
Shaban Mohammadi ◽  
Mohammad Seddigh Adibian ◽  
Seyed Hamed Fahimifard
Keyword(s):  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Audit Fees ◽  
Financial Statement ◽  
Audit Report ◽  
Financial Reports ◽  
Statistical Population ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Going Concern Opinion

PurposeThe main objective of the present study is to assess the potential impact of readability of financial statement notes on the auditor's report lag, audit fees and going concern opinion (GCO).Design/methodology/approachThe statistical population of this study includes all listed firms on the Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) for the period of 2012–2017. The systematic elimination method is used for sampling and multiple regression and EViews software are used for testing the hypothesis models.FindingsThe obtained results show that there is a significant and positive relationship between audit report lags and readability of financial statements. Moreover, it is also revealed that readability of financial statements is positively associated with audit fees. Furthermore, the findings suggest a negative correlation between readability indexes and issuing GCOs, denoting hard-to-read statements is considered as a risk factor by auditors. Finally, the observations of our robustness tests suggest that the association between audit report lag and readability of financial statements is robust.Originality/valueThis is the first conducted investigation concerning auditor's response to the readability of financial statement notes in TSE. The outcome of current paper may pave the way for revising and developing Iranian accounting standards in order to give a fairer and clearer picture of financial reports.

Integrated reporting, financial reporting quality and cost of debt

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 517-534 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Badrul Muttakin ◽  
Dessalegn Mihret ◽  
Tesfaye Taddese Lemma ◽  
Arifur Khan
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Reporting Quality ◽  
Financial Reporting Quality ◽  
Cost Of Debt ◽  
Inverse Association ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Financial Reports ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Debt Market

Purpose Although proponents of integrated reporting (IR) advocate that this emerging practice has the potential to transform corporate reporting, the eventuation of this expectation would depend on the incentive IR provides to firms. This study aims to examine whether IR is associated with cost of debt and whether IR moderates the relationship between financial reporting quality and cost of debt. Design/methodology/approach Based on insights drawn from information asymmetry and agency theories, the authors develop models that link IR and financial reporting quality with a firm’s cost of debt. The authors analyze 847 firm-year observations drawn from non-financial firms traded on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, for the period between 2009 and 2015. Findings The authors find that firms that provide integrated reports tend to have a lower cost of debt than those do not provide IR. The authors also find an inverse association between financial reporting quality and cost of debt, and that integrated reports accentuate this association. The findings suggest that the debt market perceives value in the information presented in integrated reports beyond what is furnished in financial reports. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to document evidence suggesting that the debt market perceives value in the information presented in integrated reports, beyond what is furnished in financial reports.

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