OVERSTATED OR UNDERSTATED? EXPLORING THE PARADOX OF GREENWASHING, GREENHUSHING, AND GREENWISHING IN CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/AIJBES.827042Keywords:
Corporate Transparency, ESG, Greenhushing, Greenwashing, Greenwishing, SustainabilityAbstract
The increasing demand for sustainability communication has let in the emergence of practices of greenwashing, greenhushing, and greenwishing, which together embody the spectrum of paradoxes in corporate sustainability reporting. This systematic literature review analyzes how organizations create discrepancies between sustainability disclosure and actual performance through the exaggeration, concealment, or overly optimistic portrayals of sustainability initiatives. This study examines these phenomena by analyzing institutional, market, and methodological factors that influence corporate accountability. A systematic literature review following the PRISMA framework was conducted using the Scopus and Web of Science databases. As a result, 24 studies that satisfy the inclusion criteria were selected. The results of the thematic synthesis revealed three main research clusters: (1) Governance, Institutions and Ecosystem Drivers, i.e. how board composition, political connections and regulatory frameworks influence disclosure; (2) Markets and Stakeholders, i.e. how investors, consumers and partners respond to credibility gaps, and (3) Measurement, Methods and Paradoxes, which highlights methodological approaches in Environmental and Social Governance (ESG) assessments, assurance mechanisms and certification systems that influence sustainability disclosure issues. Evidence suggests that sustainability reporting is influenced not only by business intentions but also by institutional incentives, stakeholder pressures, and the constraints inherent in current assessment systems. The findings from this study not only enhance theoretical and practical understanding of disclosure authenticity but also suggest a relationship between mechanisms such as credibility, regulatory monitoring, and interdisciplinary evaluation approaches with corporate communications.
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