Whose Call to Answer: Institutional Complexity and Firms’ CSR Reporting

While research on the disclosure of CSR (corporate social responsibility) recognizes the influence of government regulations and guidelines, less attention has been given to the co-existence of conflicting pressures from the state. We develop a framework wherein CSR reporting is viewed as an organizational response to institutional complexity that arises from the conflicting demands from the central government and local governments, and apply it to publicly listed firms in China after the central government agencies issued guidelines on CSR reporting. Some provincial governments’ high priority given to short-term GDP growth created tension with the central government’s expectations on CSR reporting. Firms with…