Business Strategy and Environmental Information Disclosure Quality: Empirical Evidence from Chinese Heavy Pollution Listed Firms

Abstract

Using the data of listed firms in China’s A-share heavy pollution industry between 2008 and 2020, based on organizational theory, this study examines the impact of prospector-type firms and defender-type firms on environmental information disclosure quality. Empirical evidence shows that prospector-type firms reduce environmental information disclosure quality, compared with defender-type firms. After a series of robustness tests, the conclusion is still valid. This paper tests the impact mechanism of business strategy on environmental information disclosure quality and finds that financing constraints play a mediating effect in the relationship between business strategy and environmental information disclosure quality. This paper enriches and expands the literature in the field of influencing factors of environmental information disclosure quality and economic consequences of business strategy. At the same time, the conclusion of this paper has important reference significance for regulators to formulate policies to improve environmental information disclosure quality according to the heterogeneity of business strategy.