https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/3752 Fri, 01 May 2026 02:16:44 GMT 2026-05-01T02:16:44Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31994 Reporting on human rights by large corporates: Interplay between comprehensiveness and narrative manipulation Esterhuyse, Leane; du Toit, Elda Companies are often accused of using sustainability disclosures as public relations tools to manage financial and non-financial stakeholders' impressions. The purpose of our study was firstly to determine how comprehensive the human rights disclosures of a sample of large international companies were and secondly, whether different narrative styles are associated with levels of disclosure to manage readers' impressions about the company. We analysed the public human rights disclosures for 154 large, international companies obtained from the UN Guiding Principles Reporting website. On average, companies complied with only one-third of the UN Guiding Principles Reporting Framework criteria. Communication about policies has the highest compliance, whilst communication about determining which human rights aspects are salient to the company, remedies for transgressions and stakeholder engagement have the lowest disclosure. When we split the sample between high disclosure and low disclosure companies, we found that the readability of the human rights disclosures is exceptionally low and even more so for low disclosure companies. Low disclosure companies used words implying Satisfaction significantly more than high disclosure companies, which provides some support for suspecting that low disclosure companies practise impression management by only presenting a ‘rosy picture’, as well as obfuscation via low readability. We add to the literature on impression management by large corporations in their sustainability reporting, and specifically human rights disclosures, by revealing how the interplay of low disclosure, low readability and overuse of words signalling Satisfaction contributes to impression management, rather than sincere attempts at accountability to all stakeholders. Wed, 13 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31994 2023-09-13T00:00:00Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31993 Playing to which audience? Textual analysis of standalone sustainability reports in the South African mining sector du Toit, Elda; Esterhuyse, Leana We explore narrative styles of 50 standalone sustainability reports for the years 2016 to 2019 published by South African mining companies. Our analyses using computer-aided narrative analysis tools reveal that readability is very low, and optimism and commonality are the most prevalent narrative tones. We also investigate whether the intended audience is associated with differences in the readability and narrative tone by comparing reports of companies included (excluded) in the FTSE/JSE Responsible Investment (RI) index. We find that the more sophisticated audience of reports by companies included in the RI index is associated with even lower readability. These reports are also less optimistically phrased than those of companies not included in the RI index. We contribute to the theory by demonstrating that RI investors and ESG rating agencies may temper companies’ tendencies to manage impressions in sustainability reports. We also contribute by placing the study in South Africa, an emerging economy. Tue, 01 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31993 2023-08-01T00:00:00Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31992 Towards Dismantling Heteronormativity at South African Universities: Heterosexual Students’ Perceptions of Heteronormative Ideologies and LGBTIQ+ Identities Maake, Tshepo South African literature demonstrates that heteronormative ideologies are evident at universities and inform various discriminations against LGBTIQ+ students. These heteronormative ideologies emanate from the traditional heteronormative socialisation in the South African society. While there is notable literature based on the experiences and perceptions of LGBTIQ+ students at universities, not much research pays attention to heterosexual students’ perceptions. It is imperative to consider heterosexual students’ perceptions of LGBTIQ+ identities to challenge heteronormative ideologies and transform universities into inclusive spaces. This article is based on heterosexual university students’ non-heteronormative perceptions of LGBTIQ+ identities. I argue that there is the potential to dismantle heteronormativity at universities since the heterosexual students in this research are critical of heteronormative ideologies and question stereotypes about sexual minority identities. Through semi-structured interviews with 10 self-identifying heterosexual students, the article established that students’ perceptions of LGBTIQ+ identities were affirming as they resisted traditional norms of sexuality and gender and demonstrated sensitivity to sexual diversity. The paper calls for further research to critically engage heterosexual students in conversations around heteronormativity to advance the acceptance, tolerance, and inclusion of LGBTIQ+ students at South African universities. Tue, 26 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31992 2024-03-26T00:00:00Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31991 “What If He Tells Others”: Negotiating Disclosure of Children’s HIV-Positive Status Amid Stigma in a South African Rural Community Mashile, Constance Thuli; Maake, Tshepo In this study, we explore how HIV-related social stigma in a South African rural township community informs parents’ and caregivers’ decisions to disclose their children’s HIV-positive status to them. To achieve the aim of the study, we conducted qualitative in-depth interviews with 12 parents and caregivers of HIV-positive children between the ages of seven and 14 years in a rural area based in Mpumalanga in South Africa. We found that, despite the development in HIV education across the country, HIV-related stigma is prevalent at a social level in rural townships and serves as a barrier to disclosing children’s HIV-positive status. We established that the parents and caregivers use “passing” as a stigma management strategy where they conceal their children’s HIV-positive status from them and instead tell them that they are infected with less stigmatised medical conditions such as asthma and tuberculosis. Based on these findings, we argue that, although education on HIV is widespread in South Africa, HIV-related stigma is still prevalent in some rural townships. This stigma compels parents and caregivers to avoid disclosing their children’s HIV-positive status to them and instead employ stigma management strategies that will maintain the concealment of their children’s HIV status. Thu, 10 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31991 2024-10-10T00:00:00Z