Stakeholders expectations for CSR-related corporate governance disclosure: evidence from a developing country
ISSN: 1321-7348
Article publication date: 29 January 2021
Issue publication date: 19 March 2021
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore stakeholders' expectations in relation to corporate social responsibility (CSR)–related corporate governance practices. The paper aims to understand how stakeholders' expectations potentially translate into the disclosure of information about CSR-related corporate governance practices.
Design/methodology/approach
The evidence for this study was collected using semi-structured in-depth personal interviews with 18 stakeholders. These include representative of multinational buying companies who source garments from Bangladesh, international as well as local NGOs, news media personnel, senior government officials, trade union leaders and social audit firm.
Findings
This paper finds evidence of stakeholders' dissatisfaction with the disclosures of governance information which tended to be viewed as limited and symbolic in nature. It also finds an apparent disconnection between stakeholder expectations and corporate disclosures.
Originality/value
This paper finds an alternative media of disclosures, for communicating social responsibility related governance information to the stakeholders, which has so far, been neglected by the social accounting researchers.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This paper has been enriched by some comments and suggestions by Professor Craig Deegan (RMIT University), Professor Ataur Belal (University of Sheffield), and Professor Lee Parker (RMIT University) on various occasions. An earlier version of this paper was presented in Environmental and Sustainability Management Accounting Network (EMAN, Helsinki, Finland, 2012) and Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand (AFAANZ, Perth, Australia, 2013) conferences. Some of the relevant comments and suggestions from the conference spectators were incorporated later. The author is highly grateful to the editor of the Asian Review of Accounting, who provides the opportunity to consider it for further reviews. Finally, the author is indebted with two anonymous reviewers for their sincere comments and suggestions to make this paper publishable.
Citation
Kamal, Y. (2021), "Stakeholders expectations for CSR-related corporate governance disclosure: evidence from a developing country", Asian Review of Accounting, Vol. 29 No. 2, pp. 97-127. https://doi.org/10.1108/ARA-04-2020-0052
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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