There has been significant investment in research and development in respect of metal 3D printing in the United States (as well as a number of other jurisdictions). There has been growing conflict over the ownership of intellectual property in respect of metal 3D printing . In 2018, Desktop Metal Inc. launched litigation against Markforged Inc. and Matiu Parangi in relation to intellectual property and metal 3D printing in the United States. As well as complaints of patent infringement, Desktop Metal Inc. has alleged that the defendants had engaged in acts of trade secret misappropriation, unfair and deceptive business practices, and breach of contract. Markforged Inc. made various counter-claims of its own. In July 2018, a Federal Jury found that Markforged Inc. did not infringe two patents held by its rival Desktop Metal Inc. Claims of further violations of trade secrets and contract law were also considered. In the end, the dispute was settled, with neither party obtaining an advantage in the litigation. There was further conflict over whether the terms of the settlement in respect of non-disparagement were honored. The parties have also faced further intellectual property conflict. In 2021, Continuous Composites has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Markforged Inc. In 2021, Desktop Metal Inc. brought legal action against SprintRay in Germany. Drawing upon this case study, this paper considers whether metal 3D printing will disrupt patent law, policy, and practice. It also explores the tension between the use of trade secrets in commercial 3D printing , and the open source ethos of the Maker Movement. This paper considers the larger implications of this intellectual property dispute over metal 3D printing for scarcity, regulation, and the abundance society. It also explores the innovation policies of the Biden administration in respect of advanced manufacturing—with a focus upon metal 3D printing and additive manufacturing. There has been a significant concentration of patents in the field of 3D printing, and a diversification of subject matter in terms of the patent claims. One of the emerging trends in patent landscapes has been the rise of patents in respect of metal 3D printing. There has been significant investment in research and development in respect of metal 3D printing in the United States, as well as a number of other jurisdictions, including Canada, the European Union, and Australia. There has been significant investment in such forms of advanced manufacturing by middle tier countries, like China, as well ” .Sixth, Markforged Inc. alleged “Desktop Metal is not entitled to injunctive relief or enhanced damages because it failed to plead the required elements for such relief, and because Desktop Metal has an adequate remedy at law for any alleged injury” .Seventh, Markforged Inc. maintained that “Desktop Metal's claims are barred in whole or in part by 35 U.S.C. §§ 286, 287 or 288” . In particular, it argued: “As just one example, Desktop Metal acquired the information it used to file and obtain the Asserted Patents as the result of a series of unlawful and deceptive acts” .Eighth, Markforged Inc. contended that “One or more of Desktop Metal's claims are barred by the doctrine of unclean hands” . Twelfth, Markforged Inc. argued: “Desktop Metal's claims are barred in whole or in part because it is unable to establish that Markforged caused any of the harm for which it is seeking redress” . The thirteenth defense was that Desktop Metal had waived any rights or claims it may have against Markforged. The fourteenth defense was that Desktop Metal had failed to mitigate any damages claims it may have against Markforged. Fifteenth defense was that Desktop Metal's complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. The sixteenth defense was that the plaintiff's claims are barred under the doctrine of in pari delicto.Ninth, Markforged Inc. denied that there had been any damage suffered by Desktop Metal. Tenth, Markforged Inc. insisted that Desktop Metal's claims were barred by the doctrines of laches and estoppel. Eleventh, Markforged Inc. maintained that Desktop Metal's “claims are frivolous, brought in bad faith and/or are brought for an improper purpose and/or were brought without reasonable inquiry” The presiding judge was Justice William G. Young—a senior judge in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Having studied by Harvard Law School, Young received his commission in 1985; served as a chief judge between 1999 and 2005; and assumed his senior status in 2021.The case was brought in front of a 12-person federal jury in Boston on Monday 9th July 2018 Jackson, . The par118 Patent (answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in each box”):Question 1: “118 Patent. With respect to the claims in the '839 Patent (answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in each box”):Question 2: “839 Patent. With respect to the claims in the 'Question 3: Willful Infringement. If you find that Markforged infringed one or more of the claims in either patent, was the infringement willful? Answer “yes” or “no.”Answer: NoQuestion 4: If you find that Markforged infringed one or more of the valid claims in either patent, what amount of money damages (in U.S. dollars) for lost profits do you award to Desktop Metal?Damages: $ 0<<signature>>ForeladyDate: 7/27/18Greg Mark, CEO of Markforged Inc., commented on the outcome: “Markforged printers have changed the way businesses produce strong parts while dramatically impacting the delivery times, cost, and supply chain logistics” Koslow, . He obseDesktop Metal commented on the outcome of the jury trial in respect of patent validity and infringement:Desktop Metal is pleased that the jury agreed with the validity of all claims in both of Desktop Metal's patents asserted against Markforged. Desktop Metal has additional claims pending alleging trade secret misappropriation by Markforged. The Federal District Court has bifurcated those counts and will try them at a later date. At Desktop Metal, we remain committed to building on our leadership in the metal 3D printing sector and continuing to provide innovative products and solutions to our hundreds of customers across industries Koslow, .Reuters: “A federal jury on Friday found metal 3D printing systems maker Markforged Inc did not infringe two patents held by rival Desktop Metal Inc, delivering a verdict that could determine leadership in the nascent market for the companies' products.”Desktop Metal observed that they were seeking further legal advice about the finding of no patent infringement: “We are currently reviewing legal options concerning the infringement issue” Koslow, . RaymondIn addition to a patent dispute between Desktop Metal and Markforged, there was also a contentious dispute over trade secrets and confidential information, and other related matters associated with unfair competition and contract law.As Lemley  has noteThere has been an increasing interest in the use of trade secrets and confidential information in the field of 3D printing and additive manufacturing . Milewski observed: “Industrial espionage will increase