Recent scientific publications

The Global Reporting Initiative (hereafter the GRI), a pioneer organization focusing on sustainability reporting standards, introduced a new standard dedicated to tax reporting in 2019 (GRI 207: Tax), supporting tax disclosure as a material CSR issue. Accordingly, we examine tax disclosure as framed by GRI 207. The literature on CSR reporting shows that companies increase CSR disclosures to mitigate negative attention to CSR issues. Based on this literature, we hypothesize that tax disclosure, framed by GRI 207, is positively associated with firms' reputational risks (RRs). Our sample is composed of the 120 largest listed companies on the French financial market that are the most exposed to scrutiny. The data are collected for the year 2019. We use linear regressions to identify the determinants of tax disclosure strategies. As expected, greater RRs are associated with higher tax disclosure. According to the GRI 207 items on disclosure, three strategies are identified with reference to the CSR pyramid by Carroll (1991). We find that reputational risks, as measured as the presence of tax havens and financial controversies, are associated with distinct tax disclosure strategies. The issuance of a disclosure standard is not a guaranty of greater transparency. To our knowledge, our study is the first to examine tax disclosure strategies framed by the most recent standard of GRI 207 as part of CSR reporting. We provide several implications and directions for future research.

Purpose - Since the withdrawal of IFRIC 3 in 2005, there has been a regulatory freeze in accounting for emission rights that contrasts with the international momentum of climate-related financial disclosures. This paper explores how different narratives and institutional dynamics explain the failure to produce guidance on accounting for emission rights.

Design/methodology/approach - This paper mobilizes the notion of field-configuring events to examine a sequence of six events between 2003 and 2016, including four public consultations and two dialogues between standard setters. The paper presents a qualitative analysis of documents produced in this space that investigates how different practices and narratives configured the field's positions, agenda, and meaning systems.

Findings - Accounting for emission rights was gradually decoupled from climate change and carbon markets, relegated to the research pipeline, and forgotten. The obstacles that the IASB and EFRAG found in presenting themselves as central in the recurring events, the excess of representations, and the increasingly technical and abstract debates eroded the 2003 momentum for regulation, making the different initiatives to revitalise the project vulnerable and open to scrutiny. Lukes (2021) refers to nondecision-making to express
that some issues are suffocated before they are expressed.

Originality/value - The regulation of accounting for emission rights, an area that has received scant attention in the literature, provides some insights into the different narrative mechanisms that, materialising in specific times and spaces, draw regulatory attention to particular accounting issues, which are problematised and, eventually, forgotten. This study also illustrates that identifying interests is problematic as actors shift from alternative positions over a long period. The case examined also raises some doubts about the previous effectiveness of international standard setters in dealing with matters of connectivity between the environment and finance, as is the case for accounting for emissions rights.

In France, certain companies are required by law to carry out an audit of their corporate information. There is a virtual monopoly of the accounting profession on the corporate social responsibility (CSR) market, particularly the Big 4, considered to be Professional Service Firms (PSFs). The study draws on the sociological theory of professions and legitimacy to analyze the SV market. In this research, we focus on strategies for legitimizing VS missions. We carried out a discursive analysis of the promotion of these missions on verifiers' websites. The results highlight different strategies for promoting the performance of SV assignments, aimed at legitimizing their new skills and which may be related to different forms of knowledge.

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether companies 'walk the talk' when it comes to corporate governance and diversity. Using a sample of French listed companies in the years 2012 and 2021, we analyze i) diversity in board composition and ii) CEO disclosure about diversity in their annual report letter. Despite growing societal pressure to increase diversity in organizations, our results show that over a ten-year period, companies have made almost no progress in terms of age and ethnic diversity of board members, while we observe more diversity in terms of gender. When it comes to the CEO letter, which sets the strategic direction for the company, we still observe little mention of diversity. Moreover, most of the images associated with the letter present a portrait of a white, Western, male CEO. Overall, our findings help to challenge the current organizational rhetoric about diversity in corporate governance by showing that diversity at the top is still limited.

The literature does little to explore the characteristics of a management control system (MCS) capable of connecting sometimes contradictory institutional logics. Despite the divergence of values and time horizons between the water company and its organizing authority, intervention research shows that it is possible to develop an inter-organizational MCS that integrates multiple logics.

