Insightful gaze: A new way to understand corporate reports

Imagine being able to use people’s eye movements and pupil dilation to substantially improve the understandability and decision-usefulness of emerging forms of corporate reporting, like Integrated Reporting (IR), but also dramatically reduce reading time. Sounds fantastic, right? Well, that's exactly what the researchers in the UC Business School - Associate Professor Richard Fisher and Dr Natasja Steenkamp - are doing.

In the world of corporate reports, these two talented researchers are on a mission to change the game: they're using special eye-tracking technology to understand how people read and respond to integrated reports. 

The eye-opening idea

Dr Steenkamp, fascinated by IR since her early research career, had a lightbulb moment: she realised that eye-tracking devices could help us understand corporate reports in a whole new way. With a grant from the Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand (AFAANZ) and the available access to the state-of-the-art eye-tracking technology at the UC, she teamed up with Associate Professor Fisher for an exciting adventure into exploring corporate reports.

The impacts of their discovery

Natasja and Richard’s findings have pretty cool impacts right off the bat across policy, academia, and real-world applications. In the policy arena, the findings directly address the challenges that standard-setters such as the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) face, offering valuable insights into mitigating information overload by the strategic use of infographics. Academically, the researchers contribute to the Corporate and Integrated Reporting literatures, responding to calls for research on the impact of different presentation approaches on users. Real-world applications extend to reporters struggling with IR disclosures.

Looking into the future, Natasja and Richard’s work could make a big difference in how society allocates resources. By enhancing information efficiency in markets through insights into the potential impact of corporate reporting presentation formats, the study aspires to empower users in holding corporate governance bodies accountable and making informed investment decisions. Beyond academia, the research forges pathways for interdisciplinary collaborations and partnerships with industry, standard-setters, and professional accounting bodies.

The road ahead

In 2024, Natasja and Richard are taking their work to the next level: they want to figure out how different presentation formats and people’s attitudes affect what we pay attention to in these reports and how it might impact our decision-making. Seeking external funding to extend their research, the team aspires to explore alternative infographic representations of IR business models, fostering a continuous cycle of innovation and exploration in the complex world of corporate reporting.

Want to know more? No problem. Please contact Natasja and Richard. 

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Outputs

Conference presentations

Steenkamp, N. & Fisher, R. (2023). The effects of infographics on communication effectiveness and efficiency in IR: An exploratory eye tracking study. New Zealand Management Accounting Conference, Lincoln, New Zealand, 23–24 November.

Achievement: Best Paper award.

Steenkamp, N. & Fisher, R. (2023). The effects of infographics on communication effectiveness and efficiency in IR: An exploratory eye tracking study. Centre for Social and Environmental Research Conference, Spain, October.

Steenkamp, N. & Fisher, R. (2023). Integrated reporting business models and the role of presentation format: Insight from an eye tracking study. Meditari Accountancy Research conference, Verona, Italy, September.