210 research outputs found
Quantity versus Quality: The Impact of Environmental Disclosures on the reputations of UK plcs
The theoretical framework of this paper integrates quality-signalling theory and the resource based view of the firm to test the differential effects of the quantity and quality of environmental disclosures on the firm’s environmental reputation. Uniquely, the study uses a quality-adjusted method of content analysis, so that sentences are not merely counted but also weighted to reflect their likely significance. Investments in research and development and diversification, as potential methods of enhancing of environmental reputation, are also considered. In doing so the paper complements and extends the work of Toms (2002). The results confirm the framework and models tested in the original paper on more recent data and also suggest that quality of environmental disclosure rather than mere quantity has a stronger effect on the creation of environmental reputation amongst executive and investor stakeholder groups. Research and development expenditure, and under certain circumstances, diversification, also add to reputation
Corporate Social Responsibility and Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs): Management Perceptions from IFIs in Bahrain
Islamic finance is gaining greater attention in the finance industry, and this paper analyses how Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) are responding to the welfare needs of society. Using interview data with managers and content analysis of the disclosures, this study attempts to understand management perceptions of corporate social
responsibility (CSR) in IFIs. A thorough understanding of CSR by managers, as evident in the interviews, has not been translated fully into practice. The partial use of IFIs’ potential role in social welfare would add further challenges in the era of financialisation
Has the CSR engagement of electrical companies had an effect on their performance? A closer look at the environment
Even though electrical companies attain a top ranking in the publication of CSR reports, they are often accused of 'green‐washing' due to their bad environmental reputation. The current economic crisis is testing their real CSR commitment more than ever, especially when this goes beyond its economic consequences.
Based on a worldwide sample of electrical companies, we are going to study why companies are being socially responsible. We wish to know if it is due to the impact on the firms' performance or whether there are other motives (legitimation, improving their reputation) that lead companies to carry out these practices. We will also consider if it changes across the kind of CSR action considered.
The results show that there is an economic justification beyond the socially responsible behaviour of the electrical companies. Additionally, most kinds of CSR action (community, diversity, corporate governance, product responsibility) are also carried out looking for economic rewards. However, the CSR actions oriented to the environment are mainly motivated by their need to improve their image and reverse their negative impact
Environmental disclosure in Spain: Corporate characteristics and media exposure
Social and environmental issues have become a major concern for accounting research over the past two decades. Social and Environmental Accounting has attracted the attention of a number of researchers attempting to understand, explain and predict the disclosure of information on the social and environmental implications of business activities. Empirical research has hypothesized that size, profitability and the potential environmental impact of the firm are the main factors explaining the amount of information disclosed. On the other hand, several studies have focused on the motivations for disclosing environmental information, hypothesizing that disclosures are aimed at building or sustaining corporate legitimacy.
We test the main hypotheses developed to date by empirical research with regard to the disclosure of environmental information based on a sample of companies listed on the Madrid Stock Exchange. Results of a content analysis show that firms disclosing environmental information tend to be larger, have higher risk (measured by the beta coefficient) and operate in industries that have a high potential environmental impact. The environmental implications of the activities carried out by these companies also seem to receive more attention from print media. Our results also provide evidence that two factors directly associated with the amount of environmental information disclosed are the potential environmental impact of the industry and the extent of media coverage of the firms
Exploring the relationship between carbon performance, carbon reporting and firm performance: A conceptual paper
In recent years, there has been an increased interest in carbon information disclosure.This research aims to examine carbon reporting practices of Malaysian companies.Further analysis will be conducted to examine the influence of internal organizational factors on the carbon reporting practices.The relationship between carbon performance, carbon reporting and firm performance will be investigated. This paper also explores the moderating effect of the corporate governance quality on the relationship between carbon reporting practices and firm performance.The findings from this study have a significant contribution to carbon reporting literature, Malaysian companies, government and accounting regulation body
Seasonal and Interannual Variations of the Energy Flux Equator and ITCZ. Part II: Zonally Varying Shifts of the ITCZ
