SUMMARY
Research aims: This study aims to present empirical evidence on the effect of social responsibility disclosure on real earnings management and the role of assurance in this relationship. This is based on a paradox, where companies that publish standardized corporate social responsibility disclosures to project ethical business practices are also associated with accounting and financial scandals.Design/Methodology/Approach: This study conducted on non-financial sector companies in developing countries that are members of ASEAN-4, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines, which issued GRI-based social responsibility disclosures in the period 2013-2019, with a number of 285 companies with a total of 895 observations.Research findings: The results show that companies with standardized social responsibility disclosures tend to reduce their real earnings management practices. However the assurance variable mitigates the negative effect of corporate social responsibility on real earnings management, implying that assurance provides false credibility. In an additional analysis groups the samples based on board structure. The results of this study are consistent with two-tier board structures, suggesting that a one-tier system provides better information quality.Theoretical contribution/ Originality:. The originality of this study lies in a comprehensive measurement of social responsibility disclosure variables using an index that measures a combination of accountability and performance aspect. Furthermore, this study takes into account assurance as a variable representing the credibility of information, which surprisingly moderates the negative effect of social responsibility disclosure on real earnings management.Practitioner/Policy implication: The results of this study indicate the importance of standardized social responsibility disclosure in mitigating managerial opportunistic behavior. The findings also highlight the need to improve the assurance function to prevent its use as an opportunistic management tactic.