Abstract:

Carbon disclosure is an important management tool and responsibility mechanism for achieving enterprises’ carbon reduction. However, market information asymmetry can induce enterprises to adopt carbon disclosure whitewashing strategies. Based on the theory of peer effect, this study empirically examines the driving factors and regulatory mechanisms of carbon disclosure whitewashing in Chinese listed enterprises from 2010 to 2022. The results show that peer effect exists in both industry and regional carbon disclosure whitewashing, and it is more often an avoidant imitation behavior that is adopted to conform to group norms. Based on the theory of stakeholders, the regulatory effect test reveals that policy and regulatory attention, media and public opinion attention, and public attention have different regulatory effects on the peer effect. The heterogeneity test results indicate that the peer effect still exists regardless of the regulatory disclosure intensity or market opening status. However, regulatory peer effect has a greater impact in industries with weak regulatory disclosure or when the carbon market is not open, while competitive peer effect has a greater impact in industries with strong regulatory disclosure or when the carbon market is open. Further research reveals that carbon disclosure whitewashing among enterprises in the supply chain also has a peer effect, and it is positively regulated by policy and regulatory attention, as well as negatively regulated by media and public opinion. These findings provide a new perspective for identifying the driving factors of carbon disclosure whitewashing, test the regulatory mechanisms within different groups of stakeholders, and offer empirical insights for further improving the carbon disclosure system.

Key words: corporate carbon disclosure, carbon disclosure whitewashing, peer effect, avoidance peer effect, competitive peer effect, policy and regulatory attention, media and public opinion attention, public attention