Board interlocks and the diffusion of CSR reporting practices: The role of market development

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 1333-1343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weizhang Sun ◽  
Xuan Li ◽  
Yanli Geng ◽  
Jinfeng Yang ◽  
Yifei Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Market Development ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Board Interlocks

Board independence and corporate social responsibility reporting: mediating role of stakeholder power

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Afzalur Rashid
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Board Independence ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Stakeholder Power

Purpose This study aims to examine the association between board independence and corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting and the moderating role of stakeholder power on the association between board independence and CSR reporting. Design/methodology/approach Using a sample of 707 Bangladeshi firm-year observations, this study uses a content analysis technique to develop a 24-item of CSR reporting index. This study uses the ordinary least squares regression method to examine the relationship between board independence and CSR reporting. Findings The study finds that board independence does not influence CSR activities and relevant reporting in general. However, the non-influence of board independence and CSR reporting is offset by stakeholder power. Insider ownership, firm age, firm size, growth opportunities and market capitalisation have a positive influence on such reporting. Practical implications While this study suggests that stakeholders’ influence is an important factor in determining the firms’ incentives to disclose CSR information, this finding creates a new debate on the efficacy of independent directors and whether they are good monitors and are able to fulfil all the stakeholders’ expectations. Originality/value This study makes an important contribution to the literature on CSR practices by documenting that firms having powerful stakeholders induce the board and management to make more CSR reporting practices in the context of emerging economies.

Examining the social pressures on voluntary CSR reporting: the roles of interlocking directors

2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xueji Liang ◽  
Lu Dai ◽  
Sujuan Xie
Keyword(s):  
Social Pressure ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Board Interlocks ◽  
Institutional Pressure ◽  
Social Pressures ◽  
The Social ◽  
Interlocking Directors

Purpose Corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting is a widely accepted procedure for firms to disclose their performance in multiple domains, including environmental protection, labour welfare, protection of human rights, community services, contribution to society and pursuit of product safety. This study aims to investigate whether and how board interlocks affect firms’ decisions with respect to CSR reporting. This study argues that board interlocks act as an important source of social pressure and firms are influenced by their peer firms to adopt CSR reporting. Design/methodology/approach This paper sampled listed companies on China’s Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges from 2009 to 2015. The data were collected from Runling database and China Stock Market and Accounting Research database. A multi-period logit model was used to conduct the main regression analysis and the propensity score matching method was used in the robustness checks. Findings A study based on a sample of Chinese publicly listed firms from 2009 to 2015 confirms the argument and shows that sharing a common director on the board with a previous CSR reporter facilitates the firm’s engagement in CSR reporting. Furthermore, this study shows that the influence of board interlocks on CSR reporting depends on the following three characteristics: status of the interlocking director, size of the linked CSR reporter and performance implications of previous CSR activities. Research limitations/implications The interpretation of the current findings should be considered in light of these limitations. First, while board interlocks are an important social aspect of institutional pressure, other types of social pressure exist. Second, the focus is on CSR reporting decisions. However, CSR reporting can also be symbolic, with little substantive quality to improve CSR-related activities. Third, this study argues that both regulatory and social pressures influence the decision to report on CSR. However, this study was unable to determine the weight of each pressure. Future research should follow this direction. Finally, the influence of certain behaviours through interlocks is stronger in the initial stage of the institutionalisation process. Practical implications The findings of this study have important implications for practitioners. First, the messaging role of interlocking directors suggests that director selection should consider the effectiveness of information transfer. Knowing and analysing specific interlock and its links with the firm’s strategy is very important. Meanwhile, firms should be vigilant that the balance between the access to information and loss of autonomy because searching for information related to firms’ strategic decisions might challenge current strategy. Second, the results of the study suggest that to effectively urge companies to engage in CSR reporting, government and policy makers should consider beyond institutional pressure, but also be sensitive to the social pressure exerted upon the companies. Social implications The positive role of board interlocks on corporate voluntary CSR reporting can not only make valuable contributions to the Chinese society but also, as an important participant of global economy and trade, the Chinese interlocking directors’ contribution to CSR reporting have global benefits. Originality/value This study extends the institutional perspective on CSR reporting by uncovering the effect of social pressure. It advances the literature on the antecedents of CSR reporting by linking board interlocks to CSR reporting. Finally, the study enriches the broader interlock literature by delineating three specific characteristics of interlocks that influence CSR reporting.

scholarly journals DOES THE INSTITUTIONAL ENVIRONMENT AFFECT CSR DISCLOSURE? THE ROLE OF GOVERNANCE

2016 ◽  
Vol 56 (6) ◽  
pp. 641-654 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARÍA DEL MAR MIRAS RODRÍGUEZ ◽  
BERNABÉ ESCOBAR PÉREZ
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Rule Based ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

ABSTRACT The aim of this article is to analyze whether the institutional environment has a direct effect on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting practices or if this effect is explained by the influence of the institutional environment on Corporate Governance (CG) mechanisms. To conduct our study, we focused on two countries that reflect different types of institutional environment: relation-based (Brazil) and rule-based (Spain). Based on our results, we can affirm that the institutional environment influences CG mechanisms (Board Size and Reference Shareholder) as well as companies' CSR disclosure. Additionally, the CG mechanisms affected by the institutional environment also help to explain differences in CSR reporting practices. As relation-based societies evolve into rules-based environments, the information disclosed about CSR becomes more complex due to a strengthening of CG mechanisms.

A Systems Approach to Voluntary CSR Reporting: The Role of Internal Resources

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fereshteh Mahmoudian ◽  
Jamal A. Nazari ◽  
Irene M. Herremans
Keyword(s):  
Systems Approach ◽  
Internal Resources ◽  
Csr Reporting

scholarly journals The Impact of CSR on the Capital Structure of High-Tech Companies in Poland

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 5467
Author(s):  
Barbara Grabinska ◽  
Dorota Kedzior ◽  
Marcin Kedzior ◽  
Konrad Grabinski
Keyword(s):  
Capital Structure ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Debt Financing ◽  
High Tech ◽  
High Tech Industry ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Capital Structure

So far, CSR’s role in the high-tech industry is not fully explained by academic research, especially concerning the most burdensome obstacle to firms’ growth: acquiring debt financing. The paper aims to solve this puzzle and investigate whether young high-tech companies can attract more debt by engaging in CSR activity. To address the high-tech industry specificity, we divided CSR-reporting practice into three broad categories: employee, social, and environmental and analyzed their impact on the capital structure. Our sample consists of 92 firm-year observations covering the period 2014–2018. Using a regression method, we found out that only employee CSR plays a statistically significant role in shaping capital structure. We did not find evidence for the influence of the other types of CSR-reporting practices. The results suggest that employees are the key resource of high-tech companies, and, for this reason, they are at the management’s focus. This fact is visible at the financial reporting level and, as we interpret results, is also considered by credit providers. In a more general way, our results suggest that firms tend to choose CSR based on the importance of crucial resources.

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