A review of Latin American corporate governance literature: 2000‐2009

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to promote research about corporate governance in Latin America. A set of studies published in English since 2000 is identified and classified. Also, organizations and journals are identified that support research about corporate governance.Design/methodology/approachOne question guides this literature review. What pattern of research development, if any, is reflected in the literature reviewed?FindingsAnalysis shows research has moved from an initial literature descriptive primarily of national practices, to an intermediate literature with questions largely implied from inquiry about the context of change, to a current literature designed explicitly to assess change.Practical implicationsThe overarching implication of recent literature is that good governance has social benefit as studied. The dominant type of recent study is grounded in finance and designed to address a specific question by adopting a market perspective and by applying methods of empirical analysis. These studies tend to find association between governance and firm performance, firm valuation or other measures of financial success.Originality/valueThe value of examining literature is in the understanding and the direction it provides. Recent research results show good governance is beneficial for understanding the behavior of markets, and this may influence business policy and public policy as well as future research. And, for future direction, the study of corporate governance literature suggests a progression to multiple perspectives relative to research design that is inclusive of contributions from a diversity of disciplines and employs a variety of methodologies.