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The literature has dealt with the relationship between board characteristics (BC) and firm performance (FP) on a large scale. However, it yielded inconsistent results. Thus, this paper aims to examine the indirect relationship between BC and FP through the mediating role of the capital structure (CS).

This study used a sample of 528 non-financial companies listed on Bursa Malaysia from 2015 to 2019. Also, a two-step system generalised method of moments estimation technique was applied.

The results show that board diversity and the frequency of board meetings positively affect financial performance, and it is negatively influenced by board turnover, size and independence. Also, the results indicate a positive relationship between the independence of the board and all CS variables. Importantly, the findings support the policy-setting role of the board of directors where CS (measured by total debt and short-term debt) suppresses some governance mechanisms’ detrimental effect on FP. Hence, the board of directors, apart from the monitoring function, introduce various policies (financial and non-financial) that enhance the overall performance of companies.

These results are consistent with the agency’s perspective that management practices in selecting the optimal capital reduce agency costs and improve performance. The findings contribute to developing a broader theoretical framework that accounts for the policy-setting role of the board of directors. The current study model of corporate governance offers insight for policymakers into the role of corporate governance other than monitoring functions in organisations and how CS should be taken into consideration with corporate governance and FP association.

This paper aims to investigate whether the sustainability disclosure with the environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects has an impact on the financial performance represented by Tobin’s Q, return on assets (ROA) and return on equity indices in the Levant countries for the period 2012–2019, which was a period of turmoil and political repercussions that affected the countries of the region.

Using the content analysis technique, the data was collected from 124 nonfinancial companies from Levant countries (Jordan, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon), and 883 observations were collected as panel data for the research analysis.

The findings indicate that the environmental, social and ESG collective performance maximizes financial performance, while the governance performance influences ROA only. This suggests that companies pay great attention to various stakeholders, mainly external. Maximizing stakeholder value remains an optimal strategy to achieve the company’s financial goals. Thus, improving the disclosure levels of nonfinancial performance in the capital markets will improve the chances of growth of the financial performance indicators of companies.

The study provided insights about the ESG role and its impact on the financial performance of companies in a less explored context by previous literature, namely, the Levant.

This study seeks to investigate the impact of board attributes on environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance, along with exploring the mediating role of carbon emissions in this relationship.

To address this objective, the panel data approach was used to analyze the data were collected from 1,621 European companies from 2017 to 2021.

This study shows that board gender diversity, audit committee independence, expertise and board meeting attendance help enhance ESG performance. On the contrary, board size and composition do not affect ESG performance. The findings also showed that board gender diversity, audit committee independence, expertise and board meeting attendance are negatively related to carbon emissions performance. However, board size is related positively to carbon emissions performance. This indicates that the larger boards of directors may have diverse experiences that enhance the environmental performance of companies. Furthermore, the finding showed companies that contribute to lowering carbon emissions are more willing to improve their ESG performance. Also, carbon emissions mediate the relationship between the board's attributes and ESG performance.

The study's results have significant implications for firm managers in enhancing the efficiency of board decisions in determining environmental practices that matter to various groups of stakeholders. In addition, this study provides valuable input to regulators and policymakers regarding strengthening the regulations and controlling tools that enhance environmental performance.

Climate change is one of our time’s most pressing global environmental challenges, and environmental innovation is critical to addressing it. This study aims to investigate the relationship between environmental innovation and carbon emission in the healthcare industry in Europe while also examining the moderating role of environmental governance.

Data for this study were collected from publicly listed healthcare companies in ten European countries spanning the years 2012–2021. The selected countries encompassed Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The research encompassed all healthcare companies for which data were accessible, resulting in a comprehensive dataset comprising 1,210 companies. The authors collected data from multiple sources, including annual reports, the World Bank and Eikon databases, to ensure a robust and extensive dataset.

The results of this study indicate that environmental governance plays a significant moderating role in the relationship between environmental innovation and carbon emission within the healthcare sector in Europe, but when combined with high levels of environmental innovation, strong environmental governance leads to enhanced efforts to reduce carbon emissions. This combination also contributes to meeting the expectations of a broader range of stakeholders and maintaining legitimacy.

The study’s findings have practical implications for healthcare regulators, policymakers and various stakeholders. It underscores the importance of integrating solid environmental governance and innovation to address climate change challenges in the healthcare sector effectively. This integrated approach not only helps reduce carbon emissions but also contributes to achieving sustainable outcomes while satisfying a wider range of stakeholders.

This study adds to the existing body of knowledge by highlighting the significant role of environmental governance as a moderator in the relationship between environmental innovation and carbon emission in the healthcare industry. The research findings provide valuable insights for academics, practitioners and decision-makers, emphasizing the need to combine governance and innovation for sustainable outcomes in healthcare sectors.

This study aims to explore the impact of capital structure (CS), including total debts, short-term debt, long-term debt and total shareholder equity, on environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance in the context of Jordan.

To achieve the study’s objectives, the authors used the content analysis approach and the longitudinal data generated from the annual reports of 51 industrial companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange for the period 2012–2020.

