IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/acctfi/v65y2025i1p913-934.html

Ambiguity or specificity: The influence of merchant guild culture on managers' disclosure strategy

Author

Listed:
  • Tingting Zhang
  • Haozhou Yin
  • Zixuan Zhuang

Abstract

Recent studies indicate that culture attributes significantly influence corporate behaviour. Building on this, our study explores how merchant guild culture (MGC) influences firms' voluntary disclosure practices, specifically through managerial disclosure strategies. Analysing data from Chinese listed firms between 2010 and 2022, we found that MGC significantly reduces the specificity of managerial responses at earnings communication conferences (ECCs). This suggests that firms influenced by MGC favour ambiguous communication, aligning with the value to mitigate competitive risks. Our findings deepen the understanding of cultural influences on corporate disclosure practices and extend literature on the role of informal institutions in corporate behaviours.

Suggested Citation

  • Tingting Zhang & Haozhou Yin & Zixuan Zhuang, 2025. "Ambiguity or specificity: The influence of merchant guild culture on managers' disclosure strategy," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 65(1), pages 913-934, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:65:y:2025:i:1:p:913-934
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.13355
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.13355
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/acfi.13355?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Brown, Lawrence D. & Call, Andrew C. & Clement, Michael B. & Sharp, Nathan Y., 2019. "Managing the narrative: Investor relations officers and corporate disclosure✰," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(1), pages 58-79.
    2. Xu, Weidong & Luo, Zijun & Li, Donghui, 2024. "Investor–firm interactions and corporate investment efficiency: Evidence from China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    3. Nathan Nunn & Diego Puga, 2012. "Ruggedness: The Blessing of Bad Geography in Africa," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 94(1), pages 20-36, February.
    4. Allen, Franklin & Qian, Jun & Qian, Meijun, 2005. "Law, finance, and economic growth in China," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 57-116, July.
    5. Guiso, Luigi & Sapienza, Paola & Zingales, Luigi, 2015. "The value of corporate culture," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(1), pages 60-76.
    6. Xiu, Zongfeng & Liu, Ran & Yin, Jingwei, 2022. "Confucian merchants culture, social movement and entrepreneurs’ political participation: evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 795-821.
    7. Kiridaran Kanagaretnam & Zongfeng Xiu & Zejiang Zhou, 2019. "Does Culture Matter for Corporate Philanthropic Giving?," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(10), pages 2365-2387, August.
    8. Xingqiang Du, 2015. "Does Confucianism Reduce Minority Shareholder Expropriation? Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 132(4), pages 661-716, December.
    9. Yinghua Li & Yupeng Lin & Liandong Zhang, 2018. "Trade Secrets Law and Corporate Disclosure: Causal Evidence on the Proprietary Cost Hypothesis," Journal of Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 56(1), pages 265-308, March.
    10. Toni M. Whited & Guojun Wu, 2006. "Financial Constraints Risk," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 19(2), pages 531-559.
    11. Ming Jian & T. J. Wong, 2010. "Propping through related party transactions," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 70-105, March.
    12. George A. Akerlof, 2007. "The Missing Motivation in Macroeconomics," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 97(1), pages 5-36, March.
    13. Jeong-Bon Kim & Edward Lee & Xiaojian Tang & Junsheng Zhang, 2023. "Correction to: Collusive versus coercive corporate corruption: evidence from demand-side shocks and supply-side disclosures," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 28(4), pages 1971-1971, December.
    14. Jason V. Chen & Venky Nagar & Jordan Schoenfeld, 2018. "Manager-analyst conversations in earnings conference calls," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 1315-1354, December.
    15. Oliver E. Williamson, 2000. "The New Institutional Economics: Taking Stock, Looking Ahead," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 38(3), pages 595-613, September.
    16. Gul, Ferdinand A. & Kim, Jeong-Bon & Qiu, Annie A., 2010. "Ownership concentration, foreign shareholding, audit quality, and stock price synchronicity: Evidence from China," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(3), pages 425-442, March.
    17. Verrecchia, Robert E., 1983. "Discretionary disclosure," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 5(1), pages 179-194, April.
    18. Xiu, Zongfeng & Liu, Ran & Feng, Pengshuo & Yin, Jingwei, 2023. "Does social culture matter for firms' access to trade credit? Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    19. Xi Li, 2010. "The impacts of product market competition on the quantity and quality of voluntary disclosures," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 15(3), pages 663-711, September.
    20. Jianying Weng & Xingqiang Du & Qiao Lin, 2023. "Does Merchant Guild Culture Reduce the Cost of Debt? Evidence from China," China Journal of Accounting Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(2), pages 207-246, April.
    21. William J. Mayew & Mohan Venkatachalam, 2012. "The Power of Voice: Managerial Affective States and Future Firm Performance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 67(1), pages 1-44, February.
