Corporate Social and Environmental Reporting on Corporate Websites: A Study on Listed Companies of Bangladesh
The Cost and Management, Vol. 35, No. 4, pp. 31-49, July-August 2007
Posted: 13 Nov 2007 Last revised: 6 Nov 2013
Date Written: April 4, 2012
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this study is to draw a plain picture of online corporate social and environmental reporting practices by the listed companies of Bangladesh and to rank companies based on the extent of disclosure of corporate social and environmental information on their websites.
Methodology/Approach – The sample for the study consists of 264 companies listed on the stock exchanges (the Dhaka Stock Exchange and the Chittagong Stock Exchange) of Bangladesh. Data relating to corporate social and environmental disclosures were collected by browsing the websites of sample companies between May 2007 and August 2007. The technique of content analysis has been employed to collect and analyze data.
Findings – A scoring scheme for measuring the extent of corporate social and environmental disclosure on the internet has been used. A total of 104 websites have been assessed and both partial and aggregate scores have been produced. The scores show that the internet reporting of corporate social and environmental information by the listed companies in Bangladesh is still in its infancy, which indicates that the listed companies in Bangladesh have a lot of work to do in order to enhance the corporate reporting activities on the internet. An important finding of the study is that local companies lag behind in internet reporting of corporate social and environmental information whereas the majority of corporate social and environmental information are disseminated by multinational companies (MNCs).
Originality/Value – This paper adds to the existing body of literature on web-based corporate social and environmental reporting studies by exploring on-line social and environmental reporting practices of Bangladesh.
Paper type - Research paper
Keywords: Corporate Social and Environmental Information, Media Richness, Internet, Corporate Website and Paper-based Reporting
JEL Classification: M41, M47, M49
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation