Investigating the Attitude of Financial Statements Users toward the Framework and Content of Social Reporting

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor, Department of Accounting, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad; and the Manager of the Research and Management Services Group of Rahyaft and Partners

2 M. A. in Accounting, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad Branch; Certified Public Accountant

3 Ph. D. Student in Accounting, Alzahra University

Abstract

Introduction: Content and procedures of social responsibility reporting are different in various countries since there exist main differences among countries in various aspects. Therefore, regarding the different social and environmental conditions in Iran in relation to other countries, it is expected that the expectation and demand of beneficiaries and users will differ in disclosing social responsibility. Hence, the current research identifies the concept of social responsibility and presents a compiled framework on the content of social reporting in Iran at the same time.
Method: This research is a descriptive survey, and the attitude of the beneficiaries and users toward financial statements on the importance of different subjects in social responsibilities has been investigated by a designed-researcher questionnaire according to the importance and subject of the research in 2013. The statistical sample of the research has been selected by convenience sampling method, and the collected data have been analyzed by means of Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test, One-Sample T-Test, and Repeated Measure Design.
Results: Most of the respondents expect that the companies have some disclosures on their own social responsibilities, and they should include the following subjects respectively in the social reporting: “Health and Safety”, “Energy”, “Fair Activity Procedures”, “Environmental Subjects”, “Human Resources”, and “Involvement in Social Activities”.
Conclusion: From the viewpoint of financial statements users, corporate social responsibilities is very important. Therefore, companies should be aware of the requirements and expectations of users about social reporting and the companies should try to meet their needs.

Keywords

References

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