The findings show that debt financing enhances ESG performance in all dimensions, while financing by equity did not affect ESG. Consequently, Jordanian companies’ managers are trying to reduce agency costs by investing in ESG activities. In addition, companies are focusing on debt financing instead of equity to achieve their financial as well as nonfinancial goals. This is because the opportunism of new shareholders will likely lead to a focus on maximizing their value at the expense of the broader group of stakeholders, and this will adversely affect companies’ ESG performance. Therefore, debt financing limits shareholder control.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first examination of the impact of CS financing choices on ESG performance. Thus, this study has important implications for the decisions of executives, policymakers, shareholders and lenders, as it enables them to better understand the linkage between CS and ESG.

This paper aims to investigate whether and how better corporate governance practices can lead to philanthropic behavior among companies in the UK. In particular, this study attempts to determine whether corporate governance quality in general, as well as its specific mechanisms, affects corporate giving.

The analysis is based on a sample of Financial Times Stock Exchange All-Share nonfinancial companies. Data on firm donations, including donations amount and donations intensity, were manually collected from companies’ annual reports for the period 2018–2020. This paper uses panel data models to examine the research hypotheses.

The results of this study indicate that both donations amount and donations intensity are positively associated with the practice of better corporate governance. Board independence is positively associated with donations amount, but not with the intensity of donations. Furthermore, board size, board gender diversity and the establishment of a corporate social responsibility (CSR) committee are likely to have a positive impact on the amount and the intensity of firms’ donations. However, neither the chief executive officer board membership nor the audit committee’s independence is related to the firm’s donations.

This study sheds light on specific governance factors that affect firm donations in the context of UK companies. This allows regulators and legislators to evaluate the donations activities in the country and issue more directives to reinforce corporate governance practices that support corporate donations. In addition, the findings of this study are considered crucial to investors who prefer investing in companies with significant CSR-related activities to improve the value relevance of their investments.

This study provides a shred of unique evidence on the impact of corporate governance practices on firms’ donations.

The current study dealt with the ownership structure effect as a potential determinant of the environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance disclosure in the Jordanian context.

Using the content analysis technique, data were collected and analyzed from a final sample of 51 annual reports of Jordanian industrial companies listed for 2012–2019.

The results show that foreign ownership and state ownership play a critical role in disclosing the ESG performance. Also, the board's independence plays an influential role in improving disclosure quality, enhancing family ownership in disclosure. It also limits the negative role of block holder ownership and managerial ownership on the ESG disclosure.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that deals with the role of ownership structure on the ESG disclosure level separately and collectively through the moderating role of board independence.

The present research conducts a thorough review of published literature relevant to earnings management (EM) practices in family firms (FFs), utilizing the Scopus database, intending to identify potential directions for future research.

Through a systematic review, this study focuses on identifying and summarizing trends in publications over the years, the journal outlets, geographical contexts, research methodologies, the temporal evolution of theories and the specific constructs under investigation.

Earlier empirical studies suggest that corporate governance enhances integrity and transparency in FFs, thereby reducing EM practices. Contrarily, compliance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) seems to offer managers more opportunities for convenient EM rather than restricting such practices. Notably, corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices do not appear to mitigate EM practices consistently. The literature, however, reveals inclusive results and areas requiring deeper exploration for more definitive results. For instance, certain corporate governance mechanisms, such as family-specific social and cultural business characteristics, subjective measures of family businesses, behavioral approaches to family owners' decision-making and directors' personal, psychological and social factors, remain largely untested. Additionally, there is a notable research gap concerning the relationship between IFRS, capital structure and EM.

This study’s contributions lie in its comprehensive literature review, identification of research trends and gaps, and its potential to guide future research endeavors in the domain of EM practices in FFs.

This paper aims to investigate the relationship between corporate profitability (CP) and effective tax rate (ETR) and to examine whether this relationship is moderated by board gender diversity (BGD).

The multivariate regression analysis was conducted to test the relationship between related variables. This study used sample of 70 Jordanian firms listed on the Amman Stock Exchanges for the period 2013 – 2020.

The results show a negative relationship between CP and ETR. Furthermore, the moderating variable BGD changes the strength and the sign, from a negative to a positive influence, of the relationship between CP and ETR.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is among the first that provides empirical evidence regarding the relationship between CP and ETR in the light of BGD. Further, this study provides new and important insights that are not evident from the previous literature.

This study aims to present a detailed investigation of Shariah audit research based on a systematic literature review.

A total of 53 studies were collected from the Scopus and Web of Science databases following a systematic methodology. These studies were analyzed and evaluated based on the theoretical perspective, geographical distribution, research settings and themes background.

The findings indicate an increase in the literature on Shariah auditing over time, especially in the Malaysian context, with a dearth of research in other contexts and institutions (Takaful). It has been also revealed that the existing literature is still unclear about the effectiveness and consequences of effective Shariah auditing, pointing the need for more work on these areas. The authors outline opportunities for future Shariah auditing research.

The synthesized findings are helpful for policymakers and managers to understand better how research in Shariah auditing is developing and how to translate research findings into practice. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research to comprehensively synthesize the literature on this topic and identify the potential opportunities for future research directions.