Qian Long Kweh

Environmental, social, and governance disclosure (ESGD) increasingly forms part of firms' communication with external capital providers. However, its association with financial performance remains unclear, especially in emerging markets where reporting formats, assurance practices, and enforcement mechanisms remain uneven. Using annual reports of 201 listed manufacturing firms in Vietnam over 2016–2024, this study constructs a dictionary‐based measure of ESG disclosure intensity, expressed as dictionary‐matched ESG occurrences per 1000 n ‐grams, and examines its association with return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE), and Tobin's Q . The central finding is a negative association between ESG disclosure intensity and ROE. This is the only association that retains the same direction across the baseline two‐way fixed‐effects and supplementary dynamic system GMM specifications. The baseline models also show a weakly positive association with ROA and a positive association with Tobin's Q , but neither positive association is corroborated by the dynamic specifications. The results therefore show that the financial associations of ESG disclosure intensity depend on the performance outcome examined and on model specification. For corporate sustainability strategy, the findings suggest that higher ESG disclosure intensity should not be interpreted as uniformly associated with stronger financial performance. Rather, the financial relevance of sustainability reporting depends on the outcome against which it is assessed. The negative ROE association, which runs against the prediction of the monitoring argument, raises a specific theoretical puzzle concerning the relationship between disclosure, shareholders' capital, financing, and the timing of returns.

This study examines the nonlinear relationships between environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance, ESG controversies, and firm performance, and investigates the moderating role of controlling shareholders. Using panel data from A‐share listed mainland Chinese firms within Huawei's domestic supplier network from 2018 to 2022, this study applies firm fixed effects models with year fixed effects and firm‐level clustered standard errors. The findings provide weak evidence of a U‐shaped relationship between overall ESG performance and firm performance, while governance performance exhibits the strongest nonlinear relationship. In contrast, environmental and social performance show no significant nonlinear associations with firm performance. ESG controversy exposure also shows no robust nonlinear relationship with firm performance. The moderation results indicate that controlling shareholder influence may flatten the U‐shaped relationship between ESG performance and firm performance, while its moderating role in the ESG controversy relationship remains statistically weak. However, these moderation findings are sensitive to alternative proxies for controlling shareholder influence. Drawing on stakeholder theory and the principal–principal conflict perspective, this study demonstrates that the relationship between ESG performance and firm performance varies across ESG dimensions and may depend on shareholder control. The findings provide implications for managers, investors, and policymakers by emphasizing the importance of considering the nonlinear and governance‐dependent nature of ESG‐related outcomes.

Purpose: This study examines how environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance is associated with firm value by distinguishing two mechanisms: capability-based signal validation through innovation and perception-based signal amplification through potential greenwashing. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on signaling theory and the resource-based view, we analyze 5,702 firm-year observations from 11 Asian economies over 2013–2023 using difference generalized method of moments. Innovation intensity is examined as a mediator, with the indirect effect assessed using 5,000 firm-level bootstrap replications, while potential greenwashing, measured as ESG disclosure–performance misalignment, is examined as a moderator. Robustness analyses use disaggregated ESG pillars, return on assets, and panel vector autoregression. Findings: ESG performance is positively associated with firm value and innovation intensity, while innovation intensity is positively associated with firm value. Bootstrap analysis confirms a significant indirect effect through innovation intensity, supporting partial mediation. Potential greenwashing is negatively associated with firm value but positively moderates the ESG–firm value relationship. This contrasting pattern is consistent with two mechanisms: innovation substantiates ESG signals through underlying organizational capabilities, whereas disclosure–performance misalignment can amplify their market visibility without equivalent capability-based support. Practical implications: Managers should embed ESG commitments in substantive innovation activities rather than rely on disclosure alone. Investors and policymakers should assess whether ESG claims are supported by observable capabilities and strengthen external verification. Originality/value: Integrating signaling theory with the resource-based view, this study distinguishes capability-based signal validation from perception-based signal amplification, explaining why ESG signals can be associated with firm value through substantively different pathways.

The global transition toward sustainability has increased pressure on energy firms to balance environmental responsibility with financial performance. Although environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices are widely examined, their impact on firm efficiency remains unclear, with mixed findings across contexts. One possible explanation is the limited attention given to the role of corporate strategy. This study examines the relationship between ESG performance and firm efficiency in the global energy sector over the period 2017 to 2021, with particular attention to the moderating role of business strategy. It first estimates sustainability and profitability efficiency scores using a chance‐constrained two‐stage network data envelopment analysis model. It then uses these efficiency scores in hierarchical regression to examine the relationship between ESG performance and firm efficiency, as well as the moderating role of business strategy. The results show that sustainability efficiency is generally higher than profitability efficiency, reflecting the sector's increasing focus on environmental performance. More importantly, the effect of ESG on efficiency varies across strategic orientations. Environmental performance contributes more positively to efficiency in firms adopting defender strategies, while its effect is weaker in prospector‐oriented firms. In contrast, social performance shows stronger positive effects under prospector strategies. Governance performance does not exhibit a significant moderating pattern. These findings indicate that ESG initiatives do not produce uniform efficiency outcomes, but instead depend on how they align with corporate strategy. The results help explain inconsistencies in prior research and provide practical insights for aligning ESG practices with strategic priorities.

