The attitudes of accountants towards corporate environmental disclosure (CED) in Libya

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to complement the literature reviews on corporate environmental disclosure (CED) with special focus on the developing countries. The paper focuses on the attitudes of accountants towards CED in Libya. Design/methodology/approach – A desk-based research method, using a classification framework of two categories, has been applied in this study. These two categories are the methodologies used to capture empirical data and the results of studies. Findings – The results of this study indicate that almost all previous studies related to the attitudes of accountants towards CED in Libya utilised the two-dimensional analysis, which combines a questionnaire with content analysis. This afforded a better understanding of the picture than that provided by the questionnaire alone. Moreover, the results indicate that most such studies show that whilst the accountants have positive attitudes towards CED, progress is limited, with a low level of CED practices. Originality/value – Reviews of attitudes of accountants towards CED in different parts of the world are always welcome and are arguably somewhat very limited in developing countries in general and in Libya in particular. This paper provides a foundation for future research and development in the area of CED.