Internet Disclosure Research Articles

Effect of social media sentiment on donations received by NPOS

Previous literature has analyzed the effect of internet disclosure on NPO donations, specifically, through website disclosure, showing a positive relation between internet disclosure and NPO income. Nonetheless, there is a lack of studies examining the association between sentiment on social media and NPO donations. Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine the effect that sentiment in Twitter messages has on the donations received by NPOs. Using a sample of NPOs listed on the Non-Profit Times 100, we examine whether the sentiment transmitted by the NPOs through Twitter affects their donations. The results show that the sentiment associated with certain specific categories of messages (community messages and information messages about matters not directly related to the NPO) has a significant effect on the amount of donations received.

Management Accounting Practices and Internet Financial Reporting of Listed Manufacturing Companies in Nigeria.

The study explores the effect of management accounting practices on internet financial reporting of listed manufacturing companies on the Nigeria stock exchange (NSE). It employed the descriptive research design using panel data set from the financial reports for a 10 years period between 2010 to 2019, of the sampled companies. The population of the study is the whole listed manufacturing companies that have website address which cut across health manufacturing, consumer goods manufacturing, industrial goods manufacturing and conglomerates companies, numbering 65 companies, the sample size for this study is 42 companies that have active website address, and is derived using the purposive sampling technique. The trusted search engines used to source for data for this study includes; www.google.com, www.proshare.com, africanfinancials.com, to establish the real website of the sample companies. The multiple linear regression method and the ordinary least squares models were used to analyze data collected. The study adopted the Internet Disclosure Index as proxy for dependent variable, while the independent variables were cost of resources supplied, economic value added and modified cost volume profit. The result of the study showed that a positive significant relationship exists between cost of resources supplied and internet financial reporting disclosures, that economic value addition showed a negative significant relationship with internet financial reporting disclosures, a positive insignificant relationship exists between modified cost volume profit and internet financial reporting disclosures each in the sampled companies. It is therefore, recommended based on these findings that Companies in this sector should endeavor to manage their cost of owning a website so as to maintain the benefit of internet financial reporting, the value additions in respect to using internet financial reporting must be adequately analyzed so that the purpose of using it will not be defeated, and that a well-planned cost-volume-profit analysis be carried out to ensure that the huge bill involved with financial reporting is defrayed within the companies’ margin of safety.

DETERMINANTS OF INTERNET DISCLOSURE TRANSPARENCY ON ZAKAT MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATIONS IN INDONESIA

This study's purpose is to examine the influence of Zakat Management Organization (OPZ) characteristics on the transparency of Internet disclosure. There are four independent variables such as the size of OPZ, the presence of external auditors, under the auspices of the corporation status, and institution type. The size of OPZ is measured by the ln of the total assets, whereas the existence of the external auditor, the auspices of the corporation status, and the type of institution use dummy variables. The sample of this research is 32 OPZ in Indonesia with the research period 2018. The results show that the size of OPZ, the presence of auditors, and the ownership status of the institution had a significant positive effect on the transparency of Internet disclosure. However, the type of institution (BAZ or LAZ) does not affect the transparency of internet disclosure at OPZ. The percentage of disclosure of internet disclosures, such as content and presentation on the OPZ website, has increased from previous studies.

Drivers of Mandatory and Non-Mandatory Internet Corporate Reporting in Public and Private Sector Indian Companies

The paper’s objective was to measure the drivers of mandatory and non-mandatory internet corporate reporting by public and private sector companies following the internet disclosure compliance of listing and obligation requirement of SEBI under Clause 46. Several drivers, namely firm size, profitability, leverage, liquidity, board size, independence of board, and CEO duality, were used to measure the effectiveness of mandatory and non-mandatory disclosure. A multiple regression model was applied to test the present paper’s hypotheses. The results of multiple regression revealed that the firm’s size was exceptionally important for both sectors. In contrast, public sector disclosure was largely impacted by leverage, liquidity, board size, and board independence. In comparison, the private sector disclosure scores were mainly impacted by leverage and board size, although there is no relationship between ICR and firm profitability and CEO duality. In performing separate multivariate regression between the two sectors, many disparities emerged. This disparity showed that public and private sector corporations had quite different firm and governance characteristics of the disclosure. As the first exploratory research to assess the mandate internet disclosure of public and private sector companies in India, it is very informational, specifically for those working on Indian companies’ regulation, compliance, and research.

