The value of integrated reporting for corporate sustainability: A Scoping Review (2015–2025)
Keywords:
Integrated Reporting, Corporate Reporting, Stakeholder Theory , PRISMA-Sc-R, Greenwashing, Sustainability AssuranceAbstract
Integrated Reporting (IR) has become a key global framework for explaining how organisations create, preserve, or diminish value across financial, social, environmental, and governance domains. Despite its growth, debates remain over how effectively IR advances Corporate Sustainability (CS), especially in emerging economies. This scoping review maps peer-reviewed literature from 2015 to 2025 to clarify the conceptual, theoretical, and methodological patterns shaping the field and to identify persisting knowledge gaps. Using Arksey and O’Malley’s (2005) framework and the PRISMA-ScR protocol, 50 articles were systematically reviewed from major academic databases. Guided by Callahan’s (2014) 6Ws, the TCCM framework, and theories of Stakeholder, Legitimacy, and Institutional behaviour, the analysis shows that while IR is promoted as a tool for transparency and sustainable value creation, its practical impact varies considerably. Evidence indicates that IR’s effectiveness depends on governance quality, regulatory enforcement, stakeholder pressure, and the maturity of integrated thinking within organisations. Studies from South Africa, Indonesia, and Malaysia reveal encouraging implementation but also highlight risks of greenwashing, symbolic compliance, and weakened credibility. Methodologically, qualitative studies dominate, limiting generalisability and causal insight. The literature stresses the need for standardised sustainability metrics, stronger regulatory coherence, preparer capacity-building, and alignment with SDGs and emerging ISSB standards. Overall, the review offers a consolidated thematic map of IR–CS scholarship and proposes a research agenda focused on institutionalisation, disclosure credibility, and strengthened stakeholder engagement.
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