An Analysis of Disclosure of SER and Stakeholders' Perceptions: the Case of Jordan

This PhD thesis is an exploratory study examining the practices of Corporate Social and Environmental Disclosure (CSED) in the annual reports of the manufacturing sector in Jordan over the period 2010-2012. The study is based mainly on empirical investigation of the level and patterns of CSED practices by 66 industrial companies listed in the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE). In addition, it focuses on analysing determinants of the practices of CSED by firms in the manufacturing sector. This study is concerned with the common area between functionalist and interpretive paradigms. Therefore, both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed as a mixed practical approach to collect, analyse and interpret the required data. Specifically, the disclosure index was selected as an appropriate approach to extract quantitative data regarding CSED practices. Additionally, semi-structured interviews were used as a qualitative method to explore the stakeholders' perceptions of the impact of local external factors on CSED practices. The Random-Effect Model was the most appropriate analysis technique to analyse possible relationships between internal factors and the level of CSED, and the stakeholders' views were evaluated through the use of open critical discussion to ascertain the effect of the local contextual factors on the practices of CSED. The results showed the existence of unsatisfactory levels in the practices of CSED during the survey period. Furthermore, the results of the random effect model indicated that the firm size, audit firm and type of financial market were all significant. However, this result of type of financial market coefficients ?