New challenge in accounting : CSR disclosures –towards an integrated report

Abstract : In recent years the idea of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been a subject of intensifi ed interest. Th erefore the role of accounting in implementation of this concept became a topic of frequent discussions. Socially responsible accounting (social and environmental accounting), namely appropriate reporting about activities in the social, environmental
and economic areas related to the functioning of the company, aims to identify, measure and present CSR issues. Accounting, because of its systemic nature, has been constantly evolving. Socially responsible accounting is a manifestation of the development of accounting theory and practice arising from economic and social changes.Th e article presents the realization of the idea of CSR and its accounting framework, as well as raises the problem of integrated reporting in the mainstream of social responsibility accounting. Th e aim of this article is to synthesize a set of studies on the disclosure of CSR information carried in Poland and then lead to a proposal for the establishment of integrated report (including fi nancial and non-fi nancial data) as a form of CSR disclosure. To achieve this purpose, the author has used the methodology of research and literature review.

Keywords : corporate social responsibility (CSR), social responsibility accounting, integrated reporting.

JEL Classifi cation : M40, M41.