Social actors and institutional carriers in small island states: Examining the role of partnerships in influencing organisations’ approach towards environmental disclosure

Island societies are states with distinct inherent characteristics and vulnerabilities. Their features are important constraints in the development and adaption of actions towards environmental disclosure. Since 1992, international bodies and institutions have been emphasising the importance of international cooperation and partnerships for helping island societies overcome their inherent obstacles and engage in environmental matters and consequently environmental disclosure. Although international bodies and institutions have been pointing out the importance of studying island societies for many years, in academic research it remains relatively unexplored. This research adopts neo-institutional theory and Scott’s theoretical framework on institutional carriers to examine the role of partnerships in imposing institutional carriers and influencing organisational behaviour towards environmental disclosure. The study examines island societies that have been cooperating through partnerships with large developed countries. Social actors are analysed at three levels, partnerships being one of them, (a) transnational through the European Union, (b) societal through domestic society and politics, and (c) the organisational field through industrial sectors, in an attempt to examine the role of social actors in shaping the structure of organisations and ascertain their interaction in diffusing institutional carriers for environmental disclosure. Qualitative content analysis was used to examine and interpret semi-structured face-to-face interviews with private and public sector organisations and the governmental environment representative.