In the water sector, a number of major cities are putting an end to public service delegations (DSP) entrusted to private operators and opting for a return to public service management, which may seem surprising in view of the new public management advocating the private sector model. In a "natural monopoly" water sector marked by high levels of moral hazard, information asymmetries and uncertainty, public-private partnerships still raise serious governance issues, both theoretically and empirically, despite increasingly stringent regulations. The three-year research-intervention carried out in a new public service authority helped to set up steering tools. The wide range of data collected (documents, interviews, participant observations, etc.) enables us to analyze micro-changes in governance. The choices made contribute to the development of multilateral and hybrid governance. The "régie personnalisée" status favors controlled autonomy and plural representation, including citizen-users. The close relationship between the company and the organizing authority facilitates greater sharing of values, information and knowledge. Negotiation of the agreement on objectives results in a mix of control, trust and reciprocity. This complex tangle of relationships, a delicate balance between hierarchy, exchange and cooperation, ultimately leads to more effective governance.

The need to more collaboratively measure the impact of health research and to do so from multidimensional perspectives has been acknowledged. A scorecard was developed as part of the Collective Research Impact Framework (CRIF), to engage stakeholders in the assessment of the impacts of health research and innovations. The purpose of this study was to describe the developmental process of the MULTI-ACT Master Scorecard (MSC) and how it can be used as a workable tool for collectively assessing future responsible research and innovation measures.

In this paper, we reflect and provide insights on the environmental implications of post-COVID-19 economic recoveries. More specifically, we highlight the connection(s) between the environment and the COVID-19 crisis, in particular the intertwined links between Mother Nature and the virus. We then raise some concerns about the 'illusionary' positive and negative effects of the crisis on the environment before evoking some past lessons about crisis management and recovery. We contend that the current accounting and accountability mechanisms employed in economic stimulus programs, as well as traditional environmental accounting approaches, are inadequate and limiting to achieve long-term sustainability change. The paper concludes by offering accounting practitioners and researchers some possibilities to take a step forward and develop new understandings of social and environmental value consistent with ecological principles and sustainable development-and hope that these reflections will contribute to a broader debate on the role of accounting for sustainable development in the Anthropocene.

The purpose of this study is to provide insights into how accounting and accountability systems can contribute to transforming metrics used thus far in research performance evaluation. New metrics are needed to increase research impact on the challenges addressed by science. In particular, we document and reflect on accounting transformations towards responsible research and innovation (RRI). The study draws on the European H2020 MULTI-ACT research project that focuses on the development of a collective research impact framework in the area of health research. We document, analyse and report our engagement in this project, which also included research funders, patient organizations, health researchers, accounting practitioners and health care providers. Drawing on RRI, Mode 2 knowledge production and accounting performativity, we inquire into the potential of accounting technologies to foster knowledge production and increase research impact. The study shows how the engagement of accounting with other disciplines enables the development of new and relevant forms of research impact assessment. We document how accounting can be mobilised for the development of new forms of research impact assessment (i.e. indicators that evaluate key accountability dimensions to promote RRI) and how it helps to overcome the difficulties that can emerge during this process. We also show how the design of multiple accountabilities' indicators, although chronically partial, produced a generative interrogation and discussion about how to translate RRI to research assessment in a workable setting, and the pivotal role of certain circumstances (e.g. the presence of authoritative actors) that appear during the knowledge production process for creating these generative opportunities.

This contribution identifies regulatory developments in the field of extra-financial verification. Societal verification is a process whereby an independent third-party organization (ISO) verifies companies' extra-financial information and draws up a report containing its conclusions on the quality and reliability of this information. This verification practice is bound to expand and evolve with the new European Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which aims to introduce more detailed extra-financial reporting applicable to a greater number of companies. 

n this research, the authors are interested in strategies for legitimizing the SA missions of independent third-party bodies. Assurance providers use their website to promote their

missions. How do independent third-party bodies legitimize their assurance mission in a regulatory context relating to European Directive 2014/95/EU?

The authors carried out a discursive analysis of the promotion of SA missions on independent third-party body websites. A content analysis was performed on the collected textual data.