as will the efforts and methods used to counter these threats” . Trade secrets may well have a heightened application in the field of metal 3D printing.In his book on additive manufacturing of metals, Milewski , p. 283 There has been some disquiet about the rapid expansion of trade secrets law at a policy level. Lobel  has worrTrans-Pacific Partnership 2015—have been seeking to raise the standards of protection for trade secrets internationally . The company noted: “Desktop Metal has expended significant resources to develop its trade secrets to offer a unique and revolutionary metal 3D printing process” .Seventeenth, “Plaintiff's claims alleging misappropriation of trade secrets are barred, in whole or in part, because the information allegedly misappropriated was readily ascertainable by proper means” . Eighteenth, “Plaintiff's claims alleging misappropriation of trade secrets are barred, in whole or in part, because Plaintiff did not take proper efforts to keep the information secret”  .Twentieth, “Plaintiff's claims against Markforged alleging misappropriation of trade secrets and unfair competition are barred, in whole or in part, because Markforged did not obtain any purported trade secrets or confidential information by improper means” . Twenty-first defense was that the “Plaintiff's claims against Markforged alleging misappropriation of trade secrets and unfair competition are barred, in whole or in part, because Markforged has not used and is not using any of Plaintiffs' alleged trade secrets or confidential information” .The 22nd defense was that the “Plaintiff's claims alleging misappropriation of trade secrets are barred, in whole or in part, by Markforged's independent development” . The 23rd defense was that the “Plaintiff's claims alleging misappropriation of trade secrets are barred, in whole or in part, because the alleged trade secrets or confidential information lack independent economic value” . The 24th defense was that the “Plaintiff's claims alleging misappropriation of trade secrets are barred, in whole or in part, because Plaintiff's alleged trade secrets have not been in continuous use” . The 25th defense was that the “Plaintiffs' claims alleging misappropriation of trade secrets and unfair competition are barred, in whole or in part, to the extent they are preempted by federal law” .The Markforged Holding Corporation , p. 57 hThe Markforged Holding Corporation , p. 57 cAs well as making a defense against Desktop Metal, Markforged Inc. also made a number of counterclaims against its rival  and aiding and abetting breach of contract . There was also an accusation of a breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealing (Boston Impact). Markforged Inc. also alleged tortious interference with advantageous contractual/relations , and prospective contractual relations .Markforged Inc. claimed that there had been a civil conspiracy: “Desktop Metal, Ric Fulop, and Jonah Myerberg engaged in overt actions to further this conspiracy, including but not limited to Ric Fulop using confidential information about Markforged's key potential hires to poach and recruit those individuals for Desktop Metal, and Jonah Myerberg, by and through his company Boston Impact, accepting a position as a beta tester at Markforged in order to gain access to confidential, proprietary and trade secret information about Markforged's 3D printing products, and to use that information to advance Desktop Metal's 3D printing products” . The company alleged: “But for Ric Fulop's unjust and inequitable conduct, Markforged would have obtained additional investor funding, maintained additional 3D printer customers, maintained its trade secret and confidential proprietary information, and maintained its position as the only 3D printing company offering a printer that can produce high-strength parts on a desktop, and at an accessible price point” ., 78.The dispute between Desktop Metal Inc. and Markforged Inc. was briefly aired with a trial—but that was halted, with a settlement between the parties. There was a further dispute between the parties as to whether there had been a breach of a settlement—but an arbitration ruling found that there had been no breach of the settlement by the parties.Boston Business Journal.There was a 2-week trial scheduled for the trade secrets litigation and associated matters in September 2018. O'Brien ,b,c,d prO'Brien  previeweProviding an eyewitness account of the dispute, O'Brien  observed.Going beyond the extracts reported in the media, the trial transcripts provide a good sense of the narratives of the competing parties Acting for Markforged Inc., Harvey Wolkoff made this opening statement to the jury:. Mr Ward argued: “Just because Matiu's brother happened to work for Markforged, Desktop Metal has accused him of stealing their trade secrets”  to “3D print” or generate objects, such as industrial parts or rapid prototypes. Examples of the Accused Products include Defendant's Mark Two, Onyx Pro, X5, and X7 printers. The Accused Products are Defendant's flagship products and, on information and belief, are the primary contributors to Defendant's historical revenue  process (the “Accused Products”). The Accused Products extrude a matrix  in liquid form together with a continuous fiber reinforcement . Markforged Inc. questions the validity of a number of patents of Continuous Composites Inc., raising issues in respect of inventorship, utility, novelty, non-obviousness, enablement, definiteness, and written description. Markforged Inc. maintains that it has not infringed, induced another to infringe, or contributed to another's infringement of any the patent claims of Continuous Composites Inc.In terms of remedies, Markforged Inc. calls for a limitation of damages and costs. Markforged Inc. insists that this is not an exceptional case. Markforged Inc. insists that there was no willful infringement. Markforged Inc. says that there should be no injunctive relief. Markforged Inc. invokes various equitable bars to relief. Markforged Inc. notes that there are limitations to patent actions for government sales.As for its counterclaims, Markforged Inc. has called for declaratory judgment of invalidity of Continuous Composites Inc.'s patents in the dispute. It has also asked for a declaratory judgment of non-infringement of Continuous Composites Inc.'s patents in the dispute. Markforged Inc. has sought a jury trial, asking for a range of remedies in the case.Markforged Inc. has also asked for an inter partes review of U.S. Patent No. 10,744,708 held by Continuous Composites Inc.In its 2022 annual report, Markforged Inc. . He is the chief investigator in the Australian Research Council Discovery Project, Inventing the Future: Intellectual Property and 3D Printing (2017-2021) (DP 170100758).The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author.The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and has approved it for publication.MR is the chief investigator in the Australian Research Council Discovery Project-Inventing the Future: Intellectual Property and 3D Printing (2017–2021) (DP 170100758).The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.


