scholarly journals When Does Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure Affect Investment Efficiency? A New Answer to an Old Question

SAGE Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 215824402093112
Author(s):  
Rehana Anwar ◽  
Jaleel A. Malik
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Investment Efficiency ◽  
Disclosure Quality ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Quality Disclosure ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

Prior evidence that firm’s investment behavior is positively affected by its corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure, as one of the key CSR areas of the company, leaves unaddressed whether all kinds of disclosure have the same effect. Drawing on stakeholder theory, this study analyzes the issue in a more exhaustive way. A cross-sectional logistic regression model is used to test the hypothesized association, and the results imply that firms’ high (low)-quality disclosure regarding their engagement in CSR activities increases their chances of being from the investment-efficient (inefficient) group. The obtained results conclude that CSR reporting activity is not beneficial for companies unless a meaningful disclosure of sustainability information is made. Our results are robust to using alternative proxies for CSR disclosure quality. This study contributes to the scarce evidence on CSR reporting in Pakistan and provides a useful method for assessing quality of CSR reports.

Is corporate governance relevant to the quality of corporate social responsibility disclosure in large European companies?

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 301-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Adel ◽  
Mostaq M. Hussain ◽  
Ehab K.A. Mohamed ◽  
Mohamed A.K. Basuony
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose This paper aims to report on the quality of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in S&P Europe 350 companies. The paper also examines the impact of corporate governance structure and other firm-specific characteristics on the quality of CSR disclosure in European companies. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses a disclosure index adopted from Jizi et al. (2014). Moreover, the paper contributes to the CSR disclosure literature by developing a new index that includes all the aspects introduced by the Global Reporting Initiative version 4.The data of CSR reporting are manually collected from the firms’ reports. The population and sample of this study are related to 350 companies operating in 16 European countries. Tobit regression analysis is used to test the hypotheses. Findings The results reveal that directors’ ownership, the presence of a CSR committee and firm size positively affect the quality of CSR reporting. Further testing of the independent variables on each CSR sub-category is made. The CSR sub-categories used are, namely, community involvement, employees, environment, social product and service quality, supply chain sustainability and business ethics. The presence of a sustainability committee inside the company is the only factor that shows a strong positive effect on the disclosure of every CSR sub-category and the CSR inclusive index. Research limitations/implications The limitations of this research are that it focuses exclusively on the effect of the internal corporate mechanisms on the quality of CSR reporting; disregarding the economic, institutional, political and cultural factors that can play a role in influencing sustainability reporting of the companies. Practical implications Better CSR disclosure leads to the firm having a better image in the society; this, in turn, has implications on firm performance, attracting funds, as well as recruiting and retaining high profile employees. Stakeholders are placing cumulative significance to corporate transparency particularly in the area of CSR. Managers should exert more efforts into not only improving the disclosure of the various facts of CSR but also into using the various media available for disclosure. Companies should take the initiative of establishing a CSR committee to ensure effective formation and implementation of CSR policies and disclosure of CSR activities. Social implications The CRS research itself bears the merit of social implications. Moreover, the findings of this research pave the way for future researches to examine the effect of the adoption of global CSR initiatives and frameworks on the quality of CSR reporting. Originality/value This paper contributes to the CSR disclosure literature by developing a new index that includes all the aspects of CSR and exploring the relation between the rarely explored “presence of sustainability committee” and CSR disclosure, as well as testing a vast number of CSR sub-categories that is not extensively covered in previous studies. Moreover, the paper covers a large sample of companies across 16 European countries, in terms of their stand-alone sustainability reports, dedicated chapters of CSR in annual reports, integrated reports, website CSR information and any attachments/links provided on the websites for further CSR documents, brochures or data sheets.

scholarly journals Application of Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Principles for Measuring Quality of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Disclosure: Evidence from Pakistan

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 11409
Author(s):  
Hina Ismail ◽  
Muhammad A. Saleem ◽  
Sadaf Zahra ◽  
Muhammad S. Tufail ◽  
Rao Akmal Ali
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Global Reporting Initiative ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Development Agenda ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

