The impact of firm technology on carbon disclosure: the critical role of stakeholder pressure

The demand for transparency about the microeconomic sources of environmental pollution has surged recently, causing carbon disclosure to rise to the top of the global climate change discourse. In this study, we empirically investigate how the environmental performance of firm production technologies shapes their voluntary carbon disclosure behaviour and how key stakeholders influence the performance-disclosure relationship. Using a panel of 1,547 firms across 24 countries covering 2006–20, we find that firms with the most efficient technologies for reducing emissions tend to disclose their carbon impact, especially when they face more stringent environmental regulations. These high-performing firms demonstrate a tendency for non-disclosure when faced with intense shareholder and environmental activist pushback against pollution. Our findings also highlight the existence of a profitability penalty for transparent high-efficiency firms relative to comparable firms that adopt strategic silence.