Environmental regulatory stringency and corporate reporting quality: Evidence from waste, emissions, water, and energy regulations in Vietnamese firms

Type of the article: Research Article AbstractThis study investigates how environmental regulatory stringency affects corporate environmental reporting (CER) among Vietnamese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), focusing on four regulatory domains: waste management, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, water usage, and energy-saving measures. Utilizing a cross-sectional dataset of 645 SMEs and employing multiple linear regression analysis, variation in regulatory intensity is evaluated to check both the scope and quality of environmental disclosures.Results reveal heterogeneous impacts. Stringent waste treatment regulations are significantly associated with lower levels of disclosure (β = −0.1082, p = 0.008), likely reflecting the burden of compliance costs. In contrast, energy-saving regulations show a positive and statistically significant effect on CER (β = 0.1512, p = 0.045), highlighting the role of economic incentives in driving transparency. No significant associations are observed for GHG emissions or water resource regulations, underscoring the limitations of weak enforcement and fragmented institutional oversight.These findings raise important theoretical and policy considerations. They challenge the universal validity of the Porter Hypothesis within developing contexts, where institutional capacity and enforcement mechanisms remain constrained. Regulatory effectiveness is shown to depend not only on legal stringency but also on firms' readiness, technological support, and enabling policy environments. The paper contributes to the growing literature on environmental governance in transitional economies and offers practical insights for designing balanced, context-sensitive regulatory frameworks to enhance corporate environmental accountability in Vietnam.