C.D. Sinclair, A.A. Lonie, D.M. Power and C.V. Helliar
In the early 1990s growing numbers of investing institutions in the UK financial community crossed a threshold of awareness about the opportunities offered by the emerging stock…
Abstract
In the early 1990s growing numbers of investing institutions in the UK financial community crossed a threshold of awareness about the opportunities offered by the emerging stock markets of developing countries (ESMs); the returns per unit of risk, formerly considered by most fund managers to be unacceptably low because of the high risk factor, were frequently reappraised and judged to fall within the parameters of acceptability. Investment funds were set up which either invested solely in emerging markets or adopted a policy of investing a fixed percentage of their funds in these markets (Clark, 1991; Bailey and Lim, 1992). Well‐advertised instances of spectacular returns achieved by equities in emerging markets2 apparently persuaded fund managers to overcome their misgivings and to invest in these markets despite the continuing risks associated with such investment.
David Mutua Mathuva, Mumbi Maria Wachira and Geoffrey Ikavulu Injeni
In this chapter, we examine whether corporate environmental reporting (CER) by listed companies in Kenya improves stock liquidity. The investigation is motivated by the growing…
Abstract
Purpose
In this chapter, we examine whether corporate environmental reporting (CER) by listed companies in Kenya improves stock liquidity. The investigation is motivated by the growing interest by corporations, investors, and regulators toward embracing ecological protection with a view to creating sustainable societies for the future.
Design/Methodology/Approach
Using a panel dataset comprising of 244 firm-year observations from 50 listed firms in Kenya over a five-year period (2011 to 2015), we perform fixed-effects regressions to discern whether CER is associated with stock liquidity. To examine this, we utilize bid-ask (as well as quoted) spreads measured over month −9 to month +3 relative to a firm’s year end.
Findings
Despite the seemingly low levels of CER across firms in the sample (average: 32.6%), the results depict that CER is positively associated with stock liquidity. The results are robust even when we consider changes in bid-ask spreads and CER together with the other variables. The same results emerge when we study the association between bid-ask spreads and each CER item at a time over the period 2011–2015.
Practical Implications
The results imply that listed companies in Kenya that engage in higher CER seem to be more attractive to investors. The higher CER seems to improve the information environment, hence reducing information asymmetry and therefore attracting investors. The results provide some evidence of positive economic consequences of engaging in additional disclosure over and above the traditional corporate financial reporting.
Originality/Value
The study adds onto the dearth of literature on the economic consequences of embracing additional disclosure frameworks in developing countries where the adoption of alternative reporting frameworks is at infancy.
Details
Keywords
Randolph Nsor-Ambala, Gabriel Sam Ahinful and Jeff Danquah Boakye
This study applies social identity theory (SIT) to explore the perceptual differences among various stakeholder groups regarding the relevance of social and environmental…
Abstract
Purpose
This study applies social identity theory (SIT) to explore the perceptual differences among various stakeholder groups regarding the relevance of social and environmental accounting (SEA), SEA education and mandatory disclosure of SEA.
Methodology
The study adopts a mixed method applying a qualitative and quantitative approach. In total, 325 structured questionnaires were analyzed quantitatively, using ANOVA and group comparison methods. Responses from 18 interviews were analyzed qualitatively to provide complementary evidence for the quantitative study.
Findings
There were significant differences between various stakeholder groups regarding the relevance of SEA practice and SEA education. Regulators were mostly affected by considerations about the external perception of work quality, followed by financiers. Practitioners and shareholders were influenced by the ability of SEA in its current state to affect actual work quality. This possibly indicates that academic qualifications have marginal effects on predicting considerations about SEA compared to social identity.
Originality/Value
This is the first application of SIT to SEA research and contributes to the effort to improve SEA within emerging economies, highlighting that a one-size-fits-all approach may be ineffective.
Details
Keywords
Francesco Gangi and Carmen Trotta
The research aims to empirically investigate the determinants of the breadth of the corporate social disclosure (CSD).
Abstract
Purpose
The research aims to empirically investigate the determinants of the breadth of the corporate social disclosure (CSD).
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopts a multi-perspective approach, referring to different theoretical frameworks on CSD, such as the legitimacy theory, the stakeholder theory, the agency model, the asymmetric information theory, and the institutional perspective.
