 CEO left-handedness and readabilityXin Chen, June Woo Park, Albert Tsang and Yingying Xin International Review of Financial Analysis, 2025, vol. 105, issue C Abstract: We examine the relationship between CEO handedness and readability of narrative disclosures in the management discussion and analysis (MD&A) sections of annual reports. Using a sample of U.S. S&P 500 firms, we find that firms run by left-handed CEOs generally tend to produce more readable MD&A than their counterparts. Cross-sectional testing shows that the association between left-handed CEOs and MD&A readability is more pronounced for firms with complex business operations, suggesting that the readability-handedness relation is moderated by the firm's characteristics related to the need for more communication abilities. Further analyses provide evidence that MD&A readability is a significant channel through which left-handed CEOs decrease costs of equity capital and increase earnings quality. Overall, our findings support the conjecture that left-handed CEOs tend to possess enhanced communication abilities, highlighting a novel personal characteristic that can offer valuable insights into a firm's information environment. Keywords: Left-handed CEOs; Readability; Communication ability; Information environment (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:finana:v:105:y:2025:i:c:s105752192500496x DOI: 10.1016/j.irfa.2025.104409 Access Statistics for this article International Review of Financial Analysis is currently edited by B.M. Lucey More articles in International Review of Financial Analysis from Elsevier |
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