Integrated Reporting: A Research Note on Measurement, Verification, and Capital Market Relevance
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56830/IJAMS04202603Keywords:
Integrated Reporting, Non-Financial Disclosure, Multi-Capital Framework, Sustainability Reporting, Capital Market Relevance, Corporate GovernanceAbstract
Integrated Reporting (IR) has evolved as a key advancement in corporate reporting, incorporating the financial and non-financial features of value creation. This research note critically explores IR from three angles: conceptual basis, implementation challenges, and capital market relevance. It contemplates IR as a multidisciplinary system that combines accounting, governance, sustainability, and strategic management within a value-creation framework, rather than as a specifically disclosure-focused profession. The paper emphasises ongoing challenges in assessing non-financial information, organisational limits in data integration, ineffective assurance methods, and managerial discretion in reporting practices. It synthesises existing research through a structured, interpretive literature review technique. It further assesses empirical evidence on IR's capital market effects, which is still varied and vague. While some research indicates positive correlations between IR quality, firm value, and market liquidity, other research finds weak or inconsistent links. The paper highlights significant gaps in theory, measurement, and technique. It finds that IR's effectiveness is dependent on increased standardisation, verification, and deeper organisational integration of integrated thinking.
References
Baboukardos, D., & Rimmel, G. (2016). Value relevance of accounting information under an integrated reporting approach: A research note. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, 35(4), 437–452. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaccpubpol.2016.04.004
Barth, M. E., Cahan, S. F., Chen, L., & Venter, E. R. (2017). The economic consequences associated with integrated report quality: Capital market and real effects. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 62, 43–64. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aos.2017.08.005
Bento, F., & Tagliabue, M. (2020). Organizational silos: A scoping review informed by a behavioral perspective on systems and networks. Societies, 10(3), 56. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/soc10030056
Beretta, V., Demartini, M., & de Villiers, C. (2025). Integrated reporting: Developing an injustice assessment framework and a research agenda. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 38(9), 1-29. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-02-2024-6917
Berg, F., Kölbel, J. F., & Rigobon, R. (2022). Aggregate confusion: The divergence of ESG ratings. Review of Finance, 26(6), 1315–1344. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/rof/rfac033
Bhatia, M., Mehrotra, V., & Thawani, B. (2023). Firm characteristics and adoption of integrated reporting: An emerging market perspective. Global Business Review. Advance online publication, https://doi.org/10.1177/09721509231160872. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/09721509231160872
Cooray, T., Senaratne, S., Gunarathne, A. D., Herath, R., & Samudrage, D. (2020). Does integrated reporting enhance the value relevance of information? Evidence from Sri Lanka. Sustainability, 12(19), 8183. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su12198183
Cortesi, A., & Vena, L. (2019). Disclosure quality under Integrated Reporting: A value relevance approach. Journal of Cleaner Production, 220, 745-755. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.02.155
De Villiers, C., Rinaldi, L., & Unerman, J. (2014). Integrated reporting: Insights, gaps and an agenda for future research. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 27(7), 1042– 1067. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-06-2014-1736
Dumay, J., Bernardi, C., Guthrie, J., & Demartini, P. (2016). Integrated reporting: A structured literature review. Accounting Forum, 40(3), 166–185. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.accfor.2016.06.001
Eccles, R. G., Ioannou, I., & Serafeim, G. (2014). The impact of corporate sustainability on organizational processes and performance. Management Science, 60(11), 2835–2857. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1984
Eissa, A. M., Diab, A. A., Almutairi, M. O., & Abdelrhman, A. N. (2024). Information overload and individual investors' perceptions of investment risk: Evidence from Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Business and Society, 25(1), 49–67. DOI: https://doi.org/10.33736/ijbs.6890.2024
Frias-Aceituno, J. V., Rodríguez-Ariza, L., & García-Sánchez, I. M. (2013). The role of the board in the dissemination of integrated reporting. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 20(4), 219–233. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1294
Gerwanski, J., Velte, P., & Mechtel, M. (2022). Do nonprofessional investors value the assurance of integrated reports? Exploratory evidence. European Management Journal, 40(1), 103–126. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2021.03.003
Joshi, P. L. (2026). Integrated reporting at a crossroads: A systematic review of research trends, framework limitations, and a refined multi-capital disclosure model. International Journal of Business and Management, 5(1), 643-667. DOI: https://doi.org/10.56879/ijbm.v5i1.36
Lafta, M. H., & Kamil, R. M. (2022). Analytical reading of integrated reporting as one of the manifestations of information overload. Academy of Strategic Management Journal, 21(S6), 1–23. https://www.abacademies.org/articles/analytical-reading-ofintegrated-reporting-as-one-of-the-manifestations-of-information-overload14367.html.