The ITCZ lies at the ascending branch of the tropical meridional overturning circulation, where near-surface meridional mass fluxes vanish. Near the ITCZ, column-integrated energy fluxes vanish, forming an atmospheric energy flux equator (EFE). This paper extends existing approximations relating the ITCZ position and EFE to the atmospheric energy budget by allowing for zonal variations. The resulting relations are tested using reanalysis data for 1979–2014. The zonally varying EFE is found as the latitude where the meridional component of the divergent atmospheric energy transport (AET) vanishes. A Taylor expansion of the AET around the equator relates the ITCZ position to derivatives of the AET. To a first order, the ITCZ position is proportional to the divergent AET across the equator; it is inversely proportional to the local atmospheric net energy input (NEI) that consists of the net energy fluxes at the surface, at the top of the atmosphere, and zonally across longitudes. The first-order approximation captures the seasonal migrations of the ITCZ in the African, Asian, and Atlantic sectors. In the eastern Pacific, a third-order approximation captures the bifurcation from single- to double-ITCZ states that occurs during boreal spring. In contrast to linear EFE theory, during boreal winter in the eastern Pacific, northward cross-equatorial AET goes along with an ITCZ north of the equator. EFE and ITCZ variations driven by ENSO are characterized by an equatorward (poleward) shift in the Pacific during El Niño (La Niña) episodes, which are associated with variations in equatorial ocean energy uptake
Sustainable development and stakeholder relations management: Exploring sustainability reporting in the hospitality industry from a SD-SRM approach
ABSTRACT: This paper explores the sustainability reporting of 170 hospitality companies from a SD-SRM approach.The purpose of the study is to ascertain the information that companies disclose in accordance with thesustainable development (SD) and the stakeholder relations management (SRM) theories and to identifythe areas for improvement in the management and reporting practices of sustainability in the hospi-tality industry. The authors use the content analysis method to identify and describe the sustainabilityreporting of hotel chains and independently managed hotels in Spain. The findings show that the sustaina-bility information reported by hospitality companies currently meets the basic principles of a SD-SRMapproach. Nonetheless, the authors also identify areas for improvement, such as the orientation of thereporting to suppliers or the more equilibrated distribution of information among all corporate stake-holders. Based on these findings, the authors consider that the integration of information following theSD-SRM approach described in this paper could facilitate a better compliance of hospitality companieswith the principles of the SD and SRM theories
Sustainability disclosure and reputation: a comparative study
“This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in Corporate Reputation Review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Corporate Reputation Review 14(2), pp.79-96 is available online at: http://www.palgrave-journals.com/crr/index.html”Drawing on legitimacy theory, we discuss that a company’s reputation is a determinant of
sustainability disclosure. Specifically, we consider the concept of reputation into three
dimensions for analysis: stakeholders’ commitment, financial performance and media
exposure. This paper differs from previous social and environmental reporting studies in
that it investigates both internal and external contextual factors that influence disclosure
practice. We claim that companies with a good financial performance, that are adopting an
active strategic position towards stakeholders and that are exposed to significant public
pressure are more likely to use sustainability disclosure in order to communicate their
legitimacy to operate to stakeholders. Moreover the paper analyses a wide range of
corporate reports for their social and environmental content using an international sample
that allows for a comparison of disclosure practices among Continental European, UK and
USA companies. Our results show that stakeholder commitment and media exposure are
positively associated with sustainability disclosure. Moreover, we find evidence that the
drivers of disclosure vary by information type
Directors' remuneration: A comparison of Italian and UK non-financial listed firms' disclosure
Directors' remuneration is a key issue for both academics and policymakers. It has caused enormous controversy in recent years. This study uses a comprehensive index to analyse the disclosure of directors' remuneration in Italian and UK listed firms. It finds that the level of voluntary disclosure is significantly associated with firm-specific incentives, such as the demand for information from investors and the need for legitimacy. It finds that the level of voluntary disclosure is significantly higher in the UK than in Italy and that firm-specific incentives to disclose voluntary information differ according to the institutional setting in which a firm operates. In the UK, firm-specific incentives mostly come from the demand for information, estimated with the level of ownership diffusion, and the need for legitimacy generated by poor market performance and shareholders' dissent. In Italy, firm-specific incentives seem to be represented by the need for legitimacy generated by media coverage. This study also provides evidence that, in both countries, the information disclosed in corporate documents does not allow readers to obtain a comprehensive picture of directors' remuneration. Bonuses are poorly disclosed even though they are a key element of directors' remuneration. This finding is clearly important for policymakers at European and national level
The effect of DEFRA guidance on greenhouse gas disclosure
This paper investigates the effect of the 2009 guidance of the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs on greenhouse gas (GHG) disclosure. The sample comprises 215 companies from a population of London Stock Exchange FTSE 350 companies over four years (2008e 2011). To quantify GHG disclosure, a research index methodology is employed, with information derived from several GHG reporting frameworks. The econometric model is estimated using panel fixed effects. Our findings suggest that the publication of the 2009 guidance has had a significant effect on the level of GHG disclosure, and that corporate governance mechanisms (board size, director ownership, and ownership concentration) also affect the extent of GHG information disclosure. The results also indicate that companies increased their disclosures prior to the 2009 guidance in anticipation of its publication. These results have important implications for the government, suggesting that non-mandatory guidance could increase disclosure as much as do mandatory requirements
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