Since its publication in 1972, the Faure report has been regarded as a foundational text on the subject of lifelong learning, offering a plethora of ideas and repertoires. This article contemplates why and how the notions of self-fulfilment and self-learning are interrelated and profoundly important in understanding contemporary lifelong learning discourses, and how both have been appropriated by subsequent policy texts embedded in neoliberal thinking. The author argues that pursuing lifelong learning for self-fulfilment becomes voluntary self-exploitation as the individual’s desire to learn unwittingly becomes driven by the instinct to survive and thrive in neoliberal socio-political environments. He also demonstrates that the ideas and repertoires provided in the Faure report function as a fertile ground for lifelong learning discourses, even though the abundant mix of ideas and propositions make it difficult to view the report as an ideologically coherent and conceptually tight-knit blueprint for the future of education. Nonetheless, the author argues that the legacy of the Faure report is still valid beyond its historical specificity. He points out that when read within the context of the unprecedented worldwide experience of COVID-19, the Faure report’s proposition and reservations regarding mass media and cybernetics can shed light on the potential for contemporary technologies to strengthen emancipatory experiences of lifelong learning. Reflecting on this, he suggests that it is necessary to think collectively about how we can appreciate and harness technological innovation as an emancipatory tool to liberate ourselves from ignorance and prejudice through borderless and limitless connections to others, and to learn how to live with them. Since the Second World War, a fast-growing number of international organisations have been established to address various global issues, including global educational development. Among these international bodies, four in particular have played a key role in the field of global educational development, namely the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); the European Union (EU), and the World Bank , whereas UNESCO’s stance has firmly stood with social democratic liberalism, which values the role of lifelong learning in realising self-fulfilment and humanising society .1Re-reading the Faure report today, however, reveals that such a critique is only true on a superficial level. I can certainly see that the Faure report is inherently grounded in European liberalism, given the profound polemics that expound a vision for all individuals’ full realisation of their potential and interests through lifelong education  not only represent geographical variety but also non-Western ways of knowing. Of course, one may argue that the Commission’s membership configuration does not necessarily mean that all voices and cultural knowledge are equally reflected in the report. Yet the wide range of consultations and documents comprehensively covered by Faure’s International Commission does indicate an effort to go beyond European liberalism  in the report’s hightlighting of self-fulfilment through lifelong education.as a process in the human being, who thereby learns to express himself to communicate and to question the world, through his various experiences, and increasingly – all the time – to fulfil himself , Ivan Illich   UNESCO in the 1970 and 1980s  Wain . These wse” Wain , p. 39, “Learning to be” is a continuous learning process of achieving self-fulfilment, or, put differently, it is about learning to be human beings.The above excerpt from the Faure report also suggests that lifelong learning is about “the continuing process of making sense of everyday experience” Jarvis , p. 11. In summary, the Faure report’s notion of self-fulfilment is distinctive from the idea of traditional liberalist self-fulfilment. On the one hand, the Faure report sees self-fulfilment as an individual’s essential right, and on the other hand, the report does not simply view individuals as self-interested agents motivated by a universal egoism. Instead, the Faure report regards self-fulfilment as a continuous learning process of being a human individual in the context of moral obligation and a social contract. As noted above, this perspective is expressed in the concept of “complete man”, who consciously seeks emancipation and therefore supports a greater view of ever-evolving and increasingly humanising societies.realise self-fulfilment. The answer from the Faure Commission is self-learning. While the report does not provide a formal definition of self-learning, it discusses several principles and pathways:Self-learning … has irreplaceable value in any educational system … Each individual’s aspirations to self-learning must be realized by providing him – not only in school and university but elsewhere too, under conditions and circumstances of all kinds – with the means, tools and incentives for making his personal studies a fruitful activity The main goal of lifelong learning proposed in the Faure report is “self-fulfilment” . The report further specifies that self-learning should beassisted by provision of new and varied sources of materials and data, by numerous leisure activities and by social and community programmes likely to promote participation and encourage mutual education .The Faure report also states that self-learning should be chooses to enrol in a class or group for part of the process. But the learner himself initiates, selects the experiences and the persons who assist him in learning and evaluates the process .Self-directed learning is not the same as individualised learning; sometimes the learner When explaining the assisted nature of self-learning, the Faure report uses the term “self-directed learning” interchangeably, offering the following definition:modus operandi for self-fulfilment in the Faure report.Since the publication of the Faure report, the progressive characteristic embedded in self-learning (or self-directed learning) has become an integral part of lifelong learning discourses. In short, self-learning is an important Memorandum on Lifelong Learning:Memorandum  which tends to be translated into neoliberal language Lee . DrawingLifelong Learning for All . Why the OECD text is characterised as neoliberal becomes clearer especially when comparing it with UNESCO’s Delors reportIn line with this neoliberal appropriation, self-fulfilment as one of the main goals of lifelong learning is clearly presented in the OECD’s policy text, entitled All OECD . This reIn a lifelong learning approach, it is the role of government to promote the development of appropriate “bridges” and “ladders”… in which the various elements of education and training provision can be articulated OECD , p. 184.[A]n education system must operate within the context of a social compact …. Governments have a huge responsibility to act as the brokers of this compact . This proposition is paralleled with a body of literature concerning the terminological shift from “lifelong education” to “lifelong learning” , the Delors report aimed to elaborate the Faure Commission’s vision of a learning society as “the necessary utopia”  approach to proposing action plans or educational planning with a focus on technological advancement and its significant relationship with individual learners and social progress. In the report’s preamble, in the section labelled “The instruments of change”, Faure himself highlights that:the scientific-technological revolution has simultaneously conquered the mental world, with its immediate transmission of information over any distance and its invention of increasingly perfected, rationalized, calculating machines. This is a phenomenon which necessarily affects all of humanity .Earlier in the preamble, in the section labelled “The scientific and technological revolution: education and democracy”, Faure emphasises that[T]he revolution in mass media and cybernetics affects everyone everywhere … The scientific-technological revolution therefore places problems of knowledge and training in an entirely new light, giving man entirely new possibilities of thought and action; and, for the first time, it is truly universal .Amid technological advancements, the Faure report views mass media and cybernetics as having the great potential to build a learning society.radio and television are put to use outside and parallel to education strictly speaking …. It is commonly felt that computerized data processing should be restricted to higher studies; yet, on the contrary, it is most important to plan to give very young children some introduction to the elementary language of machines. First, because algorithms correspond to a remarkable logical method. Second, because contact with this “mysterious” power often greatly strengthens motivation towards knowledge  and cybernetics in education, the Faure report describes mass media and cybernetics as “the instruments of change” , given their emancipatory and up-scalable nature. The report posits that:who will begin the learning society and who will control the science and technology which is used to produce that learning society” .