Standardization cycles in sustainability reporting within the Global Reporting Initiative

To analyze whether Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards could reduce transparency in sustainability reporting, we performed a longitudinal content analysis of sustainability reports for 15 large Norwegian organizations from 2010 to 2020 (inclusive). The content of reports increased by 90%, in contrast to an increase of only 18% in transparency. The content of GRI standards increased by more than 500%. For further examination, we develop a system dynamics model using a multilevel perspective including the standardization organizations, the organizations writing sustainability reports, and their audiences. Our model demonstrates how multilevel interactions may produce unintended results. More standards could impede transparent reporting for organizations, which in turn hinders stakeholders in making fair judgments about the sustainability of organizations. This condition then may trigger a new cycle in which standardization organizations define even more standards. We conclude that for sustainability reporting standards, less is more. Our findings have implications for both researchers and practitioners.