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Combining the postulates of the upper echelons theory and the economic theories of information disclosure, one might expect that the effect of chief executive officers' (CEOs') managerial ability on their firms' disclosure policies has both a direct and indirect nature. The latter would be associated with the mediating role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance on the relationship between CEOs' ability and corporate transparency. Using a sample of 956 international firms over the period 2006–2014 (6,442 firm‐year observations), we examine the role that the CEO ability plays in determining the relevance of CSR disclosures and whether this role is mediated by CSR performance. By proposing several regression models, we document that more able CEOs are more willing to disclose comparable and useful CSR information that favours stakeholder engagement. This relationship is mediated by the impact that CEO's ability has over the implementation of sustainability strategies that improve CSR performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempts to reveal the corporate social responsibility (CSR) programming and communication strategies of companies from controversial versus noncontroversial industry sectors and stakeholders' responses to these online CSR communications. A content analysis of CSR videos from 58 companies among the Fortune 500 and user comments on YouTube found that controversial and noncontroversial industries tended to use different strategies in their online CSR communications. Videos that (a) used information strategies, (b) took a company‐dominant perspective, and (c) described high fit CSR programs received more negative and skeptical comments; CSR videos that (a) emphasized the companies' commitment to the programs, (b) demonstrated the impact of CSR programs with anecdotal evidences, and (c) balanced their stated CSR motives between social benefits and business interests received less negative and skeptical comments. Most importantly, stakeholders' responses towards these communication strategies differed by industry sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have investigated how women on boards impact corporate social responsibility reporting, a voluntary strategy clearly influenced by board composition in general and gender diversity in particular. However, this research goes further and proposes to provide evidence about how female directors influence gender issues reporting. Moreover, this research also examines the moderating effect between gender diversity on boards and country‐level factors related to stakeholder orientation. For an international sample of 8,609 firm‐year observations from 2007 to 2016 and by regressing several logit models for panel data, it was found that female directors increase the probability of voluntary reporting on gender issues. Moreover, the findings also suggest that institutional forces related to stakeholder pressures reinforce this effect; the greater reporting on gender issues that female directors achieve is even higher when firms are located in stakeholder‐oriented countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to examine two closely related issues: first, the effect of the presence of female directors on boards on corporate social responsibility disclosure, focusing on the necessary critical mass of this minority group, and, second, the moderation of the human capital of board members—their background, skills, and experience—that could favor the intrinsic female directors' characteristics through the cognitive effect of equal board members. For an international sample of 9,744 firm‐year observations from 2007 to 2016, different panel data regressions are proposed. The findings of this study reveal a positive impact of gender board diversity on voluntary socially responsible disclosure by examining the presence of at least three women on the board—the critical mass. Moreover, the paper reports a greater effect when the board's background, skills, and experience are greater. As a supplemental analysis, the evidence shows that the female role does not remain when women achieve the position of chairperson; that is, female directors adopt a male stereotype regarding voluntary information disclosure when they are also the chairperson of the firm, independently of the human capital of the board members. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity of the business world and current business models has motivated an increasing number of companies to disclose corporate information through sustainability reports. This reporting and stakeholders engagement may bring shared value to business and society in general although working towards sustainable development goals. This work adopts a new analytical approach by determining the global reporting initiative indicators related to labour practices and decent work, human rights, society, and product responsibility that are reported less frequently by companies. The final objective is to predict the influence that society's cultural values will play as a normative institutional pressure in their evolution. The results obtained for a sample comprising the 201 largest international companies that report in accordance with the recommendations of the G4 Guide in 2015 indicate that more than 50% of these large companies do not report specific mechanisms implemented to avoid violations of human rights and labour rights, or information on incidents related to production and commercial relations. Regulatory pressures associated with cultural values have limited effectiveness as drivers of greater corporate transparency in this area, as they are able to predict a favourable evolution for only 40% of companies that currently do not report. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to examine the role performed by representatives of institutional investors in environmental reporting in Spain, where the presence of this type of director is the highest among European countries. Additionally, we make a distinction between those representatives of institutional investors appointed by bank and insurance companies and those appointed by mutual funds, investment funds and pension funds, because they have different motivations, characteristics and incentives, and consequently their role on boards and their influence on environmental disclosure may be dissimilar, as our results suggest. Our research offers a deep analysis revealing the role played by representatives of institutional investors in Spanish listed firms' decisions to disclose environmental information. Thus, our findings show the engagement with the stakeholders of a particular type of director on boards regarding environmental disclosure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]