Governance of Corporate Greenwashing through ESG Assurance

Abstract

This study utilizes data from Chinese A-share listed companies from 2014 to 2022 to theoretically analyze and empirically test the governance effect of ESG assurance on corporate greenwashing behavior, as well as the role played by the legal environment and management shareholding in this context. The impacts of ownership and the governance mechanism of ESG assurance on corporate greenwashing behavior are also explored. This study employs text mining, OLS, PSM, IV-LIML, treatment effect models, feasible generalized least squares, placebo tests, bootstrap methods, etc., to conduct empirical analysis and conclude the following results: ESG assurance has a significant inhibitory effect on corporate greenwashing behavior, playing a crucial role in resource allocation, particularly in non-state-owned enterprises. The legal environment has a certain substitution effect on ESG assurance in inhibiting corporate greenwashing behavior, meaning that when the legal environment is weak, ESG assurance is more effective in curbing such behavior. Management shareholding also has a certain substitution effect on ESG assurance in inhibiting corporate greenwashing behavior, indicating that when management shareholding is low, ESG assurance is better at curbing such behavior. Further research reveals that corporate ESG performance plays a mediating role between ESG assurance and corporate greenwashing governance. This article provides policy references and empirical evidence for strengthening ESG assurance and enhancing corporate ESG performance and greenwashing governance to promote high-quality corporate development.