Corporate governance perspective on environmental reporting: Literature review and future research agenda

Abstract

AbstractThe last three decades have witnessed substantial growth in the literature exploring the motives and drivers of corporate greening. Extant research analyzing the governance determinants of corporate environmental disclosure provides competing and contrasting results; despite the growing sustainability challenges create an urgent need for effective monitoring and incentive mechanisms to promote corporate transparency and accountability. This warrants further inquiry in the field, yet very few comprehensive reviews have been presented on governance determinants of corporate environmental disclosure. To fill this gap we conduct a systematic review of 121 published papers and distinguish the governance mechanisms fostering corporate environmental disclosure. Our paper identifies factors influencing the adoption, extant, and quality of environmental disclosure, and provides useful future research directions.