The Disclosure Quality Issues of Integrated Report: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

While systematic literature review has contributed considerably to the emerging field of integrated reporting (IR), they have made limited contributions to IR quality. Assessing the quality of integrated reports is vital in showcasing the transparency and reliability of corporate information. Hence, this study reviewed the existing literature to identify the disclosure quality issues of integrated reports prepared by its adopters. Guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), this study systematically reviews 36 articles extracted from Scopus and Web of Science (WoS). Following thematic analysis, we identify four disclosure quality issues: adherence to the reporting framework, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosures, characteristics of reported information, and reporting form. The intense review reveals that the level of IR disclosure reported in previous studies is low. IR adopters principally ignore the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) framework's reporting requirements and the importance of a good reporting structure. The results of this study indicate the importance of examining reasons for the companies to hold some of the information while notifying the IIRC to reconsider their reporting framework or formulate an appropriate plan that assists adopters in preparing high-quality reports.

Keywords: Integrated reporting quality; disclosure quality issues; integrated reports; systematic literature review; IIRC framework