CSR Reporting is an essential mechanism for ensuring the transparency and accountability of companies towards sustainability performance. To further promote that sustainable development agenda, CSR-related regulations and policies have emerged worldwide, including in Pakistan. Therefore this study assesses the quality of corporate social responsibility in annual reports issued by firms listed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange. This study has operationalized the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) principles for examining the quality of CSR disclosures. The paper sample comprised 540 annual reports of 90 financial or non-financial companies from the years 2012 to 2017. Content analysis is performed to look for six quality principles and measures, i.e., balance, comparability, accuracy, clarity, reliability, and timeliness. Results suggested that most Pakistani firms provide precise and on-time information and put less emphasis on the balance of information and comparable information. Moreover, this study also highlighted that organizations should implement the GRI principle for disclosing qualitative CSR report.

scholarly journals Quality Of Disclosure And Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting Practices In Indonesia

2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 337
Author(s):  
Eza Gusti Anugerah, Erwin Saraswati, Wuryan Andayani
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Symbolic Approach

This research aims to analyze the influence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting practices on CSR disclosure quality in Indonesia. This research used a sample of 103 companies across industries (except for natural resource companies) listed on Indonesian Stock Exchange from 2014 to 2016. This research found thatthe voluntary practice of stand-alone report, assurance and reporting guideline does not enhance the quality of disclosure.This practices tend to be usedas symbolic approach to fulfillcompanies legitimacy. This symbolic approach has the meaning that the companieswhich voluntarily disclose theirCSR information, merely aiming a positive impression from their stakeholders.Companies tend to disclose CSR information by diluting the relevant CSR information with unnecessary information to build their desired images.

scholarly journals Board and corporate social responsibility disclosure of multinational corporations

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanh Thi Song Pham ◽  
Hien Thi Tran
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Multinational Corporations ◽  
Board Independence ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
The One ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the effects of board model and board independence on corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure of multinational corporations (MNCs). Design/methodology/approach The authors developed an empirical model in which CSR disclosure is the dependent variable and board model (two-tier vs one-tier), board independence (a proportion of independent directors on a board) and the interaction variable of board model and board independence together with several variables conventionally used as control variables are independent variables. The authors collated the panel dataset of 244 Fortune World’s Most Admired (FWMA) corporations from 2005 to 2011 of which 117 MNCs use the one-tier board model, and 127 MNCs use the two-tier board model from 20 countries. They used the random-effect regression method to estimate the empirical models with the data they collated and also ran regressions on the alternative models for robustness check. Findings The authors found a significantly positive effect of a board model on CSR disclosure by MNCs. Two-tier MNCs tend to reveal more CSR information than one-tier MNCs. The results also confirm the significant moderating impact of board model on the effect of board independence on CSR disclosure. The effect of board independence on CSR disclosure in the two-tier board MNCs tends to be higher than that in the one-tier board MNCs. The results do not support the effect of board independence on CSR disclosure in general for all types of firms (one-tier and two-tier board). The impact of board independence on CSR disclosure is only significant in two-tier board MNCs and insignificant in one-tier board MNCs. Practical implications The authors advise the MNCs who wish to improve CSR reporting and transparency to consider the usage of two-tier board model and use a higher number of outside directors on board. They note that once a firm uses one-tier model, number of IDs on a board does not matter to the level of CSR disclosure. They advise regulators to enforce an application of two-tier board model to improve CSR reporting and transparency in MNCs. The authors also recommend regulators to continue mandating publicly traded companies to include more external members on their boards, especially for the two-tier board MNCs. Originality/value This paper is the first that investigates the role of board model on CSR disclosure of MNCs.

