The Power of Soft Social Activism: Public Climate Concern and Corporate Carbon Disclosure

Previous research regarding social activism has emphasized how collective pressure on focal firms can affect corporate decision-making and exert coercive influences on these firms. Nevertheless, less attention has been devoted to how such soft pressure that is untargeted and unconfrontational would elicit firms’ voluntary responses. We aim to address this gap by focusing on examining how public concern at regional levels can prompt voluntarily corporate responses. Specifically, our study explores the effect of regional public climate concern on the quality of corporate voluntary disclosure of carbon management information. We propose that public climate concern potentially shapes environmental pressure by generating social aspiration, which drives firms to actively respond to enhance the quality of their carbon information disclosure for getting environmental legitimacy. This environmental pressure intensifies in regions with greater institutional environment and high-carbon industries, which may enhance social aspiration by amplifying and concentrating public voices. In addition, firms with public prominence may foster greater and more diverse aspirations. Conversely, firms facing significant performance shortfalls may are reluctantly to do so. Empirical studies based on A-share listed companies between 2012 and 2022 largely support our framework.