… the existentialist-Marxist concept of “alienation” appears 10 times in the Faure report. Most of these instances refer to technical progress that the report considered to be a double-edged sword that has the potential to bring about positive change, but can also be “a source of iniquity, alienation and new tyrannies” (p. 101). The report expressed concern about “obsessive forms of propaganda” [p. xxiv] of “mass-communication media” [p. 191], “behavioural conformity which may be imposed on [human beings] from the outside” [p. xxiv], and “increasing possibilities for influencing human behaviour” (p. 102)  technology development led to the following phenomenon. In March 2016, “AlphaGo”, the AI-based computer programme of the complex board game Go, defeated Lee Sedol, the  invincible world champion. This “AlphaGo shock” clearly tells us two things: (1) a machine can outperform humans in complex tasks requiring high-order thinking abilities such as problem-solving and creativity; and (2) in the future, we and next-generation learners will have to live with technological advancements such as AlphaGo in our daily life. This means that next-generation learnersI do not think that we can simply deny all technological advancements that fundamentally change how we form relationships with others from different socio-cultural backgrounds. Rather than dismissing all kinds of technological innovation simply as cyber-capitalism, which is just a wholesale criticism, what we need is to collectively think about how to live together with other human beings amid ever-advancing technologies.l’heure entre chien et loup – literally, “the hour between dog and wolf”. There may be some ambiguous hours ahead (either dawn or dusk) during which we cannot tell whether contemporary technological advancement is a dog or a wolf for our learning throughout life.Revisiting the Faure report fifty years after its publication is useful because it allows us to think collectively about how we can appreciate and harness technology as an emancipatory tool to liberate ourselves from ignorance and prejudice through borderless connections, and to learn how to live with others. I believe that this is one of the covert messages conveyed in the Faure report when it proposes the role of science and technology in a learning society. Perhaps we are on the verge of


In Japan, staff who are not doctors or nurses can assist the elderly in residential care facilities to take their pre-packaged medicines. Therefore, there is a potential risk of incidents specific to staffs. The aim of this study was to clarify the causes of incidents related to medication assistance by staff in residential care facilities.Semi-structured interviews with staff involved in medication incidents in long-term care facilities, focusing on how and why each incident happened, were conducted. The interview covered basic information about the subject and resident, the circumstances under which the incident had occurred, contributing factors, and countermeasures put in place. Verbatim transcripts of the interviews were prepared. Based on thematic analysis, codes and themes were created.Twelve subjects participated in this study. All subjects were staffs (not doctors or nurses) in long-term care facilities. All incidents covered in this study were incidents in which the wrong resident was given the medication. The incidents arose because of “not following procedures”, such as lack of “self-check of residents’ faces/residents’ names/residents’ medicine envelopes” or “double-check with other staff” or “using a device for medication intake”. Contributory factors were grouped into four categories: individual resident factor items such as “decreased ability to understand their medication” or “refusal to take medicines”, individual staff factor items such as “lack of knowledge related to medication” or “mental burden” or “experience in medication assistance”, team factor items such as “failure to communicate with other staff”, work environment factor items such as “presence of other residents” or “other work besides medication assistance” or “not enough time” or “little understanding of fostering a safety culture at the facility”.This study identified four categories of contributory factors that may lead to incidents during medication assistance by caregivers for residents of care homes. These findings should be helpful for risk management in residential care facilities where staff usually provide medication assistance. Separation of meal times and medication assistance, and professional review to stagger the timing of administration of residents’ medication may be effective in reducing incidents.The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12877-022-03016-4. Aging population is a common problem not only in developed countries, but also in developing countries . This isIn Japan, there are many types of facilities for the elderly, including special nursing homes, geriatric health services facilities, nursing care homes, and residential homes with long-term care services. These are not medical facilities, and they do not offer advanced medical treatment. However, nurses carry out routine treatments, such as care of pressure ulcers, suction, breathing assistance, or checking vital signs. Moreover, regular staff, who are not doctors or nurses, often help residents to take medicines that have been pre-packaged. However, it has been reported that medication administration errors occurred more frequently in long-term care homes than in patients’ homes . FurtherIn the present study, a qualitative interview survey focused on factors contributing to incidents in medication assistance by staff in residential care facilities was conducted. The purpose of this study was to identify the contributing factors in order to improve risk management in residential care facilities.This study was a multicentre prospective qualitative study. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted because this method is well suited for the purpose of investigating peoples’ experiences of a focused phenomenon. The semi-structured method also makes it easy for participants to share their experiences. The interviews were conducted with staff who had experienced medication incidents related to assistance of residents in taking their medicines. “Medication incidents” were defined as events in which appropriate medication was not given (including omission of medication) or inappropriate medication was about to be given as a result of medication assistance by staff. The interviews were transcribed verbatim, then coding and themes were generated using thematic analysis, and a conceptual diagram was created.Staffs in long-term care facilities who had experienced medication incidents as defined above were recruited as candidates for interview. All facilities were in the Kanto district  in Japan.Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted according to the interview guide appendix  and tookThe interview took place in a private room in the facility where the interviewee worked. All the facilities were in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, or Chiba in Japan. In the interview, each participant gave basic information about themselves and the resident, details of the medication incident, and their opinion about contributory factors. All interviews were conducted in Japanese. Interviewers were KH, then a Ph.D. student at the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, and YD, an employee of SOMPO Care Inc., who provided business support. SH, an associate professor at the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, attended some of the interviews. The participants were unknown to KH, YD, and SH. Interviews were audio-recorded with participants’ consent. The authors confirm that all participant/resident identifiers have been removed so that anonymity is assured.Verbatim transcripts of the interviews were prepared and thematic analysis was conducted. The analysis theme was “HOW and WHY the medication incident happened”. KH performed all coding inductively. The software used for this analysis was MAXQDA 2020 (VERBI GmbH). Coding units were defined as a set of semantic units. Inductive coding was repeated and codes were modified as appropriate in the process of the analysis. Based on the obtained codes, the theme was created. In this study, in order to enhance the trustworthiness of data analysis, the codes and themes generated by the first author (KH) were reviewed by another author (SH), and then modified and finalized by discussion between KH and SH. Data analysis was conducted at the Laboratory of Drug Lifetime Management in the University of Tokyo Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Laboratory of Drug Informatics in the Keio University Faculty of Pharmacy.All methods were carried out in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. This study was approved by the Research Ethics Review Committee, Keio University Faculty of Pharmacy (accession number 190119–1) and by the Research Ethics Review Committee of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the University of Tokyo .Twelve staff participated in this study. Four were in the 20’s, one was in the 30’s, and 7 were in the 40’s. Seven were males and 5 were females Table .Table 1BAll incidents in this study involved the wrong resident being given the medication, but none had a serious outcome. Common procedures for medication assistance were in place where the participants worked appendix . The creIn general, medication assistance is not unilateral, but involves an interaction between the resident and the staff member. “Decreased ability to understand their medication” was a factor in some individual residents. Some residents had “a decline of the residents’ understanding about their medication”, and sometimes incorrectly “recognized others’ drugs as their own”. Because some residents could not recognize their own medication, they would not be able to notice that the wrong medicine was being provided even if it is pre-packaged. Moreover, residents who showed “refusal to take their medicines” may not have understood what they were taking and therefore might not be able to recognize errors.Most incidents occurred when staff did not provide medication assistance in accordance with the established procedures for some reason. In some cases, they were distracted by unexpected events. The need to carry out tasks other than medication assistance in parallel created a “mental burden” for caregivers, leading to "impatience" and "assumptions," which in turn triggered medication errors. Lack of knowledge about the medications being administered was also a consideration, as was experience of medication assistance. Unfamiliarity with medication assistance due to lack of experience could lead to errors in the procedures, while over-familiarity with the work could lead to the omission of a part of the procedures.In an environment where the work is complex, cooperation with other staff is considered necessary for smooth medication assistance, but it was sometimes difficult to get sufficient support. “Failures to communicate with other staff” might lead to impatience in performing procedures, which could lead to medication incidents.In this study, all incidents had occurred in the cafeteria, a space designed for a large number of people to eat together. A situation had been created where many residents were present at the same time, and persons with similar names were in close proximity. The timing of starting to eat their meals varied. These situations constantly reminded the staff of “presence of other residents” and “other work besides medication assistance”. Moreover, “spatial arrangement of residents”, in that people with similar names were in close proximity to each other, could also lead to incidents.It was pointed out that the work was hard and sometimes overwhelming, resulting in "not enough time”. Time availability for medication assistance varies depending on the number of persons who can assist. Staff felt that “lack of manpower” had resulted in medication incidents.In addition, it was pointed out that simplification of procedures was routinely implemented due to the intense workload and that the nature of previous incidents was not sufficiently shared. In such an environment, the facility might show “little understanding of fostering a safety culture”.This study focused on the medication incidents that occurred during medication assistance by staff who were not doctors or nurses, and clarified the factors contributing to medication incidents. These incidents occurred in situations where staff could not keep to the established procedures, and contributory factors were classified into 4 categories; individual resident, individual staff, team, work environment.In this study, none of the incidents resulted in a serious outcome. In Japan, the scope of medication assistance by caregivers who are not doctors or nurses is very limited, and the care system of medication assistance by caregivers is designed to prevent incidents with serious outcomes. Therefore, this study extracted factors that contribute to incidents related to medication assistance by non-medical professionals in residential care facilities.Factors contributing to medication errors in hospitals or long-term care facilities have already been reported –7. PatieThere is a heavy workload in residential care homes, and it may also be important to reduce the workload from the viewpoint of risk management. However, in practice, it might be difficult to increase staffing levels. Furthermore, few care facilities in Japan have a resident pharmacist, and pharmacists may not be able to provide adequate support in residential care facilities in Japan –10. The Vincent et al. reported 7 contributory factors for medical errors in clinical tasks: patient, task/technology, staff, work environment, organization/management, and institutional context . Our surThere are a number of potential limitations to the present study. First, the subjects included in this study were limited to persons in care facilities operated by a single company. The facilities involved had two features in common: residents have meals in a cafeteria, and almost all residents receive medication assistance from staff. The procedures for medication assistance were common in all of the facilities. Second, all incidents covered in this study were incidents in which the wrong resident was given the medication. Other contributory factors might have been extracted if other incidents, such as wrong time of administration or omission of medication, had been involved. Third, only incidents recognized by staff in residential care facilities were included in the analysis. Fourth, data collection was conducted by pharmacy researchers and the company's business support staff, and data analysis was mainly conducted by a pharmacy researcher. These persons could potentially have influenced collection and interpretation of the data. Finally, in this study we did not use the method of coding by two independent persons. Instead, coding was conducted by the first author (KH), then the generated codes and themes were reviewed by another author (SH), and finalized by discussion and agreement between KH and SH.This study is the first to evaluate caregivers’ perspectives about contributory factors to medication incidents associated with medication assistance for care home residents provided by staff who are not medical professionals. Our findings should be helpful for risk management relating to medication incidents. In particular, we suggest that separation of meal times and medication assistance, and professional review of the timing of administration of residents’ medication may be effective in reducing incidents. Future studies will be needed to examine whether such operational changes and professional interventions would actually reduce medication incidents.Additional file 1.


