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Motivations for corporate social and environmental reporting: New Zealand evidence

Author

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  • Stevie Dobbs
  • Chris van Staden

Abstract

Purpose - This paper aims to investigate corporate motivations for voluntarily reporting social and environmental information in New Zealand. The approach used in this study also gives the opportunity to gain insights into the internal systems and views of companies and allows the authors to make better judgements of the intentions of companies in undertaking corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting. Design/methodology/approach - A survey is used and then extended to match corporate survey responses with content analysis results of actual company reporting. The results of the survey and the content analysis are examined both individually and collectively to gather more context for corporate motivations. Findings - The authors find that community concerns and shareholder rights were the most important factors that influenced the companies’ decision to report. The driving force for a sustainability agenda within these companies is usually a member of senior management. The authors also find that reporting frameworks and highly formalised internal systems were not frequently used, external assurance of CSR reporting was lacking and there were low levels of stakeholder engagement. A commitment to reporting comprehensive CSR disclosures and accepting responsibility towards a range of stakeholders were, therefore, not in evidence. Research limitations/implications - For researchers, the value is in further revising analysis techniques and expanding existing research methods used in this area. The study brings together important CSR topics from across the literature, including reporting levels and characteristics, internal CSR systems, CSR assurance and stakeholder engagement, to investigate the motivation for CSR reporting. Practical implications - The results suggest that New Zealand companies are not currently fully committed to social and environmental reporting and that CSR reporting is most likely used to create the impression of being concerned about sustainability to increase legitimacy with stakeholders and society. The results highlight the importance of having formalised systems to ensure that disclosures are accurate and comprehensive. Originality/value - The results contribute to the literature by providing a current view of the motivations for reporting companies to report or not report. The approach used gives the opportunity to gain insights into the internal systems and views of companies and allows the authors to make better judgements of the intentions of companies in undertaking CSR reporting.

Suggested Citation

  • Stevie Dobbs & Chris van Staden, 2016. "Motivations for corporate social and environmental reporting: New Zealand evidence," Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 7(3), pages 449-472, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:eme:sampjp:sampj-08-2015-0070
    DOI: 10.1108/SAMPJ-08-2015-0070
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Paul Arkoh & Antonio Costantini & Francesco Scarpa, 2024. "Determinants of sustainability reporting: A systematic literature review," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(3), pages 1578-1597, May.
    2. Sibel Hoştut & Seçil Deren het Hof & Hediye Aydoğan & Gülten Adalı, 2023. "Who’s in and who’s out? Reading stakeholders and priority issues from sustainability reports in Turkey," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, December.
    3. Dolores Guerrero-Baena, M. & Castilla-Polo, Francisca & Rodríguez-Gutiérrez, Pablo, 2024. "What are the main drivers of SMEs? production of sustainability reports?," Small Business International Review, Asociación Española de Contabilidad y Administración de Empresas - AECA, vol. 8(1), pages 617-617, May.
    4. Sujatha Ravinarayana Bhat & Mohd Asrul Affendi Abdullah, 2023. "Factors Influencing Sustainability Reporting Practices among Listed Companies in Oman," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 13(3), pages 74-83, May.
    5. Waseem Akhter & Arshad Hassan, 2024. "Does corporate social responsibility mediate the relationship between corporate governance and firm performance? Empirical evidence from BRICS countries," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(1), pages 566-578, January.
    6. Pei‐Chi Kelly Hsiao & Charl de Villiers & Claire Horner & Hein Oosthuizen, 2022. "A review and synthesis of contemporary sustainability accounting research and the development of a research agenda," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(4), pages 4453-4483, December.
    7. M. Dolores Guerrero‐Baena & Francisca Castilla‐Polo & Pablo Rodríguez‐Gutiérrez, 2024. "Motivations for social and environmental reporting in Spanish SMEs: An inductive content analysis," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(5), pages 4130-4144, July.

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