Original Research

Corporate social responsibility reporting by South African mining companies: Evidence of legitimacy theory

S. Dube, W. Maroun
South African Journal of Business Management | Vol 48, No 1 | a17 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/sajbm.v48i1.17 | © 2018 S. Dube, W. Maroun | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 15 March 2018 | Published: 31 March 2017

About the author(s)

S. Dube, University of the Witwatersrand, School of Accountancy, South Africa
W. Maroun, University of the Witwatersrand, School of Accountancy, South Africa

Full Text:

PDF (505KB)

Abstract

This paper offers evidence on the relevance of legitimacy theory for explaining changes in the frequency of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosures by South African platinum mining companies following violent strike action during 2012 at Marikana. The results show that all of the South African platinum mining companies provide additional information dealing specifically with the strike taking place at Marikana. This is more pronounced for the company directly involved in the incident. The research also finds evidence of a reaction to the social event by other companies in the South African Platinum Industry which alter the nature and extent of general CSR disclosures to maintain legitimacy. In this way, the study offers evidence in support of the relevance of legitimacy theory for explaining changes in CSR reporting. The findings of this study complement existing research which has ignored the South African market. Although there has been some work on legitimacy theory in the context of environmental disclosure by South African companies, the study is the first to examine a significant social event using legitimacy theory as the frame of reference.

Keywords

No related keywords in the metadata.

Metrics

Total abstract views: 6489
Total article views: 4447

 

Crossref Citations

1. Social and Relationship Capital Disclosure, Business Model and Firm Value: A Comparative Study of Listed Companies in Kenya and South Africa
Samwel Bangara, Joshua Chesoli, Christopher Ngacho, Andrew Nyangau
International Journal of Accounting, Finance and Risk Management  vol: 9  issue: 3  first page: 79  year: 2024  
doi: 10.11648/j.ijafrm.20240903.12

2. Challenges associated with sustainability accounting and reporting practices: a legitimacy perspective
Katariina Juusola, Reem Srouji
International Journal of Law and Management  vol: 65  issue: 1  first page: 64  year: 2023  
doi: 10.1108/IJLMA-06-2022-0113

3. Components of integrated thinking: Evidence from South African listed companies
Dusan Ecim
South African Journal of Business Management  vol: 55  issue: 1  year: 2024  
doi: 10.4102/SAJBM.v55i1.4080

4. Do companies benefit from publishing sustainability-integrated reports? Evidence from the United Arab Emirates
Rihab Grassa, Roufayda ElHout, Rashed Rafiee, Omar Yousuf Hassan, Saqer Humaid AL Suwaidi
Management & Sustainability: An Arab Review  vol: 5  issue: 1  first page: 1  year: 2026  
doi: 10.1108/MSAR-05-2024-0032

5. Evaluating the quality of carbon disclosures
Panayis Pitrakkos, Warren Maroun
Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal  vol: 11  issue: 3  first page: 553  year: 2019  
doi: 10.1108/SAMPJ-03-2018-0081

6. Understanding the performance of Chinese high-tech industry and technological innovations on Africa CSR practices
Oluwole Nurudeen Omonijo, Yunsheng Zhang
Environment, Development and Sustainability  vol: 28  issue: 1  first page: 1735  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1007/s10668-024-05033-2

7. Evaluating the temporal dimension of legitimisation strategies
Warren Maroun
Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management  vol: 15  issue: 3  first page: 282  year: 2018  
doi: 10.1108/QRAM-01-2017-0001

8. A review of biodiversity reporting by the South African seafood industry
Kieran Usher, Warren Maroun
South African Journal of Economic and Management Sciences  vol: 21  issue: 1  year: 2018  
doi: 10.4102/sajems.v21i1.1959

9. Environmental, Social and Governance Performance of Chinese Multinationals: A Comparison of State- and Non-State-Owned Enterprises
Fahad Khalid, Juncheng Sun, Guanhua Huang, Chih-Yi Su
Sustainability  vol: 13  issue: 7  first page: 4020  year: 2021  
doi: 10.3390/su13074020

10. Application of principles from the International < IR > Framework for including sustainability disclosures within South African integrated reports
Shelly Herbert, Mark Graham
South African Journal of Accounting Research  vol: 35  issue: 1  first page: 42  year: 2021  
doi: 10.1080/10291954.2020.1778828

11. Theoretical frameworks applied in integrated reporting and sustainability reporting research
Liya Lakhani, Shelly Herbert
South African Journal of Economic and Management Sciences  vol: 25  issue: 1  year: 2022  
doi: 10.4102/sajems.v25i1.4427