The results highlight different strategies for promoting the implementation of assurance missions aimed at legitimizing their new skills. Nevertheless, it appears that the providers make very little reference to the quality of nonfinancial information as the objective of SA missions.

Climate Reporting Related to the TCFD Framework: An Exploration of the Air Transport Sector

In recent years, international institutions have fostered initiatives to consider climate-related issues, and a Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) was created as an extension of the Carbon Disclosure Project and Global Reporting Initiative standards. This study examines how the air transport sector complies with the TCFD framework, which is considered to be a vehicle that translates scientific knowledge from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) about climate change. Relying on environmental criteria, our sample represents more than 65% of the total emissions of the sector. The disclosures on climate-related issues of twenty-four airlines are analysed within the period 2015-2018. Although climate reporting increased from 2015 to 2018 (before and after the issuance of the framework), our study documents that its compliance with TCFD recommendations is poor, specifically concerning the core element of strategy. Our contribution is twofold. First, we note that the climate change mitigation and adaptation policies disclosed in the reports could help close the information gap as desired by the company's stakeholders, but they are currently insufficient. Second, the normative pressures exerted by the TCFD align with the coercive pressures identified in some regions of the world and are promoting the construction of climate reporting.

Climate Reporting Related to the TCFD Framework: An Exploration of the Air Transport Sector

In recent years, international institutions have fostered initiatives to consider climate-related issues, and a Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) was created as an extension of the Carbon Disclosure Project and Global Reporting Initiative standards. This study examines how the air transport sector complies with the TCFD framework, which is considered to be a vehicle that translates scientific knowledge from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) about climate change. Relying on environmental criteria, our sample represents more than 65% of the total emissions of the sector. The disclosures on climate-related issues of twenty-four airlines are analysed within the period 2015-2018. Although climate reporting increased from 2015 to 2018 (before and after the issuance of the framework), our study documents that its compliance with TCFD recommendations is poor, specifically concerning the core element of strategy. Our contribution is twofold. First, we note that the climate change mitigation and adaptation policies disclosed in the reports could help close the information gap as desired by the company's stakeholders, but they are currently insufficient. Second, the normative pressures exerted by the TCFD align with the coercive pressures identified in some regions of the world and are promoting the construction of climate reporting.

Accounting for Carbon Emission Allowances: An Empirical Analysis in the EU ETS Phase 3

This investigation studies the accounting treatment of the carbon emission allowances of EU Emissions Trading System participants to explore whether the auctioning allocation system implemented in 2013 led to changes in accounting practices. This investigation adds to Allini, Giner, and Caldarelli (2018. "Opening the Black Box of Accounting for Greenhouse Gas Emissions: The Different Views of Institutional Bodies and Firms." Journal of Cleaner Production 172: 2195-2205.) by performing a comparative study of how emission allowances are recorded in the 2011 and 2016 financial statements of a large sample of the highest emitters in the system that operate in eight different industries. We also update the analysis of the role of local standards in shaping carbon accounting practices in a context characterized by the lack of IFRS prescription. We found that auctioning did not modify accounting practices as they continue to be 'messy' and often absent. The high level of non-disclosure and the prevailing use of the 'net method' conceal the burden of allowances from users of financial statements. Additionally, we report that firms' carbon accounting practices are more aligned with their local standard when it allows a limited representation of the financial impact of allowances. Therefore, current accounting practices are far from enabling an adequate assessment of the financial impact and risks resulting from carbon markets.

The limits of environmental accounting disclosure: enforcement of regulations, standards and interpretative strategies

The objective of this study is to provide insights into insiders' perspectives on environmental accounting disclosures, which is relatively under-investigated. Based on insights from key managers, we provide information on company decisions and practices related to the data disclosed in annual reports. More specifically, we explore how regulation guidance affects and shapes disclosure strategies.