    22. Wang, Xiaoyu & Long, Zhineng & Zhao, Xiangfang, 2024. "Merchant guild culture and cash holdings: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    23. Wanlong Zhao & Wei Zhang & Xiong Xiong & Gaofeng Zou, 2019. "Share pledges, tone of earnings communication conferences, and market reaction: evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 59(5), pages 2817-2853, December.
    24. Jeong-Bon Kim & Edward Lee & Xiaojian Tang & Junsheng Zhang, 2023. "Collusive versus coercive corporate corruption: evidence from demand-side shocks and supply-side disclosures," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 28(4), pages 1929-1970, December.
    25. Wang, Sumingyue & Wang, Xinlu & Xu, Liang, 2023. "Debt maturity structure and the quality of risk disclosures," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    26. Lee, Charles M.C. & Zhong, Qinlin, 2022. "Shall we talk? The role of interactive investor platforms in corporate communication," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(2).
    27. Xingqiang Du & Jianying Weng & Quan Zeng & Hongmei Pei, 2017. "Culture, Marketization, and Owner-Manager Agency Costs: A Case of Merchant Guild Culture in China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 143(2), pages 353-386, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Cano-Rodríguez, Manuel & Moreno, Alonso, 2026. "Religion and the readability of textual financial disclosures," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Zhang, Xiaoliang & Jiang, Jinjin & Liu, Zuxian & Chen, Lijun, 2025. "Cultural blueprint: Uncovering how merchant guild culture shapes corporate innovation," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 85(PA).
    2. Wang, Xiaoyu & Long, Zhineng & Zhao, Xiangfang, 2024. "Merchant guild culture and cash holdings: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    3. Xiu, Zongfeng & Liu, Ran & Feng, Pengshuo & Yin, Jingwei, 2023. "Does social culture matter for firms' access to trade credit? Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    4. Xiu, Zongfeng & Liu, Ran & Yin, Jingwei, 2022. "Confucian merchants culture, social movement and entrepreneurs’ political participation: evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 795-821.
    5. Liu, Deyu & Wang, Kefan, 2025. "Does Confucian culture make firms more generous?," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    6. Goodell, John W. & Li, Mingsheng & Liu, Desheng & Wang, Yizhen, 2024. "Aligning empirical evidence on ESG with ancient conservative traditions," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    7. Sun, Han & Wang, Man, 2025. "How do firms respond to competition? Evidence from vertical integration," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    8. Tian, Yonggang & Ang, James S. & Fu, Panpan & Ma, Chaoqun & Wang, Xiuhua, 2024. "Does social trust mitigate insiders' opportunistic behaviors? Evidence from insider trading," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    9. Ruan, Lei & Yang, Liwen, 2025. "Investor-company interactions and stock price crash risk: Evidence from China," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    10. Zhang, Xiaoliang & Wang, Qilin & Wang, Xin, 2025. "Unveiling the bright side of rice-farming culture in shaping innovation: Evidence from Chinese listed firms," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    11. Ning Zhang & Lan Bo & Shulin Wang & Xuanqiao Wang, 2025. "Exploring Confucian Culture’s Impact on Corporate Debt Default Risk: An Ethical Decision-Making Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 198(2), pages 467-484, May.
    12. Xiao, Zhongyi & Xia, Zhongwei & Chen, Haitao & Gu, Yu, 2025. "Does the Confucianism in audit firms enhance the corporate ESG Disclosure?," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 75(PA).
    13. Baik, Bok & Kim, Alex G. & Kim, David S. & Yoon, Sangwon, 2025. "Vocal delivery quality in earnings conference calls," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(1).
    14. Zhao, Feng & Wang, Jinhai & Chen, Qian, 2025. "Climate change exposure and corporate strategic aggressiveness: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 26-53.
    15. Zhongju Liao & Yuhan Wu, 2025. "Formal institutions, informal institutions, and firms' environmental innovation: An application of the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis method," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(1), pages 668-680, February.
    16. Liu, Jing-Yue & Lei, Quan & Li, Ruojin & Zhang, Yue-Jun, 2024. "Resistance or motivation? Impact of climate risk on corporate greenwashing: An empirical study of Chinese enterprises," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    17. Lin, Karen Jingrong & Karim, Khondkar E. & Carter, Clairmont, 2015. "Why does China's stock market have highly synchronous stock price movements? An information supply perspective," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 68-79.
    18. Xixiong Xu & Maochuan Wang, 2024. "Confucianism and employee treatment: Evidence from China," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(4), pages 2649-2669, July.
    19. Duan, Zhao & Zhai, Xiuping & Xia, Binglong & Tu, Qiuyang, 2026. "Nomen est omen? - Executive names and information release," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    20. Liangyan Cao & Wee‐Yeap Lau & Shahrin Saaid Shaharuddin, 2023. "Peer effect of proprietary information: A cost–benefit analysis of customer information disclosure," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 44(5), pages 2643-2656, July.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:65:y:2025:i:1:p:913-934. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaanzea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.