The empirical research is based on the sustainability reports of 80 companies in which investments were made by European socially responsible funds (SRFs) listed on the Morningstar platform during the years 2009–2008.
The theoretical hypotheses are tested by a univariate and multivariate analysis.
Findings
The breadth of the CSD depends on multiple factors, both external and internal, such as the country of origin, the industry reputation, the firm size, the frequency of the SRFs participation, the corporate social performance.
Research limitations/implications
Limits inherent in this type of research are the comparability of the CSR reports and the systematization of the categories of content to be analyzed.
Practical implications
The chapter identifies several factors that lead to a greater completeness of the CSD, exploiting the capacity of the social reporting to trigger benefits for the firms such as a stronger social legitimacy and the reduction of asymmetric information.
Social implications
The research supports the investigation of the levers of CSD to meet the demand for a broader accountability.
Originality/value
The reference to firms in which SRFs participated allows to focus on companies ascertained as socially responsible in accordance with a “certification function” of these funds. Findings support an approach which is not one-sided, thus enabling to look at the determinants of the CSD through different theoretical perspectives.
Details
Keywords
Anna Pistoni and Lucrezia Songini
This chapter intends to contribute to the debate on the determinants of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and their impact on performance measurement and communication…
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter intends to contribute to the debate on the determinants of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and their impact on performance measurement and communication systems. It aims at analyzing the relationship between the reasons why firms adopt CSR and the importance given to voluntary CSR disclosure.
Methodology
Two main categories of CSR determinants have been identified: the external ones, coming from the environment outside the firm, and the internal determinants, which are linked to some specific characteristics of the enterprise and to the objectives it pursues.
The analyzed sample consists of 120 large Italian manufacturing and nonmanufacturing enterprises. The research hypotheses concerning the relationship between external and internal determinants of CSR and CSR disclosure were verified using an independent sample t-test, evaluating the equal variances of clusters using the Levene’s test.
Findings
Main results point out that in companies giving importance to CSR disclosure, the internal drivers are more relevant than the external ones in determining the attitude toward CSR. Among the internal determinants, drivers related to company and management values and ethics are quite relevant.
Research limitations
This study is subject to the limitations that generally apply to cross-sectional survey-based research.
Originality/Value of chapter
Our research findings show that legitimacy theory represents the most relevant theory in explaining CSR disclosure practices of Italian large firms, as well as the operational implementation of stakeholder theory, such as stakeholder management. On the contrary, institutional theory only partially explains CSR disclosure, with respect to the pressures coming from financial markets.
Details
Keywords
Rodrigo de Souza Gonçalves, Otávio Ribeiro de Medeiros, Elionor Farah Jreige Weffort and Jorge Katsumi Niyama
This study is aimed at developing and validating an index designed to measure the level of social disclosure of external social programs of firms listed on the Brazilian stock…
Abstract
Purpose
This study is aimed at developing and validating an index designed to measure the level of social disclosure of external social programs of firms listed on the Brazilian stock market.
Methodology/Approach
The index of social disclosure is composed of 13 items distributed in three dimensions: past information, prospective actions, and accessibility. Its validation involved: (a) pre-test, (b) analysis by referees, (c) exploratory factor analysis, (d) Cronbach’s alpha test, and (e) final validation. The sample is composed of 83 Brazilian firms listed on the Brazilian Stock Exchange from 2005 to 2009.
Findings
The index presented robustness in all validation stages. It was found that size, industry sector, internationalization, auditing, and listing on social responsible investment funds are decisive factors for increasing the level of social disclosure.
Research Limitations
The index of social disclosure evaluates external social programs only. Hence, some types of social information are not captured, such environmental ones. Besides, the sources of information for the index are restricted to annual and sustainability reports, so that information from other sources, such as official announcements and company websites, are not captured.
Social Implications
The social disclosure index developed can be useful to analysts and investors assessing listed firms, as well as to financial-market regulators defining policies applicable to the disclosure of corporate social information.
Originality/Value
(a) Construction of a social disclosure index validated and tested in Brazilian firms, which is liable to replication; (b) Utilization of a representative sample of firms listed on an important emerging stock market.
