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Review of Managerial Science
Erschienen in: Review of Managerial Science 2/2019

20.10.2017 | Original Paper

Corporate scandals and the reliability of ESG assessments: evidence from an international sample

verfasst von: Sebastian Utz

Erschienen in: Review of Managerial Science | Ausgabe 2/2019

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Abstract

This paper studies the reliability of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) assessments in the case of corporate scandals. Reliable disclosures on ESG assessments may reduce information asymmetries when it comes to due diligence, for instance. We use the press release of corporate scandals, which are seen as being unexpected events, and analyze ESG assessments before, during, and after the event year. We find a significant decline in retrospective controversy indicators during the period in which the scandals are released. Subsequent to the scandals, we document a rebound of these indicators. The assessments of forward-looking indicators indicate slightly significant increases during the scandal period. Moreover, our findings show that aggregated ESG assessments consisting of both retrospective and forward-looking indicators are useless when it comes to predicting corporate scandals. Therefore, the managerial implication of this paper recommends educating managers and investors upon how to obtain a comprehensive vision of the corporate social responsibility of a firm based on single ESG assessment indicators.
Vorheriger Artikel How individual needs influence motivation effects: a neuroscientific study on McClelland’s need theory
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Fußnoten
1
This argument is valid for both direct and passive investments.
 
2
These 18 categories are clustered into four pillars. The first pillar, the corporate governance dimension, consists of five categories: Board functions, board structure, compensation policy, vision and strategy, and shareholder rights. The second pillar, the economic dimension, consists of three categories: Performance, shareholder loyalty, and client loyalty. The third pillar, the environment dimension, consists of three categories: Emission reduction, product innovation, and resource reduction. Finally, the fourth pillar, the social dimension consists of seven categories: Product responsibility, community, human rights, diversity and opportunity, employment quality, health & safety, and training & development.
 
3
The average autocorrelation in our sample over all ESG ratings and the entire time period from 2004 until 2015 is 0.81.
 
4
Since we did not receive the entire set of control variables for three firms, the sample size in this analysis amounts to 64 scandals.
 
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Metadaten
Titel
Corporate scandals and the reliability of ESG assessments: evidence from an international sample
verfasst von
Sebastian Utz
Publikationsdatum
20.10.2017
Verlag
Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Erschienen in
Review of Managerial Science / Ausgabe 2/2019
Print ISSN: 1863-6683
Elektronische ISSN: 1863-6691
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11846-017-0256-x

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