12. Sustainability Reporting in Cambodia: Challenges and Prospects
Edman Padilla Flores
Journal of Accounting, Finance, Economics, and Social Sciences  vol: 8  issue: 2  first page: 11  year: 2023  
doi: 10.62458/jafess.160224.8(2)11-22

13. Sustaining the mining industry through the lens of corporate social responsibility: A review research
Sanchita Bansal, Shifali Singh, Priya Nangia, Nisha Chanaliya, Dariusz Sala
Resources Policy  vol: 99  first page: 105387  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2024.105387

14. Disclosure of the six capitals in strategy, risk and performance sections: Evidence from South Africa
Amy C.R. Steenkamp, Warren Maroun, Nirupa Padia, Dusan Ecim
South African Journal of Business Management  vol: 56  issue: 1  year: 2025  
doi: 10.4102/sajbm.v56i1.4719

15. Business climate risk management: international perspectives and strategic determinants
Daniel Kouloukoui, Sonia Maria da Silva Gomes, Felipe Andrade Torres, Ednildo Andrade Torres
Environment, Development and Sustainability  vol: 27  issue: 2  first page: 4683  year: 2023  
doi: 10.1007/s10668-023-04094-z

16. Navigating uncharted territory: exploring the drivers of climate-related financial disclosures in South Africa
Rupert Vermaas, Abdul Latif Alhassan, Bomikazi Zeka
Qualitative Research in Financial Markets  first page: 1  year: 2026  
doi: 10.1108/QRFM-05-2025-0137

17. Défis et stratégies de légitimation d’une organisation temporaire : étude de cas d’un projet de conception d’une application mobile en e-santé
Blandine Chapel, Roxana Ologeanu-Taddei, Anne-Sophie Cases, Maurice Hayot
Systèmes d'information & management  vol: Volume 27  issue: 1  first page: 67  year: 2022  
doi: 10.3917/sim.221.0067

18. Evaluating the resilience of CSR practices in South African listed companies surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic (2017–2022)
Phathutshedzo Lemana, Reon Matemane, Maatabudi Mokabane
Discover Sustainability  vol: 7  issue: 1  year: 2026  
doi: 10.1007/s43621-026-03018-x

19. Applying legitimacy theory to understand sustainability reporting behaviour within South African integrated reports
Shelly Herbert, Mark Graham
South African Journal of Accounting Research  vol: 36  issue: 2  first page: 147  year: 2022  
doi: 10.1080/10291954.2021.1918481

20. Comparative Analysis of the Dominant Themes in CSR Reporting Discourse in Bangladesh: A Structured Literature Review
Melita Mehjabeen, Tanisha Bukth
GATR Accounting and Finance Review  vol: 5  issue: 1  first page: 1  year: 2020  
doi: 10.35609/afr.2020.5.1(1)

21. Can innovation affect the relationship between Environmental, Social, and Governance issues and financial performance? Empirical evidence from the STOXX200 index
Federica Doni, Marco Fiameni
Business Strategy and the Environment  vol: 33  issue: 2  first page: 546  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1002/bse.3500

22. Sustainability reporting in Africa: A systematic review and agenda for future research
Monday Nweke Igwe, Saleh F. A. Khatib, Ayman Hassan Bazhair
Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management  vol: 30  issue: 5  first page: 2081  year: 2023  
doi: 10.1002/csr.2494

23. Factors influencing the level of environmental disclosures in sustainability reports: Case of climate risk disclosure by Brazilian companies
Daniel Kouloukoui, Ângelo Marcio Oliveira Sant'Anna, Sônia Maria da Silva Gomes, Marcia Mara de Oliveira Marinho, Pieter de Jong, Asher Kiperstok, Ednildo Andrade Torres
Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management  vol: 26  issue: 4  first page: 791  year: 2019  
doi: 10.1002/csr.1721

24. The relationship between employee-related disclosures and working days lost because of labour strikes
Thando Loliwe
South African Journal of Business Management  vol: 56  issue: 1  year: 2025  
doi: 10.4102/sajbm.v56i1.4639

25. Hypocrisy and legitimacy in the aftermath of a scandal: an experimental study of stakeholder perceptions of nonfinancial disclosure
Marco Bellucci, Diletta Acuti, Lorenzo Simoni, Giacomo Manetti
Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal  vol: 34  issue: 9  first page: 182  year: 2021  
doi: 10.1108/AAAJ-01-2021-5113