The double narrative of a multi-actor supply chain: between performativity and local embedding

Organizations produce narratives by telling stories about their management and their past. The notion of organizational narrative can be used to designate the fruit of a polyphony of individual discourses emanating from different actors within the organization (Rivière, 2006). The functions of discourse in management science are diverse (Jacquot and Point, 2000), and it is recognized that some can be "performative" in the sense that they have the ability to achieve what they describe (Austin, 1962; Boje, 1991,1995). Particularly in management, theory is said to have the power to produce the reality it is supposed to explain, leading to self-fulfilling prophecies (Callon, 1998). In this context, we might consider that part of managerial practice consists in producing discourses that in themselves constitute action, and that management tools are an artifact of this discourse. The evocation of tools conveying rationality within the discourse would thus make the decisions taken appear rational and legitimate (Cabantous and Gond 2012). Organizational members, like film actors, perform a storytelling performance that forms a narrative of the organization (Boje, 1991, 1995). These actors come to terms with the performance criteria imposed on them and cobble together an apparently satisfactory solution, as certain accounting practices may facilitate the compromise (Chenhall et al. 2013). The study of multiple discourses within organizations about the same decision should reveal the paradoxes between the rational recommendations implemented and the motivations and goals pursued by individuals.

2Whilethe study of the specific influence of the social and institutional embedding of actors is not new to the field of accounting and control (Hopwood and Miller, 1994; Chapman et al. 2009), to our knowledge it has not been explicitly explored in the context of multi-actor supply chain optimization (MALS). A supply chain is defined as a set of three sub-systems: the supply of materials and components, production management and the physical distribution of products (Paché, 2006). This chain can be extended to several actors, i.e. several organizations. A growing number of companies are resorting to this mode of inter-organizational coordination, and the interest in studying managerial discourse in this context merits diversifying the angles of observation. Indeed, a prolific literature focusing on the management control instrumentation of CLMAs emphasizes that certain principals benefit from subcontracting and quasi-integrating their logistics service providers in order to reduce overall costs and increase the value created for the end customer (Cooper and Slagmulder, 2004; Shank and Govindarajan, 1995, Fabbe-costes 2002). Chain optimization would thus be based on the selection of service providers with competitive advantages in functions neglected by the pivot firm. This instrumental reading provides the arguments for our research in "rational choice theory" (Cabantous and Gond, 2012).

3Thequestion posed in this research concerns the role of cost discourse in legitimizing the inter-organizational control implemented by the pivot of the integrated supply chain studied. How does this pivotal firm justify its selection of logistics service providers to its head office, particularly with regard to the distribution of costs between partners? How do local directors/managers justify the way things work, particularly as regards the costs borne by each partner? This approach, centered on the study of narratives emanating from several players in a multi-company monograph, is intended to shed further light on the literature on control in integrated supply chains.

4Thefirst part of this article presents the conceptual and theoretical framework of this research. The second part outlines the qualitative research methodology used. The third part presents the empirical results of the monograph. The final section offers elements for discussion.

Does the level of assurance statement on environmental disclosure affect investor assessment? An experimental study

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine whether different levels of assurance statements of environmental disclosures affect investment choices in the French context where environmental assurance was voluntary until 2012 and became regulated and mandatory since then.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted an experiment during the voluntary context - which represents the vast majority of countries - on a sample of 108 financial analysts.

Findings

Environmental disclosure has a positive impact on investment recommendations. More surprisingly, financial analysts are less likely to give recommendations in favor of a company that displays environmental disclosure with low-level assurance than for a company with no assurance statement at all.

Research limitations/implications

When assurance is voluntary and there are at least two levels, this study results suggest that firms should avoid selecting the lowest level of assurance because it negatively affects investor decisions. From this perspective, firms should devote sufficient effort and resources to obtain at least Level 2 environmental disclosure assurance.

Practical implications

Given the recommendations made by financial analysts, the authors could expect that firms may prefer to engage in a higher level of assurance or to provide no assurance rather than minimize their financial efforts and resources to select a lower level of voluntary assurance regarding environmental disclosure.

Social implications

This study has implications for the voluntary assurance practices of environmental disclosure and can provide support to regulators to promote higher standards in environmental assurance. It documents the relevance to increase the level of requested assurance for environmental disclosure.

Originality/Value

To the best of the authors' knowledge, very few studies have examined the additional effect of assurance on environmental disclosure in investors' decisions. The experiment is conducted with financial analysts in the context of voluntary assurance.