Online corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in the banking industry: evidence from Poland

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. 1191-1214
Author(s):  
Łukasz Matuszak ◽  
Ewa Różańska
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Ownership Structure ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
Emerging Market ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Parametric Statistics ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose Based on a set of complementary theories, namely, the legitimacy, stakeholder and signaling theories, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the visibility of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosures on bank websites. In particular, we explored the accessibility, placement, reporting format, extent and content of online CSR information. This paper also examined the effect of size, being listed, ownership structure and the internationalization of banks on online CSR reporting. Design/methodology/approach A sample consisting of 20 banks was used where the data were manually collected from the websites of various banks during the fourth quarter of 2017. Three reporting formats were explored: information posted directly on the website, information contained in a separate CSR report and information within a management commentary or annual report or integrated report. Content analysis was used to measure the level of online CSR disclosures in four sub-dimensions: environment, human resources, products and customers and community involvement. The sample was grouped according to the criteria of size, being listed, ownership structure and internationality. Non-parametric statistics were used to analyze some factors that influence CSR disclosure, namely, size, public ownership, internationalization and foreign ownership. Findings The results indicate that accessibility to CSR information is relatively good. The placement of CSR information on websites varies among banks. Moreover, community involvement was the most disclosed dimension on the banks’ websites. There was a lack of disclosure on items regarding the environment. Furthermore, the findings of this paper showed that significant determinants for explaining online CSR disclosure level were size and being listed. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by examining the online CSR disclosure practices of banks from an emerging market with a different socio-economic context and regulations compared to the developed market.

scholarly journals The Role of Gender Diversity on Tax Aggressiveness and Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from Italian Listed Companies

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Vacca ◽  
Antonio Iazzi ◽  
Demetris Vrontis ◽  
Monica Fait
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Global Reporting Initiative ◽  
Tax Aggressiveness ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

The paper aims to examine the moderating role of gender diversity within a corporate board on the relationship between tax aggressiveness and a firm’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) approach. This analysis was conducted using a set of indicators of financial statements of 168 Italian listed firms between 2011 and 2018. In addition, the sustainability reports of the same companies were observed. To perform the analysis a logit regression model is used. This paper shows different empirical results. First, this study notes that there is not a direct relationship between tax aggressiveness and CSR reporting. Second, gender diversity in a board of directors increases the orientation of companies to CSR disclosure, but does not have an impact on the relationship between tax aggressiveness and CSR disclosure. Instead, CEO gender has a positive influence on the relationship between corporate tax planning and CSR reporting in accordance with Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards. This study emphasizes the key role of gender diversity in the growth of the CSR approach and the reputation of companies. Therefore, governments and policymakers of major countries should promote gender diversity in corporate decision-making bodies, which contributes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

scholarly journals CSR Disclosure: The IPO Case

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 4390
Author(s):  
Mar Arenas-Parra ◽  
Susana Álvarez-Otero
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Initial Public Offerings ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Public Offerings ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is one of the pillars of sustainable development. It is the key to operationalizing the strategic role of business in contributing towards the sustainability process. The fact that firms communicate their activities about economic sustainability, environmental sustainability, and social equity shows their commitment to society and their stakeholders. This paper analyzes the influence exerted by the composition of boards of directors on corporate social responsibility disclosure with reference to those companies that undertook an initial public offerings (IPO) in the Spanish capital market during the period 1998–2013. The empirical evidence provided by this study shows that ownership structure and board characteristics are relevant in the context of a firm’s CSR disclosure. The independent directors, non-executive directors, and large shareholder representatives affect the way in which their companies voluntarily disclose information regarding CSR. Our results lend support for a non-linear relationship between the proportion of shares in the IPO belonging to the members of the board of directors and the level of CSR reporting. We also find that the underwriter’s reputation has a positive and statistically significant influence on CSR disclosure for Spanish IPOs.

scholarly journals Evaluating the Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure of Nigeria’s Most Profitable Companies

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 106
Author(s):  
Abass Olabode Samuel ◽  
Umaru Zubairu ◽  
Bilkisu Abubakar
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Environmental Disclosure ◽  
Nigerian Government ◽  
One Year ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

This study evaluated Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) disclosure in the most profitable companies in Nigeria, a review was carried out on the annual reports and websites of the five most profitable companies in Nigeria according to the market cap list 2018. This research focused on the quantity and quality of CSR disclosures, provided by these companies. The method of analysis used was content analysis. The result of this study revealed that from the three dimensions constituting Community disclosure, Environmental disclosure and Human Resource disclosure, Community disclosure was the most disclosed dimension from the top profitable companies in Nigeria. Findings revealed that these companies disclosed a lot about the different CSR activities they had undertaken within the span of one year, but the quality of these disclosures were relatively low. CSR disclosure should be encouraged by the Nigerian government by publicly recognizing companies who disclose CSR activity, this will motivate other companies to practice and disclose CSR.