Community participation is a key element of active aging that promotes a new paradigm to enhance health and well-being as people age. However, social isolation is often a concern for older migrants. In this study, we aimed to investigate the current status of older migrants’ community participation and assess the main influences on three forms of welfare, development, and organizational participation. We adopted a quantitative research design for this study. A questionnaire survey was completed by 1216 older migrants in 4 cities; 1105 valid responses were received, representing a response rate of around 91%. The research findings showed that the current participation of older migrants in community activities was limited. By comparison, full self-care capability and non-chronic illness positively affected general and welfare participation. Educated at primary school had a negative influence on general, development, and organizational participation, whereas knowledge of the local language was a significant predictor of general and development participation. Urban inclusion and resident friendship had positive effects on general, welfare, and development participation. The study also revealed direct influences of socioeconomic characteristics on different types of participation. Moving forward, actions are needed to maximize older migrants’ participation in public events and community life. With the aging of societies and the globalization of migration, the number of older migrants around the world is growing. In mid-2020, there were approximately 34.30 million migrants aged 65 and over, accounting for 12.2% of the total migrants worldwide ,8,9,10. “Participation” is recognized as one of the three pillars of active aging by the World Health Organization (WHO). It highlights older people’s right to exercise their participation in society, economy, culture, civil affairs, etc. . From a In China, there are two flows of migration in the context of urbanization; one is city-to-city migration, and the other is interprovincial migration. To improve the participation of these internal migrants at an older age, the Chinese government published a couple of policies to protect their right to community participation. The Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of the Elderly (2018 Amendment) highlights that older migrants should be given equal privileges. The National Basic Public Health Service Specification (2017) confirms that basic public health services should be given to all residents within a district. The 2017 State Council’s Opinions on Strengthening and Improving Community Governance in Urban and Rural Areas calls for improvement of service provision across local communities. Older adults have gradually become the main force of the whole society. Furthermore, the Notice of the Ministry of Civil Affairs on Further Strengthening the Establishment of Elderly Associations in Urban and Rural Communities (2015) and the Elderly Education Development Plan (2016–2020) specifies the rights of older migrants to participate in local associations and community-based education programs. The Opinions of the Ministry of Civil Affairs on Strongly Cultivating and Developing Community Social Organizations (2017) requires more opportunities for migrants to participate in local governance and to integrate into local community. This underlines the right of older migrants to participate in public affairs in their local communities.Although social policies encourage older migrants’ community participation, very few studies have focused on this area. In particular, related studies mainly examined older migrants’ social integration ,25, voluThere are different types of community participation, typically divided into three or four categories. The three categories include community public affairs, volunteering, and recreational and sport activities ; informaDoyal demonstrated the importance of participation and its requisites in terms of basic human needs . He poinTherefore, to promote social participation, three elements are necessary. Firstly, health serves as the basis for social participation, indicating physical, emotional, and cognitive well-being. Secondly, ability is a prerequisite, meaning the ability and skill to engage in participation with certain human capital. Thirdly, opportunity is a condition, referring to an inclusive living environment, which can provide opportunities for participation. As a result, in this study, we analyzed older migrants’ community participation from three perspectives: health status, human capital, and environmental characteristics.According to the current research findings, as well as two special characteristics of “mobility” and “old age”, older migrants’ community participation can be categorized into three forms of welfare, development, and organizational participation.Welfare participation refers to the use of public facilities and social services by older migrants , includiDevelopment participation refers to older migrants’ involvement in voluntary work and other public service activities, including political advice at the local community level . It focuOrganizational participation refers to older migrants’ participation in various types of social organizations at the community level, examining whether and to what extent older migrants have transferred their participation in the private family space to the public community space . SpecifiThe three forms of community participation reflect two special features of old age and mobility, each with a different emphasis. Welfare participation underlines the increase in “self” interests, reflecting the implementation of local welfare policies and the realization of participation rights. Development participation prioritizes an increase in “others’” interests, highlighting the productive value of older migrants’ community participation in enhancing community unity. Organizational participation considers the protection of both “self” and “others’”, interests, focusing on the transformation from occasionally spontaneous to continuously organizational participation in community activities. These three types all mirror the social and public nature of community participation; their analysis can present a more comprehensive picture of the protection of participation rights, the reproducibility of social relations, and the formation of a sense of community among older migrants. Such analysis gives an indication of older migrants’ life conditions in a new environment.In this study, we adopted a quantitative research method to examine older migrants’ participation in urban communities and its key influences. We chose to focus on the 14 urban districts in 4 cities, including XS, BJ, YH, and LP districts in Hangzhou City, HS, JB, BL, and YZ districts in Ningbo City; OH and LW districts in Wenzhou City; and XZ and PZ districts in Jiaxing City. There were three reasons for the choice of the sample sites. First, the four cities are situated in the Yangtze River Delta region, which has experienced strong economic development and has a healthy living environment and a high level of social welfare. Second, the cities in this region had a larger number of migrants compared with other cities. According to the Zhejiang Province Statistical Yearbook 2020 , the migThis questionnaire survey was designed to provide a comprehensive picture of the overall participation of older migrants in urban communities and the similarities and differences between the three forms of community participation. It comprised 45 questions, covering three sections of basic information on older migrants, typical patterns of community participation, and the evaluation of the living environment. Prior to the main survey, a pilot survey was conducted with 45 older migrants in one community of BJ district. As a result of the pilot survey, modifications were made to some questions in the survey in order to ensure that all questions were understood and accepted. The final