Cristina Sousa

An analysis of intellectual capital disclosure by Portuguese companies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse annual reports as media of intellectual capital disclosure (ICD) by Portuguese listed companies and to evaluate size, industry and time effects on disclosure as well as the effects of ICD on the growth of a company.Design/methodology/approach – The paper examines ICD in 2004, 2006 and 2008 annual reports using content analysis. Non‐parametric statistical methods are used to test size and industry effects on disclosure, the effects of the level of disclosure on the growth of a company and to determine the significance of the differences in disclosure between the years under analysis.Findings – The analysis showed that size is significant in explaining ICD. The results also indicated that industrial affiliation is only partially a factor explaining ICD. It was not possible to confirm neither an increase in ICD over time, nor the relationship between ICD and growth.Research limitations/implications – The sample is small. There may be content analysis issues a...

Comparing CSR communication on corporate web sites in Sweden and Spain

Purpose – This study investigates the use of the internet by the largest companies based in Sweden and Spain to communicate their engagement in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. Its purpose is to analyse to what extent, if any, are there differences in the CSR communication on the web sites companies from these two countries. Design/methodology/approach – The paper examines CSR communication on the internet by companies based in Sweden and Spain. Non-parametric statistics are used to analyse some factors that influence disclosure, namely country, industry affiliation, profitability, and size. Findings – Findings suggest that in spite of the existence of a high degree of similarity between CSR communication practices, companies from Spain place social responsibility information in more prominent sections and devote more space to said information. Swedish companies are found to disclose more their codes of conduct/ethics and CSR-related press clips and published articles. Research limitation...

Intellectual capital disclosure media in Portugal

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare the internet and annual reports as media of intellectual capital disclosure (ICD) and analyse its determinants.Design/methodology/approach – The paper examines ICD on the internet in 2009 and compares the internet and 2008 annual reports as disclosure media using content analysis. Non‐parametric statistical methods are used to analyse some factors which influence disclosure.Findings – Portuguese companies attribute greater importance to the internet. The analysis showed that size is significant in explaining ICD only in the case of annual reports. The results also indicated that industrial affiliation is only partially a factor explaining ICD.Research limitations/implications – The sample is small. There may be content analysis issues associated with subjectivity in the coding process and the use of a limited content analysis method.Originality/value – The paper adds to the scarce research on ICD by Portuguese companies by providing new empirical data. Thi...

Bridging Darwin's Origin of Species & Wegener's Origin of Continents and Oceans: Using Biogeography, Phylogeny, Geology & Interactive Learning

Abstract The common ancestor and evolution by natural selection, concepts introduced by Charles Darwin, constitute the central core of biology research and education. However, students generally struggle to understand these concepts and commonly form misconceptions about them. To help teachers select the most revelant portions of Darwins work, I suggest some sentences from On the Origin of Species and briefly discuss their implications. I also suggest a teaching strategy that uses history of science and curriculum crosscutting concepts (cause and effect) that constitute the framework to explain the evolutionary history of ratites (flightless birds) as described by Darwin, starting in the Jurassic, with the breakup of Gondwanaland, as first described by Alfred Wegener in The Origin of Continents and Oceans.