The mediating effect of strategic posture on corporate governance and environmental reporting

Abstract

The aim of this study is to explain how corporate governance affects environmental reporting through the mediating effect of strategic position. The data were collected from chief executive managers and chief financial managers of 197 large companies in Malaysia. The partial least squares technique was used to test the proposed relationships. The results show that managers’ strategic posture mediates the impact of four aspects of corporate governance, namely, board size, board independency, CSR committee presence, and institutional ownership on environmental reporting. These findings extend the literature on the relationship between corporate governance and environmental reporting by providing insight into the reasons for these relationships. The results of the study will be useful for managers of companies and investors to become knowledgeable about those aspects of corporate governance which lead to higher environmental reporting. This study can also inform policy-makers about the types of firms that are less likely to disclose environmental reports and to develop effective enforcement of regulations.