Tareq Bani-Khalid

Reporting on corporate sustainability practices as being in congruence with social expectations is the core idea of legitimacy theory. Therefore, nowadays many organizations are making efforts to inform their stakeholders about the social, environmental and economic changes in their performance. Consistent with the argument above, this paper aims to examine the quantity and quality of corporate online sustainability information of the industrial sector in Jordan based on the Global Reporting Initiative guidelines. In line with content analysis method, this paper analyzes the quantitative sustainability indicators disclosed during last 7 years (2012–2018) by all the industrial sub-sectors listed on the website of Amman Stock Exchange. The results revealed that although all Jordanian industrial sub-sectors practice of the quantitative sustainability disclosure is in a modest degree in the period of 2012–2018, the emphasis on environmental and economic indicators was less than on social indicators in the corporate online reports. Results on qualitative analysis indicated that, considering all sustainability indicators, only the disclosure on indirect economic impacts, procurement practices, product responsibility, and economic performance have been reported at satisfactory levels of quality but with no compliance of GRI guidelines. According to the obtained results, policy makers in the Jordanian industrial sector should be very important players in order to open the channels of dialogue with corporate managers on the importance of their role in taking more responsibility for their non-financial operations. Consequently, this should ensure more transparent accountability through more quantitative and qualitative sustainability disclosure in the corporate reports.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
This study investigates how corporate governance (CG) shapes financial reporting quality in Jordanian banks and whether audit quality mediates this relationship. Motivated by persistent agency challenges and evolving regulatory expectations in emerging markets, the research examines whether core governance principles – discipline, transparency, independence, accountability, and fairness – translate into more timely, comparable, and understandable reports. A cross-sectional survey of senior executives and board members from 20 banks headquartered in Amman produced 214 valid responses (July–November 2022). Measurement validity and reliability were established, and structural equation modeling was used to test direct and indirect pathways. The results show that CG exerts a strong positive effect on financial reporting quality (β = 0.608) and that audit quality independently enhances reporting outcomes. Mediation analysis indicates that audit quality functions as a significant partial mediator of the CG-reporting link (indirect β = 0.247), demonstrating that governance improvements are amplified when supported by competent, independent, and professionally rigorous audits. These findings imply that governance architecture and assurance practices operate as complementary mechanisms: robust boards and effective audit committees create the conditions for high-quality audits, which in turn convert governance intent into decision-useful disclosures. The study provides context-specific evidence from Jordan’s banking sector, clarifying the channels through which governance reforms strengthen reporting credibility. Practically, the results endorse reinforcing audit committee independence, resourcing internal controls, and embedding transparent disclosure norms to sustain market confidence and align with international reporting expectations.