Details
Keywords
Nicole Ineese-Nash, Kathryn Underwood, Arlene Hache and Patty Douglas
In this chapter, we explore the intricate relationships between young disabled children, their families, institutional settings, and disability services in Canada, with an…
Abstract
In this chapter, we explore the intricate relationships between young disabled children, their families, institutional settings, and disability services in Canada, with an emphasis on the challenges stemming from unstable custodial dynamics and governmental interference. Drawing on data from a 9-year longitudinal Institutional Ethnography across three provinces and one territory, we analyze the experiences of 41 families who have interacted with the child welfare system, foster care, adoption processes, family courts, or other custodial procedures – many of them are Indigenous or live with low income. The historic and ongoing state control and institutionalization of disabled children in Canada are interrogated through the lens of settler-colonialism (Awj, 2017; Disability Rights International, 2021). This chapter scrutinizes constructs framed by colonial narratives, including disabled childhoods, notions of disability, the “best interest of the child,” the archetype of the “good parent,” and the designation of custodial “status.” We present Institutional Ethnography as a method of de-constructing these systems and identifying care principles in the changing context of family.
Details
Keywords
Stephen M. Kwiatek, Valerie L. Mazzotti, Jared H. Stewart-Ginsburg and Janie N. Vicchio
Interagency collaboration is an effective strategy for supporting students and families with resources and support to prepare students for life after high school. The…
Abstract
Interagency collaboration is an effective strategy for supporting students and families with resources and support to prepare students for life after high school. The Communicating Interagency Relationships and Collaborative Linkages for Exceptional Students (CIRCLES) is the only interagency collaboration model identified as a research-based practice, which means the CIRCLES model has the most and highest quality of evidence for its use among interagency collaboration models. Within this chapter, we overview the CIRCLES model and its history. School districts from multiple states have implemented CIRCLES, and, within this chapter, we overview stakeholder experiences with CIRCLES. When implementing any practice, evaluation and implementation fidelity are critical, so we provide suggestions for both. Finally, we discuss barriers and strategies to effective interagency collaboration, in addition to implications for policy and practice.
Details
Keywords
P.B. Beaumont, L.C. Hunter and D. Sinclair
Describes the utility of supply chain partnerships as a mechanism for the diffusion of change in employee relations. Uses case study and survey evidence to explain the means by…
Abstract
Describes the utility of supply chain partnerships as a mechanism for the diffusion of change in employee relations. Uses case study and survey evidence to explain the means by which this can be achieved. Examines data relating to both customer and supplier organizations in the manufacturing sector. Concludes that the customer‐supplier relationship can act as an agent of change in human resource management, particularly as they do not need to be artificially created, and can reach “peripheral” as well as “core” firms. Suggests that the local economic development agencies may be able to encourage the formation of networks of organizations in a particular industry and promote the spread of innovations in employee relations in this way.
Details
Keywords
Lucrezia Songini, Anna Pistoni, Francesco Bavagnoli and Valentina Minutiello
Despite the expected benefits to stakeholders, as well as the number of contributes aiming at identifying and proposing best practices on the integrated reporting (IR) adoption…
Abstract
Despite the expected benefits to stakeholders, as well as the number of contributes aiming at identifying and proposing best practices on the integrated reporting (IR) adoption, it seems that the IR struggles to be diffused in companies. Several are the reasons explaining this evidence. It could mainly be the consequence of some critical issues underlying IR implementation, such as difficulties in the complete application of the IR framework.
Strictly related to this last aspect is the topic of the IR quality that recently has begun to gain interest both in the literature and in the empirical research. Particularly, the issues of IR quality and its determinants now appear to be more important than the IR quantity.
Starting from these premises, this chapter aims to identify the determinants of IR quality. The authors have identified main drivers of IR quality, considering previous studies on voluntary disclosure and in particular on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability disclosure while with reference to the quality assessment of IR, the authors have used the Integrated Reporting Scoreboard, recently proposed in the literature.
After developing the research hypothesis, an empirical analysis has been carried out on a sample of IRs issued by 55 companies in a three-year period.
The main research results highlight, on the one hand, that the main determinants of IR quality are the country where the company operates, in particular European ones and mandatory IR countries; on the other hand, industry and firm’s size don’t seem to have a positive impact on IR quality.