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AbstractThe existing studies on the relationship between ESG and earnings management provide mixed evidence and ignore ESG rating divergence. Using a sample of Chinese listed firms from 2009 to 2021, we examine the effect of ESG performance on earnings management under different levels of ESG rating divergence. The results reveal a negative association between ESG performance and earnings management. Meanwhile, among firms with high (low) ESG rating divergence, our results show that the degree of earnings management rises (falls) when the firms engage in ESG practices. Our findings are robust to alternative variable definitions and the Heckman two‐stage selection model. In addition, we exclude alternative explanations and consider the effect of greenwashing. Cross‐sectional analyses show that the moderating effect of ESG rating divergence is significant only among firms with greater CEO power and higher agency costs, suggesting that agency problems are the mechanism by which ESG rating divergence positively moderates the relationship between ESG performance and earnings management. This study advances the existing research on ESG and earnings quality by presenting new empirical evidence and revisits ESG rating divergence through the lens of agency theory, revealing that management could use ESG for opportunistic behavior in the presence of ESG rating divergence. Our study shows that the divergence in ESG ratings can affect the economic consequences of firms' ESG practices, offering insights for future research on ESG and ESG rating divergence and for regulators to improve the regulation of ESG disclosure and rating.

Previous studies have revealed the effect of locus of control on academic engagement and achievement motivation, but the role that achievement motivation plays in the relationship between the other two variables for Chinese adolescents has remained unclear. We conducted two studies
to explore this issue. In Study 1 we used standardized scales to measure locus of control (Internal–External Control Scale), academic engagement (Utrecht Work Engagement Scale–Student), and achievement motivation (Achievement Motivation Scale) among 1,811 middle school students.
In Study 2 we intervened in the participants' achievement motivation by way of group counseling to further check the effect on their academic engagement. We randomly recruited 64 students from the same school for control and experimental groups and constructed a relationship model among the
three variables of locus of control, academic engagement, and achievement motivation. Results demonstrated that intervention in achievement motivation can effectively enhance the academic engagement of middle school students.