A cross-national comparison of transparency signaling in corporate social responsibility reporting: The United States, South Korea, and China cases

In response to growing public scrutiny of ethical business practices, corporations have become actively engaged in reporting their social and environmental performances publicly. Drawing on the institutional theory to explain the growing diffusion of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting on a global, yet distinctively specific level of adoption, this study examines the level of transparency signaling in CSR reports in three countries: the United States, South Korea, and China. In addition, within each country, the study compares the level of transparency signaling between environmentally sensitive and nonsensitive industries. Using a computer-aided content analysis program, DICTION 7.0, the study analyzed 181 CSR reports from 2014 to 2017. Results show that the three dimensions of transparency signaling—participation, substantial information, and accountability—in CSR reports varied across different countries. Firms in the United States and South Korea showed higher scores in the participation and accountability dimensions than China, whereas firms in China showed relatively high scores in the substantial information dimension. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.