Abstract:
This paper aims to investigate the effects of corporate governance and CSR disclosures and
how they vary, depending on the level of economic development. 100 Australian (ASX200-
listed) firms and 100 Sri Lankan firms provided the study’s comparative data (Colombostock-exchange-listed firms). A quantitative research design, based on secondary data, was
used to address the research questions. Using content analysis, CSR disclosure information
was culled from annual reports and websites. Multivariate regression was used for data
analysis and hypothesis testing. Only three factors like board size, audit committee
independence, and firm size, were found to be related to the CSR disclosure index, in both
Australian and Sri Lankan companies, according to the regression model’s findings. In
Australian companies, board independence was strongly correlated with the degree of CSR
disclosure. In Australian and Sri Lankan companies, there was little correlation between
CEO duality and disclosure of corporate social responsibility. The results are only
applicable to the context of the study, which was restricted to listed Australian and Sri
Lankan companies in 2020–2021. The study offers evidence on the connection between
corporate governance and the degree of CSR, in the context of a developed and an emerging
economy as a comparative study. By concentrating on two different stages of economic
development as a research context, the study contributes to the body of existing literature.