scholarly journals Corporate Social Responsibility And The Quality Of Executive Compensation Disclosures

2014 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 625
Author(s):  
Walid Ben-Amar ◽  
Nadia Smaili ◽  
Eustache Ebondo Wa Mandzila
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Executive Compensation ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Disclosure Quality ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Compensation Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

This paper examines the relationship between corporate social responsibility and executive compensation disclosure quality. We test whether socially responsible firms disclose more transparent and detailed information about their executive compensation packages than firms that are less committed to social responsibility initiatives. Using a sample of 187 publicly listed Canadian firms, we find a positive relation between CSR and executive compensation disclosure quality. We also document a positive (negative) association between firm size (ownership concentration) and executive compensation disclosure. These findings support the conclusion that increased disclosure transparency reflects a companys social engagement towards its stakeholders.

Corporate social responsibility extent and quality: evidence from Jordan

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Belal Fayez Omar ◽  
Hani Alkayed
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose This study aims to examine the extent and quality of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in Jordan for the time periods of 2005–2006 and 2014–2015, ultimately establishing whether there was a change in the extent and quality of disclosure practices before and after the new regulations for CSR. Furthermore, this study additionally seeks to determine if the regulations are a major factor in changing CSR disclosure practices, or whether there are other factors for such a change. Design/methodology/approach The annual reports of 55 manufacturing companies (11 sub-sectors) on the Amman Stock Exchange for the years 2005–2006 and 2014–2015 were selected, and a CSR checklist was measured via the construction an index covering 36 items in 4 themes: environmental; human resources; community; and products and others. The study measures the quantity of CSR via the number of sentences and the quality of CSR by the weighting approach (on a scale of 0–3); furthermore, the paired sample t-test and Wilcoxon signed rank tests were used to establish whether there was a change in the extent and quality of CSR disclosure practices. Findings The results of the study revealed that there being a significant increase in the extent and quality of CSR for the period 2014–2015 compared to that of 2005–2006, the most optimal performance being in 2015, bragging an average of 61,41 total sentences per annual report and an average quality score of 1.423. Moreover, detailed analysis of CSR extent and quality by theme reveals that the highest percentage of CSR extent and quality was within the environmental theme, with an average score 28.6% of total sentences in 2014 (extent) and 1.743 in 2015 of total sentences (quality). Research limitations/implications The current study has some limitations, which have implications for future studies. First, this study examined the extent and quality of CSR for only two time frames: before and after regulation. However, a longitudinal study would have provided a wider scope of study. Second, the study focussed only on the industrial sector, thus limiting the results to only this area. Indeed, the exploration of the CSR extent and quality for other sectors (e.g. financial and services) would generalise the results further, allowing for the making of comparisons compare among different sectors. Moreover, the study at hand has focussed solely on annual reports, which could lead to subjectivity, thus reducing the reliability of results. Future studies should thus focus on other means of disclosure (e.g. websites; environmental reports). Practical implications The current mandatory requirements would suggest Jordanian regulators have begun specifying CSR disclosure requirements in an easier, more user-friendly and traceable format. Indeed, the increase in CSR extent and quality for the post-regulations period would increase the need to organise mandatory requirements in CSR. For managers, on the other hand, the study provides the CSR as a strategic tool for reflecting the actual environmental activities, comparing it with the society’s expectations. Moreover, when budgets are limited, managers prioritise CSR activities that yield a positive impact on financial performance by allocating the limited resources in a broad manner. Social implications The results additionally highlights the ways in which the Jordanian industrial companies increase their levels within the environmental theme in CSR for the post-regulations. It could be argued that a great number of companies in the past decade have started adopting environmentally friendly practices and strategies to protect the natural environment, such as greenhouses, extracting non-renewable resources and reducing amount of industrial waste. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there is currently no existing study within Jordan exploring the change of CSR over time – specifically in terms of before and after the regulations. In addition, exploring the quality of CSR using a weighted approach (scale out of 3) is not conducted in Jordanian studies before.

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