Abstract This paper is aimed at analyzing, through a counter-accounting approach, to what extent companies considered to be sustainability leaders release transparent and balanced information on their commitment to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A content analysis was conducted on the sustainability reports of a sample of 28 companies from the UNGC LEAD program, and the results were compared with information disclosed by external sources not controlled by the studied organizations. Corporate disclosure counter-accounting reveals that more than 80% of the significant negative events related to LEAD companies were not reported or were only partially reported in their sustainability reports. Contrary to researchers' initial expectations, the length of the sustainability reports was not positively associated with their completeness or transparency. The findings of this study contribute to the literature on bluewashing and counter-accounting. They question the performance of companies considered to be sustainability leaders and the transparency of their reporting practices. From a managerial standpoint, the analysis of the results points at the necessity to shift the focus from the quantity of reports to their quality and transparency.

中文翻译：

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通过反会计分析探索涉嫌可持续发展领导者的洗蓝行为

摘要 本文旨在通过反会计方法分析被认为是可持续发展领导者的公司在多大程度上发布了关于其对联合国全球契约 (UNGC) 和可持续发展目标 (SDG) 承诺的透明和平衡的信息。对来自 UNGC LEAD 计划的 28 家公司样本的可持续性报告进行了内容分析，并将结果与​​不受研究组织控制的外部来源披露的信息进行了比较。企业披露反会计显示，超过 80% 的与 LEAD 公司相关的重大负面事件未在其可持续发展报告中报告或仅部分报告。与研究人员最初的预期相反，可持续性报告的长度与其完整性或透明度没有正相关。本研究的结果有助于撰写有关洗蓝和反会计的文献。他们质疑被认为是可持续发展领导者的公司的表现及其报告做法的透明度。从管理的角度来看，对结果的分析表明有必要将重点从报告的数量转移到报告的质量和透明度上。