Analysis of Greenwashing Measurement on Internal Company Factors in Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59188/eduvest.v5i9.51404Keywords:
ESG Performance, Greenwashing, Corporate Finance, SustainabilityAbstract
This research addresses the critical need to understand the relationship between internal company factors and greenwashing practices in Indonesia's emerging ESG landscape. With increasing investor focus on environmental claims and regulatory scrutiny of corporate sustainability reporting, understanding the drivers of greenwashing has become essential for market transparency and investor protection. This research investigates the relationship between internal company factors and greenwashing risk using data from 30 Indonesian-listed firms on the ESG Leader index from 2021-2023. Employing a linear regression panel data model, the research examines the influence of tax ratio, state-owned enterprise status, profit margin, and capital structure on greenwashing, while controlling for firm size, cash flow, and board size. The findings indicate a significant negative relationship between profit margin and greenwashing risk, suggesting that financially healthier companies are less prone to greenwashing. A higher effective tax rate is associated with lower greenwashing activities. Conversely, cash flow from operations and firm size positively correlate with greenwashing risk. No significant influence was found for state-owned enterprise status or capital structure. The research highlights the crucial role of corporate profitability and tax management in mitigating greenwashing, while noting that larger, cash-rich firms may be more susceptible to such practices.
References
Delmas, M. A., & Burbano, V. C. (2011). The Drivers of Greenwashing. California Management Review, 54(1), 64–87. https://doi.org/10.1525/cmr.2011.54.1.64
Dorfleitner, G., & Utz, S. (2023). Green, green, it’s green they say: a conceptual framework for measuring greenwashing on firm level. Review of Managerial Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11846-023-00718-w
Farza, K., Ftiti, Z., Hlioui, Z., Louhichi, W., & Omri, A. (2021). Does it pay to go green? The environmental innovation effect on corporate financial performance. Journal of Environmental Management, 300. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.113695
Gregory, R. P. (2024). How Greenwashing Affects Firm Risk: An International Perspective. Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 17(11). https://doi.org/10.3390/jrfm17110526
Lee, M. T., & Raschke, R. L. (2023). Stakeholder legitimacy in firm greening and financial performance: What about greenwashing temptations?☆. Journal of Business Research, 155. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.113393
Li, M., & Chen, Q. (2024). Executive pay gap and corporate ESG greenwashing: Evidence from China. International Review of Financial Analysis, 95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2024.103375
Li, Y., & Xiao, J. (2025). The effect of institutional investors’ site visits on corporate greenwashing behavior. International Review of Economics & Finance, 97, 103818. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iref.2024.103818
Liu, Y., Zhang, J., & Dai, Y. (2023). Analyst following and greenwashing decision. Finance Research Letters, 58. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2023.104510
Peng, Q., & Xie, Y. (2024). ESG greenwashing and corporate debt financing costs. Finance Research Letters, 106012. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2024.106012
Purnamasari, P., & Umiyati, I. (2024). Greenwashing and financial performance of firms: the moderating role of internal audit quality and digital technologies. Cogent Business and Management, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2404236
Ruggeri, M. (2025). Facing the risk of greenwashing in the ESG report of global companies: The importance of life cycle thinking. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 32(1). https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2567
Souguir, Z., Lassoued, N., Khanchel, I., & Bouzgarrou, H. (2024). Environmental performance and corporate tax avoidance: Greenwashing policy or eco-responsibility? The moderating role of ownership structure. Journal of Cleaner Production, 434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.140152
Taylor & Francis. (2024). Does ESG report greenwashing increase stock price crash risk? Accounting & Finance, 64(4), 1247-1275. https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.13089
Treepongkaruna, S., Kyaw, K., & Jiraporn, P. (2024). Greenwashing, carbon emission, and ESG. Business Strategy and the Environment, 33(6), 4518-4534. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3123
Wang, J., Ma, M., Dong, T., & Zhang, Z. (2023). Do ESG ratings promote corporate green innovation? A quasi-natural experiment based on SynTao Green Finance’s ESG ratings. International Review of Financial Analysis, 87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2023.102623
Yu, E. P. yi, Luu, B. Van, & Chen, C. H. (2020). Greenwashing in environmental, social and governance disclosures. Research in International Business and Finance, 52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ribaf.2020.101192
Zhang, D. (2023). Does green finance really inhibit extreme hypocritical ESG risk? A greenwashing perspective exploration. Energy Economics, 121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2023.106688
Zhang, M., & He, W. (2025). Encouraging or inhibiting: Can analyst attention reduce corporate greenwashing behavior? Economic Analysis and Policy, 85, 943–962. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eap.2025.01.007
Zheng, J., Jiang, Y., Cui, Y., & Shen, Y. (2023). Green bond issuance and corporate ESG performance: Steps toward green and low-carbon development. Research in International Business and Finance, 66(28), 102007. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ribaf.2023.102007
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Dianto Kurnia Parulian Sinaga, Zuliani Dalimunthe

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.