Does the Level of Intellectual Capital Affect Meeting the Information Needs of Social Media Users in the Field of Sustainability? The Case of the World’s Largest Energy Industry Companies

It is increasingly essential for companies to communicate appropriately about sustainability. In today’s world, with the massive spread of social media’s popularity as a critical communication channel, sustainability is also present in the Internet disclosure practices of many enterprises. It is also presumed that firms’ intellectual capital (IC) plays a vital role in the quality of corporate disclosure. Our paper aims to explore to what extent disclosure practices of firms via social media fulfill the needs of stakeholders for information related to sustainability. We also test how IC impacts this disclosure. We analyze tweets of the world’s largest energy industry companies to assess if this disclosure meets the stakeholders’ expectations regarding sustainability topics. Using a common measure of IC, we also check whether its level determines sustainability disclosure. This study provides several contributions to the literature. The findings may help understand companies’ responsiveness to sustainability information needs. The chief contribution also lies in its focus on how the IC level influences the sustainability disclosure practices via social media. The findings may have implications for organizations in creating and using social media channels when developing a dialogue with stakeholders on topics regarding sustainability. Conclusions also provide new insight on IC’s importance in corporate disclosure practices on sustainability.

Corporate internet disclosures during the coronavirus pandemic.

Corporate internet disclosures during the coronavirus pandemic.

Corporate Internet disclosures during the coronavirus pandemic

Corporate disclosures constitute the main means of communication between companies and their related parties, with the Internet being one of the most important. Although several studies have been conducted on the extent of disclosures on the Internet and the factors that affect it (Elsayed, Masry, & Elbeltagi, 2010; Botti, Boubaker, Hamrouni, & Solonandrasana, 2014; etc.), research during the crisis of the pandemic is limited. The purpose of this paper is twofold. On the one hand, it aims to examine the extent and quality of disclosures that companies provided on corporate websites during the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, an effort is made to assess which factors affected the extent of disclosure. These factors focus on firm-specific characteristics (company size, leverage, profitability, auditing firm size) and core corporate governance attributes (board size, ownership concentration and chief executive officer duality). Results indicate that average disclosure was relatively high. Regression analysis shows that the level of disclosure was significantly positively associated with company size, profitability and board size. This indicates that during the pandemic, larger companies, more profitable and with more board members, disclosed more information on their websites. The results of the study may be of interest for clients, financial and credit analysts, investors, supervisory authorities as well as management, in their effort to improve corporate disclosures and the level of social responsibility.

Internet reporting, social media strategy and firm characteristics – an Australian study

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate internet reporting and social media strategies by Australian firms. This study looks at the extent of internet reporting and considers firm characteristics associated with disclosing information on the internet. This research is timely as in the past decade, this paper has witnessed the rapid growth of technologies such as the internet and social media and their subsequent impact on business and the economy.Design/methodology/approachThis paper constructs a disclosure index featuring a wide range of both financial and non-financial disclosures including social media strategy. This study then investigates the firm characteristics associated with the level of internet disclosure.FindingsThis paper finds that a firm’s internet reporting is associated with firm size, financial performance and analysts’ coverage but not associated with the percentage of independent board members. A firm’s social media strategy is associated with firm size and its environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) ranking.Practical implicationsThe findings can help firms improve their internet reporting disclosures by providing a comprehensive list of disclosures that could benefit users of financial reports. It also helps standard setters and regulators understand some of the firm factors related to internet reporting and provide guidance for standard setters to consider in developing best practice internet reporting standards.Originality/valueThe research features the top 100 Australian companies’ internet disclosures in 2018 and also includes social media strategy. The results highlight that there is room for improvement with firms’ internet disclosure. By constructing a comprehensive index, this study provides guidance for standard setters to consider in developing best practice internet reporting standards.

Big data analytics of corporate internet disclosures

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the extent and characteristics of corporate internet disclosure via companies’ websites as well via social media and networks sites in the four leading English-speaking stock markets, namely, Australia, Canada, the UK and the USA.Design/methodology/approachA disclosure index comprising a set of items that encompasses two facets of online disclosure, namely, company websites and social media sites, is used. This paper adopts a data science approach to investigate corporate internet disclosure practices among top listed firms in Australia, Canada, the UK and the USA.FindingsThe results reveal the underlying relations between the determining factors of corporate disclosure, i.e. profitability, leverage, liquidity and firm size. Profitability in its own has no great effect on the degree of corporate internet disclosure whether via company websites or social media sites. Liquidity has an impact on the degree of disclosure. Firm size and leverage appear to be the most important factors driving better disclosure via social media. American companies tend to be on the cutting edge of technology when it comes to corporate disclosure.Practical implicationsThis paper provides new insights into corporate internet disclosure that will benefit all stakeholders with an interest in corporate reporting. Social media is an influential means of communication that can enable corporate office to get instant feedback enhancing their decision-making process.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is amongst few studies of corporate disclosure via social media platforms. This study has adopted disclosure index incorporating social media as well as applying data science approach in disclosure in an attempt to unfold how accounting could benefit from data science techniques.

