ESG Disclosure and Firm Value: Pillar-Specific Associations and the Conditional Roles of Board Accounting Expertise and Female Board Representation

Information from the abstract

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosure may have different valuation relevance across ESG pillars and governance contexts. This study examines the associations between environmental, social, and governance disclosure and firm value and whether board accounting expertise (BAE) and female board representation (FBR) moderate these associations. Using a balanced panel of 88 Thai listed non-financial companies from 2021 to 2025 (440 firm-year observations), the study employs random-effects regression with firm-clustered robust inference, supplemented by alternative panel, temporal, functional-form, and dynamic sensitivity analyses. The primary results show no significant direct associations between the three ESG disclosure pillars, BAE, or FBR and firm value. BAE does not significantly moderate any ESG disclosure–firm value association, while FBR does not moderate the environmental or governance disclosure associations. However, the SOC × FBR interaction is negative and significant in the primary contemporaneous specification. Marginal-effect analysis indicates that the SOC–firm value association declines as FBR increases. This interaction is specification-sensitive and is not confirmed in lagged or dynamic analyses. Overall, ESG disclosure value relevance may be pillar-specific and governance-contingent, while the focal interaction should not be interpreted as establishing a stable predictive or causal relationship.

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Related topics: Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting · Corporate Governance and Financial Management · Auditing, Earnings Management, Governance