| dc.description.abstract | Paltering and obfuscation are two particularly enticing forms of deception as they do not
contain untruthful statements when misleading the reader. This thesis studies deceptive
communication in corporate sustainability disclosures and its consequences on stakeholders’
perceptions of the reporting firm. Through a comprehensive literature review, we found that
obfuscation and paltering are becoming increasingly more relevant forms of deceptive
communication in corporate sustainability disclosures. Simultaneously, the opportunities for
the better-known lies of commission and -omission are shrinking with the emergence of
regulations and more sophisticated reporting frameworks. We subsequently conducted an
experimental survey in Prolific, which explored stakeholder perception of deceptive
communication. The survey randomly assigned the 392 survey participants to either an
honesty, obfuscation or paltering condition. The experimental research design allowed us to
analyse the difference between these conditions. Our main findings show that when paltering
is used to deceive the stakeholder, paltering bears the most significant reputational
consequence. However, paltering is an effective form of deception. In the absence of bad news,
the palterer leaves the reader with a significantly better perception than both honesty and
obfuscation. In addition, there are no significant differences between the three conditions in
the presence of bad news. Further, there was not found any significant difference in treatment
effect between honesty and obfuscating by complex language in sustainability disclosures. | en_US |