Board composition and corporate reporting on internet: Indian evidence

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of board composition on the level of corporate internet reporting (CIR) practices.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses content analysis to examine the CIR practices of 140 Indian companies selected from the Bombay Stock Exchange 200 index for the year 2015. CIR was measured on a comprehensive internet disclosure index of 136 items capturing both content and presentation dimensions. Regression analysis was used to explore the impact of board composition (board size, board independence, frequency of board meetings, CEO duality and family members on the board) and audit committee characteristics on CIR while controlling the impact of variables firm size, leverage, profitability and industry type.FindingsThe findings reveal that larger boards, boards with less family members and audit committees that meet more frequently are more likely to engage in CIR practices. In addition, larger firms and firms that make less use of debt tend to disclose more information on their websites.Research limitations/implicationsThe focus of the study has been on one aspect of corporate governance mechanisms i.e. board characteristics. Future studies can explore the impact of ownership structure on CIR practices.Originality/valueThis study extends the prior CIR research by demonstrating the effectiveness of corporate governance mechanisms in particular board characteristics in adopting internet reporting practices for Indian companies. The examination of the relationship between corporate reporting on the internet and corporate governance aids regulators in evaluating and enhancing the effectiveness of the boards.

CORPORATE SOCIAL REPORTING IN EGYPT: NATURE AND DETERMINANTS

Purpose: This paper explores the nature and determinants of corporate social reporting (CSR) in Egyptian listed companies using publicly available sources, including annual reports, stand-alone reports and corporate internet disclosures. Design/methodology/approach: A 55-point content analysis from 6 categories was developed using both Egyptian sustainability reporting guidelines and the Global Reporting Initiative reporting guidelines. Both the index score and number of sentences were used to measure CSR. Multiple OLS regression was used to test the significance of both corporate governance mechanisms and firms’ characteristics in explaining the variations in CSR. Mann-Whitney U tests were used to measure the differences between governmental and non-governmental firms. Findings: The results of descriptive statistics show that 54.8% of the sample reported CSR. Community & social information was dominant under the three disclosure channels. Empirical findings show a significant relationship between CSR disclosure and the existence of a CSR division, the existence of family directors on the board and those companies which are cross-listed. The results do not show a significant relationship between CSR and non-executive directors, CEO duality, institutional ownership, foreign ownership, size, profitability, leverage and audit firm type. The results also show that non-governmental companies use varied channels of disclosure more than government-owned companies. Originality/value: As the most comprehensive study to date of its kind in an Egyptian context, the paper contributes to investigating empirically the link between CSR and both corporate governance mechanisms and firm specific characteristics.

Reflex of political connection on corporate governance information internet disclosure by Brazilian publicly traded companies

Reflex of political connection on corporate governance information internet disclosure by Brazilian publicly traded companies

Accounting legislation, corporate governance codes and disclosure in Jordan: a review

PurposeThe main aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the most influential economic changes and accounting legislation affecting financial reporting and disclosure practices in Jordan. It also provides an overview of disclosure studies conducted in Jordan covering the year(s) between 1986 and 2014 to investigate whether there is an improvement in disclosure practice in Jordan. This paper also investigates the most influential firm characteristics affecting disclosure practices in Jordan found in prior disclosure studies that were conducted in Jordan between 1986 and 2014. The paper also addresses the disclosure items required in Corporate Governance Codes that exist for listed shareholding companies, banks and insurance companies. Finally, the paper discusses the quality of accounting education in Jordan, as prior studies noted its impact on accounting practice.Design/methodology/approachBased on a review of prior disclosure studies conducted in Jordan between 1986 and 2014, this study compared the results of disclosure studies before and after 1998. In 1997, Jordan, as a result of economic changes, issued the Temporary Securities Law and its Directives of Disclosure, which came into effect in 1998. The law is considered as the turning point in the improvement of disclosure practice in Jordan. A trend line of disclosure practice is also used to investigate whether disclosure practice is improved after the issuance of this law. A descriptive analysis is also used to examine the factors affecting disclosure practice in Jordan.FindingsBased on a review of prior disclosure studies, it was concluded that disclosure practices have improved overtime. It was also observed that that firm size as a factor has always affected the level of disclosure in Jordan and is followed by external auditing, while liquidity is found to have the least effect. It was concluded that economic changes, agreement with international organizations like the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), new regulations and financial market reforms have improved disclosure practice in Jordan. It was also found that there is a need for further studies in disclosure practice that are not sufficiently covered in Jordan.Originality/valueThe study is based on a review of disclosure studies conducted in Jordan between 1986 and 2014. We investigate whether mandatory, voluntary, corporate social and internet disclosure practice improved over the last three decades in Jordan. This study is the first to provide evidence on the improvement of disclosure practices based on a review of disclosure studies in Jordan. The paper is expected to be a reference for disclosure studies in developing countries, Jordan in particular, as it summarized and criticized the weaknesses on disclosure practice and accounting legislations in Jordan.