questionnaire survey was carried out by face-to-face interviews between June and September 2020, and older migrant participants were selected based on migrant registrations. To compensate for missing respondents caused by delay in the update of the registration information, a snowball sampling method was employed to get the target population involved. A total of 1216 questionnaires were sent out, of which 1105 were valid after excluding incomplete questionnaire or incoherent responses. The overall response rate was 90.87%, as shown in The dependent variables refer to the three forms of community participation: welfare participation, development, and organizational participation. Regarding community health services, elderly care services, and senior privilege at the local level, receiving at least one of these benefits was assigned a value of “1” (“0” otherwise). Participation in any volunteering activities or providing community advice was assigned a value of “1” (“0” otherwise). Participation in social organizations, old age associations, or educational institutions in the community was assigned a value of “1” (“0” otherwise). Community participation in at least one of the three forms  was assigned a value of “1” (“0” otherwise).The independent variables present a view of health status, human capital, and environmental characteristics. The three indicators were used to assess health status were self-assessed health, self-care capability, and chronic illness risk. Self-assessed health was assigned a value of 1–5 points, with 1 representing “very unhealthy” and 5 being “very healthy”. A value of “1” was assigned to the full capability of self-care, whereas “0” was assigned to impaired self-care capability. No chronic disease was given a value of “0”, or “1” otherwise.Human capital was assessed by three indicators: educational attainment, vocational skills, and local language acknowledgement. Educational attainment consists of “primary school and below”, “middle and high school ”, and “tertiary institutions and above”. Vocational skills with relevant qualification and certificates were assigned a value of “1” (“0” otherwise). knowledge of the local language was assigned a value of “1” (“0” otherwise).Environmental characteristics were evaluated by three indicators of urban inclusion, community support, and resident friendship. The specific questions were: “I think this city treats people from other cities equally”; “I think local community and organizations is friendly to migrants”; and “I think local residents are friendly to migrants.” These variables were dichotomous, with “Yes” being assigned a value of “1” and “0” for “No”.Based on the existing research findings on influences and the available data, eight control variables were selected to reflect the socioeconomic characteristics of the population, including gender, age, political identity, type of household registration, place of migration, migration period, living conditions, and self-assessed economic status. The last variable was assigned a value on a 5-point scale, with 1 representing “very poor” and 5 being “very wealthy”. “City-to-city migration” was assigned a value of “0”, whereas “interprovincial migration” was assigned a value of “1”. In terms of migration period, “<5 years” in the local community was assigned a value of “0”, and “≥5 years” was assigned a value of “1.” All other variables were dichotomous.ith older migrant participates in local community; β is the coefficient matrix. In this study, we examined the main factors shaping older migrants’ community participation in urban areas, specifically observing whether coefficient p < 0.001, indicating that the regression models were valid overall and that the independent variables are valuable to explain the influences of older migrants’ community participation.Because the independent variables are all dichotomous, a binary logistic model was adopted for regression analysis. The empirical model was developed as follows:M2 includes control variables to estimate correlations between all variables in M1 and community participation. This model indicates that there were no substantial changes in associations between independent variables and dependent variables, except for significant effects of the same variables. The control variables of gender, household registration, political identity, living conditions, migration place, and migration period had significant effects on older migrants’ community participation. Male participation was only 67.2% of female participation, and migrants in households registered as non-agricultural were 1.777 times more likely to participate in community activities compared to those with agricultural household registration. Community participation was 2.715 times higher among members of the Communist Party of China than among non-members. Older migrants living alone were found to have higher community participation than those living with their family (spouse or children). City-to-city migration within the same province had direct influences on levels of community participation, and those who migrated to the local community more than 5 years ago had a greater likelihood of participating in community activities. In other words, levels of community participation were positively correlated with the location and the period of migration.M3 shows associations between independent variables and the form of welfare participation. This model indicates that self-care capability, chronic illness, urban inclusion, and resident friendship were significant predictors of welfare participation. Older migrants with full self-care capability and chronic illness were more likely to participate in community welfare issues. Meanwhile, better urban inclusion and resident friendship were found to have a positive effect on welfare participation. The value of urban development and the design of public policy normally reflect a city’s transparency and acceptance, which determines the accessibility of community public services for older migrants. Communication with neighbors often facilitates exchange and transmission of public service information that can guide older migrants to utilize such public service resources. However, all variables of human capital were measured to have no correlations with welfare participation, suggesting that older migrants’ education and qualification have little effect on their receipt of welfare benefits. The control variables of gender, household registration, political identity, migration space, and migration period were significantly linked to older migrants’ welfare participation. The proportion of male participation was 61.6% of that of female participation, and that of older migrants with non-agricultural household registration was 1.676 times higher than that of migrants registered in agricultural households. Members of the Communist Party of China had a greater likelihood of participating in local welfare programs than non-members. Similarly, city-to-city migrants and those living in the local community for more than 5 years were more likely to receive community welfare assistance.M4 measures the impacts of independent variables and control variables on the form of development participation. In terms of independent variables, this model indicates that education attainment, local language knowledge, and environmental characteristics had a significant effect on older migrants’ developmental participation. The development participation rate of older migrants who completed primary school or below was only 28.3% of that of older migrants with a college education or higher. A positive correlation was found between knowledge of the local language and participation in community development. All factors of environmental characteristics, including urban inclusion, community support, and resident friendship, had direct effects on development participation. In other words, those living in an inclusive or friendly community and maintaining good