Lee, K.-W., & Yeo, G. H.-H. (2016). The association between integrated reporting and firm valuation. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 47(4), 1221–1250. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11156-015-0536-y
Leukhardt, L., Charifzadeh, M., & Diefenbach, F. E. (2022). Does integrated reporting quality matter to capital markets? Empirical evidence from voluntary adopters. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 29(5), 1482–1494. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2285
Pigatto, G., Cinquini, L., Tenucci, A., & Dumay, J. (2023). Disclosing value creation in integrated reports according to the six capitals: A holistic approach for a holistic instrument. Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, 14(7), 90–1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/SAMPJ-11-2021-0493
Pistoni, A., Songini, L., & Bavagnoli, F. (2018). Integrated reporting quality: An empirical analysis. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 25(4), 489–507. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1474
Raimo, N., Vitolla, F., Marrone, A., & Rubino, M. (2022). The role of integrated reporting in the transition towards a sustainable economy. Journal of Applied Accounting Research, 23(2), 434–456.
Rinaldi, L., Lai, A., Corvino, A., & Dumay, J. (2023). Hallmarks of integrated thinking. The British Accounting Review, 55(6), 101281.
Roszkowska-Menkes, M., Aluchna, M., & Kamiński, B. (2024). True transparency or mere decoupling? The study of selective disclosure in sustainability reporting. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 98, 102700. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2023.102700
Ruiz-Blanco, S., Romero, S., & Fernandez-Feijoo, B. (2022). Green, blue or black, but washing–What company characteristics determine greenwashing? Environment, Development and Sustainability, , 24, 4024–4045. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-021-01602-x
Slack, R., & Tsalavoutas, I. (2019). Integrated Reporting decision usefulness: mainstream equity market views. Accounting Forum, 42(2), 184-198. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.accfor.2018.01.005
Sun, Y. (2024). Integrated reporting, stakeholders' perspective and sustainable disclosure: Systematic insights from empirical research. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management. Advance online publication.
Sun, Y., Qiao, X., An, Y., Fang, Q., & Wu, N. (2022). Does multiple capitals disclosure affect the capital market? An empirical analysis in an integrated reporting perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 837209. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.837209
Sundarasen, S., Zyznarska-Dworczak, B., & Goel, S. (2024). Sustainability reporting and greenwashing: A bibliometric assessment in G7 and non-G7 nations. Cogent Business & Management, 11(1), 2320812. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2320812
Vaihekoski, M., & Yahya, F. (2025). The integral role of internal audit in ESG implementation—A literature review and conceptual framework. Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 13(4), 194.
Velte, P. (2022). Archival research on integrated reporting: A systematic review of main drivers and the impact of integrated reporting on firm value. Journal of Management and Governance, 26 (4), 997–1061. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10997-021-09582-w
Velte, P. (2022). Integrated reporting: Empirical research overview and future agenda. Accounting in Europe, 19(1), 1–25.
Vinnari, E., & Laine, M. (2017). The moral mechanism of counter accounts: The case of industrial animal production. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 57(C ), 1-17. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aos.2017.01.002
Vitolla, F., & Raimo, N. (2018). Adoption of integrated reporting: Reasons and benefits—A case study analysis. International Journal of Business and Management, 13(12), 244–250. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5539/ijbm.v13n12p244
Wahl, A., Charifzadeh, M., & Diefenbach, F. (2020). Voluntary adopters of integrated reporting – Evidence on forecast accuracy and firm value. Business Strategy and the Environment, 29(6), 2542–2556. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2519