How does media attention on agri-food issues influence corporate social responsibility reporting? The case of Bonduelle

The aim of this article is to examine the contribution of Media Agenda Setting theory to the study of corporate social reporting. A monograph of the Bonduelle company is carried out over a 10-year period. A comparison of press articles dealing with societal issues specific to the agri-food sector, with Bonduelle's societal reporting, reveals on the one hand their overall convergence, but on the other hand differentiated communication strategies.

Historical costs vs. fair values for measuring accounting income? Comparative arguments put forward by sales professionals

In 2011, France's accounting regulatory body, the Autorité des Normes Comptables (ANC), launched a call for research projects on the theme of "defining and representing performance". The call states that "the objective is to provide conceptual foundations and arguments to enable the ANC to weigh more effectively in current and future international debates" (ANC 2011, p. 1). The central question posed in this appeal is that of the ability of accounting to satisfactorily represent an entity's performance through the accounting result. Taking as its point of comparison the international accounting model (IFRS), which is said to be based on an approach that favours fair values and gives primacy to the balance sheet, the French accounting regulator echoes "the increasingly strong demands [that] are being expressed to give priority to representing the performance of economic activity over the medium and long term, by rehabilitating the role of the income statement and recording in these accounts only those results that can be considered as definitively acquired" (ANC 2011, p. 1). Thus, broadly speaking, there seem to be two opposing logics: a dualist approach (a single balance sheet providing both the value of assets and the result of corporate activity), which would be inseparable from the use of fair values, or a monist approach (a single balance sheet at historical cost to obtain the right result, i.e. the realized result), which would a contrario lead to the exclusive use of historical values.

The fact that the accounting regulator has put such an issue on the agenda marks the revival of a debate that has remained unresolved for several decades and has taken various forms. At the heart of the debate, between a dualist and a monist approach, is the question of who the accounting information system should be used for, and what its missions should be. For whom should the accounts be drawn up in the first place? For what purposes? And which conventions should be used? What role does the concept of prudence play in this choice? As these questions do not necessarily call for a single answer, it is important to bear in mind that accounting is a historically-dated social construct, and that the model underpinning a frame of reference can be neither timeless nor universal (Capron 2005, p. 6-7). Thus, to express the need to define the type of performance that accounting should reflect, and to associate measurement conventions with it, is tantamount to expressing the need to set the objectives that we wish to assign to it in a given jurisdiction. According to Colasse (2006), it is the role of a conceptual framework to define the objectives assigned to accounting and set out the means by which these objectives are to be achieved. The question raised by the French regulator concerning the notion of performance and its measurement by financial statements is thus, in our view, implicitly linked to that of the accounting conceptual framework. Conceptually, then, the objectives assigned to the accounting system determine the type of performance it is able to reflect, and this implies the use of appropriate valuation conventions. However, neither French accounting standards nor IFRS explicitly define the performance that accounting is intended to represent (Pierrot 2006)[1]According to the French General Chart of Accounts, "accounting is a system of organization.... As a result, a certain latitude of interpretation is possible. Since the adoption of IFRS in Europe, a number of authors have supported the idea that, by making greater use of fair values, the international framework has de facto transformed corporate performance, since measurement and concept are intrinsically dependent on each other (Chiapello 2005; Richard 2005a; Colasse 2006; Giordano-Spring and Lacroix 2007). Thus, "the new measure of performance risks reflecting as much the movements of the environment and financial markets as what is attributable to the work of producing goods and services as such" (Chiapello 2005, p. 129)[2]Simplifying the reasoning: we must first present a.... This perspective is deemed to meet the needs of the "user of the accounts - provider of financial capital", who is the target audience favoured by the international standard-setter. The call from the French standard-setter suggests that a trade-off between fair value and historical cost will mark the choice of a conceptual approach, and that by rejecting a fair value model, the monistic or "income statement" approach will be rehabilitated. These two proposals deserve to be examined from the point of view of the professionals targeted by these choices, i.e. the producers and users of financial statements.

