Is Research and Development intensity of firms related to Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosures?

This study examines the influence of Research and Development (R&D) intensity on Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosures (CSRD). This research is based mainly on the Stakeholder Theory, which makes the argument that managers will tend to disclose more CSR related information to satisfy the information need of their stakeholders. This research extends and adds value to the field of study of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) – Financial Performance (FP). This research focused on the London Stock Exchange to obtain empirical evidence that R&D intensity positively affects CSRD. Through content analysis and a regression model this relationship will be tested. As expressions of R&D and CSRD, R&D intensity (R&D expenditure/ Total Sales) and content analysis scores will be used respectively. Results show that there is a significant relation between R&D intensity and CSRD, but this is a negative one. Concluding that the lower the intensity of a company’s R&D the more CSR information they disclose.