The relationship between corporate environmental performance and environmental disclosure: An empirical study in China

Abstract

Based on a content analysis of 533 Chinese listed companies, this study examines how corporate environmental performance affects not only the level of detail of a company's environmental disclosures, but also what information is disclosed. The results show that (1) both poor and good performers have more disclosure than the median (i.e., “mixed”) performers, which provides empirical evidence to support a nonlinear relationship between corporate environmental performance and environmental disclosure; (2) poor performers disclose more soft information on environmental performance than good performers, and good performers disclose more solid information; and (3) although poor performers increase disclosure after being exposed as environmental violators, they avoid disclosing negative environmental information, such as the violation and the associated penalties. This study provides additional evidence for a nonlinear relationship between environmental performance and disclosure in emerging markets, and suggests environmental disclosure may not be a valid signal to differentiate good performers from poor performers in contemporary China.