There are two main motivations behind this research. Firstly, since the accounting regulator is the spokesperson for a social demand for an approach that favours a realized result that excludes unrealized capital gains, it is important to identify the arguments from professional practice that justify such a position. What are the arguments developed by professionals in favor of such an approach? Secondly, given that accounting is a system that is institutionally embedded in society, the aim of this research is to bring out the priority expectations expressed by accounting professionals concerning the contribution of financial statements to the assessment of a company's performance, and thus contribute to the questions raised by the French standard-setter. For the future, should we exclude the systematic use of fair values to draw up a performance statement? What type of performance should be represented in financial statements? What are the desirable avenues for improvement? Like Richard (2009, p. 1146), for whom "an intelligent strategy [...] would consist in joining forces rather than organizing an accounting confrontation", we need to bypass the simplistic opposition between IFRS and French standards in order to find ways of overcoming it and make proposals.

The primary objective of our research is therefore, in response to the ANC's call for projects, to understand the arguments developed by accounting professionals in favor of including, or rejecting, unrealized capital gains in the determination of accounting income. With this objective in mind, we take as our starting point the way in which asset valuation conventions are conceptually argued through accounting normative theories. The introduction of the concept of prudence and the link between profit distribution and profit calculation are then considered as key determinants of the empirical accounting models conveyed by French and international accounting standards.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 31 professionals (producers and users of accounting and financial information - henceforth ICF) working in for-profit organizations and familiar with the PCG and IFRS standards. They were subjected to a double content analysis: an automated lexical analysis using Alceste software and a manual thematic analysis. The main results of this qualitative research reveal four distinct classes of discourse representative of the interviewees' professional positions. First and foremost, the similarities in language and concerns between certain professions transcend the ICF sender/user divide. Secondly, it emerges that historical cost and fair value are not opposable accounting models, but complementary ones in the eyes of the professionals interviewed.

The contribution of this article is twofold. Firstly, the qualitative study offers an original understanding of how producers and users of financial statements perceive the value of using fair values as an alternative to maintaining the historical cost convention. Secondly, we are formulating proposals for the attention of the standard-setter in response to its call for projects.

The article is divided into four sections. Following this introduction, the first section sets out the two theoretical approaches that underpin the opposition evoked by the French regulator. The second argues the methodological approach. The third section presents the results of the analysis of interviews conducted with professionals in the financial sector. The final section offers elements for discussion and conclusion.

The Normativity and Legitimacy of CSR Disclosure: Evidence from France

In 2001, France became one of the few countries to require corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting through its Nouvelles Régulations Économiques #2001-420 (NRE). However, initial compliance with the statute was low, a factor implying the law lacked normativity. In this exploratory study, we attempt to determine whether there is movement toward normativity by examining the change in CSR disclosure from 2004 in comparison to 2010 for a sample of 81 publicly traded French firms. We measure both the space and the quality of CSR disclosures, including in the latter a measure based on informational quality attributes as discussed by the International Accounting Standards Board, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, and the Global Reporting Initiative. We find significant increases in the space allocated to CSR disclosure, as well as some evidence of increased quality; although the informational quality of the disclosures remains quite low and fewer firms are including negative performance information in their reports. Finally, we document that differences in disclosure space and quality in 2004 appeared to be associated with legitimacy-based variables and that those relations remain largely unchanged in 2010. As such, it appears that the NRE's goals of increased transparency remain unmet.

This Special Issue originates from the 2nd French CSEAR (Centre for Social and Environmental Accounting Research) Conference. The conference took place in the Institut des Sciences de l'Entreprise et du Management (ISEM) at the Université Montpellier 1 and under the aegis of the AFC (French Accounting Association). This second CSEAR France conference welcomed close to 90 participants who came from 12 different countries (Australia, Canada, Egypt, Finland, France, Italy, Japan, Portugal, Spain, Tunisia, the UK and the USA). The event attracted 94 submissions and 65 papers were presented, of which 25 were in French and 40 in English. There were two key moments that brought some very interesting and relevant insights into the discussions-a plenary session by Professor Den Patten (Illinois State University, USA) and an editors' panel composed of Professor Christine Cooper (University of Strathclyde, UK), Co-Editor-in-Chief of the journal hosting and featuring this Special Issue-CriticalPerspectives on Accounting, and Professor Gérald Naro, Co-Editor-in-Chief of the French journal Finance Contrôle Stratégie.

This Special Issue includes seven articles that explore - from different perspectives - the "paths" that organizations take to build a discourse aimed at the general-public regarding their societal responsibilities.