This study examines how corporate social responsibility (CSR) shapes earnings management (EM) under varying levels of creditor oversight in an emerging economy. Using a panel dataset of 92 Vietnamese manufacturing firms from 2017 to 2021, we distinguish between accrual‐based earnings management (AEMA) and real earnings management (REMA). We adopt a substitution perspective and examine how managers reallocate between AEMA and REMA under different monitoring conditions. We apply fixed effects, random effects, feasible generalized least squares, and instrumental variable GMM estimations to address unobserved heterogeneity and endogeneity concerns. Results show that CSR exerts asymmetric effects on EM. Under weak creditor oversight, CSR increases AEMA but reduces REMA, suggesting that managers use CSR to support accounting discretion while avoiding real operational distortions that could harm long‐term performance. Stronger creditor oversight, proxied by leverage, is associated with lower accrual‐based earnings management in the validated specifications, while the REMA results indicate partial reallocation toward less observable real activity manipulation under stronger monitoring. Drawing on signaling theory under monitor‐specific detection asymmetry, we show that CSR affects not only the level but also the form of EM, depending on the monitoring intensity. A suspect‐firm subsample analysis provides evidence consistent with the proposed substitution mechanism. Overall, CSR does not uniformly constrain EM but shifts managerial opportunism across the reporting channels.

This study examines how blockchain-enabled management accounting data capability (BCAP_MA) relates to information outcomes and management control effectiveness at the firm level. Instead of treating blockchain as a stand-alone technology, this study focuses on how its features are incorporated into data integration, verification, and control processes within organizations. A research model is developed linking BCAP_MA to management accounting information transparency (MIT), information quality (MAIQ), and management control effectiveness (MCE), while also considering the role of internal control quality (ICQ). The model proposes that digital transformation capability (DTC), IT–data infrastructure readiness (ITDR), and top management support (TMS) support the development of BCAP_MA. In turn, BCAP_MA is associated with higher transparency and information quality, with information quality acting as the main pathway to management control effectiveness. Internal control quality is examined both as a direct determinant of transparency and as a condition that influences how effectively BCAP_MA translates into transparency. The analysis uses survey data from 475 respondents in listed firms in Ho Chi Minh City and applies PLS-SEM. The results show that BCAP_MA is positively associated with both transparency and information quality, and that information quality is strongly related to management control effectiveness. Transparency partially mediates the relationship between data capability and information quality, while internal control quality strengthens the relationship between BCAP_MA and transparency. Overall, the findings suggest that the benefits associated with blockchain depend on firms’ data capabilities and control environments rather than on technology adoption alone.

This study presents a theory‐oriented bibliometric review of research on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosure and corporate outcomes, with particular attention to the evolving role of disclosure within the corporate information environment. Drawing on 590 peer‐reviewed articles indexed in Scopus, this study employs bibliometric mapping and network visualization to examine the intellectual structure of the field and its development over time. The findings reveal a shift from an early emphasis on ESG performance and corporate social responsibility to a disclosure‐centered perspective that links sustainability activities to financial and strategic consequences. ESG disclosure emerges as a structurally central construct connecting sustainability research with outcomes such as cost of capital, firm value, and financial performance. This configuration indicates that disclosure increasingly functions as a mechanism through which firms communicate sustainability‐related information and influence market evaluations. Simultaneously, themes related to disclosure quality, credibility, and greenwashing remain weakly integrated, suggesting that the informational properties of ESG communication are not yet fully theorized. The analysis also highlights the growing contributions of emerging markets alongside limited cross‐national integration. By synthesizing these structural developments, this study advances the understanding of ESG disclosure as a mediating interface between sustainability practice and corporate outcomes and outlines research directions concerning disclosure quality, institutional context, and information transmission processes. Consistent with bibliometric methodology, the results identify structural patterns rather than causal effects and are limited to Scopus‐indexed publications.

The global clothing industry is one of the largest contributors to environmental and social challenges; however, firms face increasing demands to integrate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices into their core strategies. Prior studies have linked ESG to efficiency and competitiveness, but their findings remain inconsistent, partly because they overlook the role of competitive intensity (CI). This study examines how ESG influences eco‐efficiency and market efficiency under varying market conditions using a two‐stage network data envelopment analysis (DEA) and hierarchical regression on 56 publicly listed clothing firms from 2019 to 2023. We complemented the regression results with a strategic mapping framework that classifies firms by eco‐ and market efficiency and prescribes ESG strategies tailored to their competitive contexts. The DEA results show that firms perform better in terms of eco‐efficiency than market efficiency, with significant variations across regions and firm sizes. The regression results show that the impact of ESG is conditional: In highly competitive markets, environmental ESG improves market efficiency, whereas in concentrated markets, governance ESG enhances eco‐efficiency. Regional analysis confirms these dynamics: European firms in concentrated markets prioritize governance for legitimacy, whereas American and Asian/African firms in fragmented markets leverage environmental initiatives for differentiation. By positioning CI as a boundary condition, this study clarifies the conflicting evidence in the ESG‐performance literature and offers practical guidance for tailoring sustainability strategies to the market structure.