Ti t l e I m p a c t of g e n d e r div e r sity o n s o ci al a n d e n vi r o n m e n t al p e rfo r m a n c e e vi d e n c e fro m M al ay si a

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Purpose This paper aims to examine the moderating effect of government ownership (GO) on the association between corporate governance (CG) and voluntary disclosure (VD). Design/methodology/approach This study used multivariate analysis to examine the moderating variable. Findings GO has a moderating negative effect on the association between CG factors [e.g. board size, non-executive directors (NEDs)] and VD, which indicates that GO plays a negative role in the effectiveness of CG. The study also found that audit quality is not affected by the influence of GO, indicating that companies without GO are better than companies with GO in terms of applying the best practices of CG to provide sufficient and high-quality disclosure. Originality/value This study has important implications for governments to be more effective in implementing the best practices of CG. Additionally, the findings could have implications for authority regulators, policy makers and shareholders to require effective implications for CG to reduce the effects of GO the implementation of best CG practices and the disclosure of quality information.

Purpose: Very limited research has been devoted to answering the question of whether the religious beliefs of the upper echelons of management and gender diversity have any impacts on the communication of corporate social responsibility (CSR) information in the marketplace. This study attempts to fill the void in the literature by posing the two research question: first, does the CEO religion affect a firm's CSR behaviour?; second, do the women on the boards influence CSR reporting? Design/methodology/approach: We performed our tests on a sample of 133 firms listed in Bursa Malaysia that have analysts following using a self-constructed CSR disclosure index based on information in annual reports in 2009. Twenty three percent of our sample firms have Muslim CEOs, and women made up only 8% of board members. Findings: We find that Muslim CEOs are significantly associated with greater disclosure of CSR information. We also find only a moderate relationship between board gender diversity and CSR disclosure. This is probably due to insufficient number of women on boards. Limitations: The disclosure index is based on unsubstantiated CSR information provided in annual reports, and we examine only two aspects of board diversity namely Muslim religiousity and gender mix. Originality/value: This study advances the research on upper echelons theory by illuminating the importance of religious value in influencing the CSR behaviour of corporate leaders. This has been largely overlooked due to lack of data.

This study examines whether financial analysts consider or incorporate the environmental, social and governance disclosures (thereafter ESG) in their recommendations. We then test whether royal family directors affect this relation. Using a dataset from six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, we find evidence that analysts’ recommendations are influenced by ESG information. Further, we find the political connection negatively moderates the relationship between sell-side analysts’ recommendations and ESG. This suggests that financial analysts may assess the ESG disclosure in those firms with the political connection of royalty, in GCC countries, as superficial compliance rather than a genuine commitment. Our results are robust when subjected to endogeneity tests.