What's in a Name? Evaluating the Effects of the "Sex Offender" Label on Public Opinions and Beliefs.

Particularly over the past two decades, the terms sex offender and juvenile sex offender (JSO) have attained increasingly common usage in media and public policy discourse. Although often applied as factual descriptors, the labels may evoke strong subconscious associations with a population commonly presumed to be compulsive, at high risk of re-offense, and resistant to rehabilitation. Such associations, in turn, may exert considerable impact on expressions of support for certain policies as well as public beliefs and opinions about adults and youth who have perpetrated sexual offenses. The current study systematically evaluated the impact of the "sex offender" and "JSO" labels through series of items administered to a nationally stratified and matched sample from across the United States. The study employed an experimental design, in which one group of participants (n = 498) ranked their levels of agreement with a series of statements utilizing these labels, and a control group (n = 502) responded to a matched set of statements substituting the labels with more neutral descriptive language. Findings support the hypothesis that use of the "sex offender" label strengthens public support for policies directed at those who have perpetrated sexual crimes, including public Internet disclosure, residency restrictions, and social networking bans. The "JSO" label is demonstrated to produce particularly robust effects, enhancing support for policies that subject youth to public Internet notification and affecting beliefs about youths' propensity to re-offend as adults. Implications for public policy, media communication, and research are explored and discussed.

The Issue of Prior Art from the Internet: Is Cyber Art a Prior Art?

In patent examination, prior art is evaluated to determine the patentability of an invention. Furthermore, prior art can be used by any member of the public interested in invalidating a patent or opposing a patent application. A patent examiner, patent applicant or a third party may discover and cites prior art in the Internet as it carries a wide range of information resources. Thus, the Internet has become an important source of prior art information in electronic format or cyber art. But the uncertainty and unreliability of disclosures as well as the possible abuse of the information available on the Internet may affect the patentability and validity of a claimed invention. The paper addressed the issue of accuracy, reliability and credibility of cyber art retrieved and cited in web sites like Wikipedia, Internet Archive and those with complex or published in a short period of time Uniform Resource Locator (URL) and whether they can be considered as prior art in the context of patent law. It highlights some judgements in the Case Law of the European Patent Office Board of Appeals as a proposed solution. Also, the paper reviews the patent law of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), European Patent Office (EPO) and Japan Patent Office (JPO) on the definition of prior art and existing guidelines on Internet disclosures. Since there are no binding rules at the international regime that exhaustively defines the prior art in patent law, and the Member States has latitude in this respect, the paper adopts a comparative approach. The growing importance of cyber art as prior art is a valid reason to identify and test trustworthy solutions but not enough to harmonize standards on prior art. For now, patent offices should formulate clear guidelines on the treatment of cyber art de lege ferenda to achieve quality patent examination processes, reduce processing time of patent applications and safeguard against patent infringement.

The Level of Voluntary Electronic Disclosure in Jordanian Companies and Factors that Influence the Level of this Disclosure: An applied study on Jordanian Companies listed in Amman Stock Exchange

The aim of this research paper was to explore the level of electronic disclosure on financial and non-financial information of Jordanian corporations listed in Amman Stock Exchange (ASE), and to identify factors that have an impact on electronic disclosure used by Jordanian corporations. Finally, the research also intended to examine the level of each financial and non-financial items on the basis of data published in 2014. The Internet Disclosure Index (IDI), which consisted of 40 items was constructed and used to measure the level of the Internet-based disclosure. Simple linear regression analysis was used to analyze research data. The population of the current research comprised all Jordanian public-listed corporations in Amman Stock Exchange Securities in 2014. There were 270 corporations distributed on four sectors; banking, insurance, services as well as industry. The results revealed that 48.9% (132 corporations) have websites and 51.1% (138) have no websites. It was concluded that the level of the Internet-based disclosure is 6.6%. Finally, the findings indicated that there was an association between company size, liquidity, profitability, audit office size, and the level of the Internet-based disclosure. On the other hand, company efficiency, financial leverage along with debt to equity ratio were found to have no association with the level of the Internet-based disclosure.

Financial disclosure on the internet and overvalued equity: the case of Iran

Due to the advantages of high stock price, managers usually take actions to explain watered stock. Therefore, at least, they disclose less information about financial aspects of the corporation. The objective of this study is to provide evidence on the relationship between overvalued equity and the disclosure of financial information via the internet in the Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE). To this end, using 83 companies' data, it was tried to examine the relationship between the variables. According to correlation analysis (Pearson and partial), regression analysis (annual and biennial) and t-test, a negative significant relationship between overvalued equity and internet disclosure of financial information in the Iranian companies is determined. That is to say, when companies experience overvaluation, Iranian managers disclose less information through the company's website too. Also, the results reveal the existence of significant and positive relationship between previous internet disclosure of financial information and internet disclosure of financial information.

The Impact of Web-Based Disclosure on the Capital Market Risk

This paper evaluates the Web-based voluntary disclosure practices in a sample of 180 French listed firms. The main objective is to investigate the impact of Internet-based disclosure on capital market risk. Three measures are used to present the capital market risk: total risk is measured by the standard deviation of stock returns, and systematic risk and idiosyncratic risk are the beta and standard deviation of the residuals generated from the market model, respectively. Following the method of Gajewski and Li, the Web-based disclosure is measured by an index of 40 items. The empirical results show that total risk and idiosyncratic risk vary inversely with the strength of Internet disclosure. This indicates that improved online disclosure can reduce investors’ uncertainty in the capital market. However, systematic risk is not influenced by the disclosure practice. Furthermore, capital concentration and board size are negatively associated with total and idiosyncratic risk. This study extends the prior research by investigating the influence of online disclosure on capital risk in the French stock market. I am particularly concerned about the technical features of Internet disclosure and its impact on capital risk. Online information is generally considered to be user-friendly, yet it is now necessary to analyze the effect of this convenience provided by Internet technology on the capital market.

Determinants of internet financial reporting in African markets: the case of Mauritius

The Internet has revolutionized the way individuals and companies access and share information. Companies can now disseminate more information on a timely manner to stakeholders. Using mixed theoretical perspectives on corporate reporting including legitimacy, stakeholder, and signalling theories, this study investigates the extent and determinants of corporate reporting on the Internet by firms listed on the official market of the Stock Exchange of Mauritius (SEM). We use content analysis to examine information disclosed on firms’ websites. Data is collected from 34 companies’ websites including includes companies on the Official Market of the SEM. A disclosure index consisting of 52 items (mandatory and voluntary items) is constructed based on previous studies and adapted to the Mauritian context is used to measure the extent of Internet Financial Reporting (IFR). The results indicate that company size, board size, and liquidity are significant explanatory variables for the level of IFR. However, we find no significant relationship between other variables (leverage, profitability, and audit quality) and the level of IFR. To the best of our knowledge, no prior studies on drivers of IFR in Mauritius is available. Therefore this study contributes to the scarce literature on IFR in the African region and Mauritius. The findings of this study are expected to benefit several stakeholders including firms, legislators, and investors. It provides a broader picture of the characteristics of firms which use the Internet to report financial and non-financial information. Firms subject to the study can benchmark their IFR practices with the average of all firms and take appropriate actions to enhance their visibility to investors. Regulators and legislators can compare the IFR performance of Mauritian listed companies with emerging stock markets to issue guidelines for enhancing disclosure on the Internet. Investors require information to make informed investment decisions. The findings of this study can guide them as to which corporate characteristics are associated with higher Internet disclosures, thus saving them time in screening investment options.

The economic consequences of the incremental Internet disclosure: the case of French firms

This study explores the economic consequences of incremental internet disclosure (IID) of 190 French companies pertaining to SBF 250 Index during 2012. The results, obtained from a cross-sectional regression, show that the IID is a benefit because it reduces the information asymmetry, which in turn increases the liquidity of securities’ French firms. However, the IID has no impact on the cost of equity French firms.