Sense-making and sense-giving: Reaching through the smokescreen of sustainability disclosure in the stock market

摘要: Financial analysts’ role as information intermediaries between management teams and investors is vital for the efficient allocation of resources on stock market. The increased focus sustainability in corporate reports has affected financial analysts their important work interpreting, assessing communicating value-added to clients, i.e. investors. challenges they face relate ambiguous nature its difference from traditional information. How do reach through this smokescreen? make sense information, how give when provide investment advices investors? In chapter, these are addressed a cognitive-frame perspective. We argue that first part 2000s was characterized by cognitive dissonance due both low social legitimacy legitimacy, not yet requested be attended it regarded too relevant being considered valuation context. latter 2010s, we there only partial dissonance. At time, beginning socially legitimate However, complexity situation remains. This type still nature, which renders difficulties sense-making sense-giving processes. findings have implications least ongoing quest developing frameworks, standards legislation (e.g. EU directive (2014/EU/95)), opt improving relevance, credibility comparability