neighborhood relationships reported higher levels of involvement in local development projects. The status of physical and mental health was found to have no correlation with development participation. With regard to the control variables, household registration, migration place, and migrant period were significantly linked to development participation. Those who had non-agricultural household registration, had migrated within the same province, moved to the local community more than 5 years ago, and living with their family tended to have greater participation in community development.M5 examines associations of independent variables and control variables with dependent variables. Among independent variables, this model showed that educational attainment, urban inclusion, and community support were significant predictors of organizational participation. There was a negative correlation between primary education and organizational participation. An inclusive city or a friendly community had a positive effect on older migrants’ engagement in organizational events. This indicates that there might be limited information on voluntary and community organizations among older migrants. Besides, the governance and threshold for participating in some types of organizations probably restricted the elderly’s involvement and participation. However, the three indicators of health status were found to have no significant impacts on organizational participation. In terms of control variables, household registration, migration space, and migration period had significant influences on organizational participation. The participation rate in community organizations of those with non-agricultural household registration was 6.405 times higher than that of other older migrants. City-to-city migrants within the same province were more likely to get involved in such local organizations. Meanwhile, those who moved into the local community more than 5 years ago had greater engagement in organizational activities. The remaining indicators, including gender, age, political identity, living conditions, and self-assessed economic status, were measured to have no correlations with organizational participation.The real state of community participation among older migrants tends to be “paradigms lost”, which means that they live in the physical space of a community without participating in the social life. Most surveyed older migrants only regarded their community as a place of residence rather than one for relationship construction, which is basically consistent with other relevant studies on older adults or migrants ,47. OldeGiven the levels of community participation, female older migrants were more dedicated than male older migrants, and “urban-to-urban” migrants had a greater likelihood of participation than “rural-to-urban” migrants. These results are consistent with previous findings ,27. LimiThe higher likelihood of community participation among those with full self-care capability or with chronic illness suggests that older people engage in community participation regularly when they have a certain level of mobility. Specifically, the fact that older people with chronic illness were more likely to participate in community activities implies that they have stronger health consciousness and were more proactive accessing community public services. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure flexible community health services and proactive delivery of welfare and elderly care services can benefit older people, especially those with impaired mobility. Higher educational attainment and knowledge of the local language were significant to community participation, which is consistent with prior research . Both thThe independent variable of urban inclusion and the control variables of household registration and migration place had significant effects on the three types of participation. The effect of urban inclusion showed that external support in cities for older migrants to participate in the community surpassed the household registration-based mechanisms of elderly services and welfare provision. The effects of the latter two variables demonstrate that public service provision based on household registration limited older migrants’ community participation, whereas the accumulation of social relations improved community participation. None of the independent variables characterizing human capital had a significant effect on welfare participation, suggesting that welfare participation was mainly constrained by environmental inclusion and the health status of older migrants. The research results are of great significance for policy making. First, it is necessary to provide preferential treatment and services to older adults in communities and explore ways to transfer welfare for older migrants between cities so that elderly care services, and welfare and policies are be delivered to all older adults in the community. Secondly, it is important to eliminate the mechanism by which older migrants are provided services and welfare based on household registration . A welfaIn this study, we paid special attention to older migrants’ participation in community actions, which provided an illuminating insight into older migrants’ life in a new environment. The discourse on community participation frames the life experiences of older migrants and the ways they integrate with unfamiliar surroundings. This is significant in the context of national migration and suggests the need for further research on the role of participation in healthy ageing in local communities. In this study, we classified older migrants’ activities and interactions into three types participation—welfare, development, and organizational participation—which refined the understanding of life transitions, particularly in the context of welfare protection, social ties, and collective consciousness. The identification of different influences on each form of participation will contribute to an improvement of older migrants’ attentiveness to individual or organizational activities. In addition, the research findings highlight the importance of health, capability, and opportunity to active participation in different forms of activities, proposing new directions and emphasizing their roles in migration and resettlement in later life.Although this study contributes to the understanding of older migrants’ participation in different types of activities, there are some limitations. First, this research investigated older migrants across Zhejiang Province, where local communities have a comparative advantage to provide a broader range of social services or public activities. It is possible for certain factors to cause bias in responses to a survey. Therefore, caution should be exercised when generalizing the research findings. Secondly, although certain considerations were given to previous research on local people’s participation, this study was centered on the participation of the older migrant population in community activities. Further research is needed to specifying differences in community participation between local older people and older migrants so that actions can be easily adopted and best practices can be introduced. Finally, because most survey respondents remained capable of participating, whereas those in need of complete assistance were unable to engage in development and organizational activities (but could participate in some welfare services), the variable of self-care capability was defined with two codes—impaired self-care capability and full self-care capability—which might impact the research results.Active aging recognizes older adults’ rights to obtain equal opportunities to engage in all aspects of social life as they age. Under the division of public service provision dependent on the status of household registration, older migrants may be excluded from the social protection mechanisms present in their place of domicile because of “migration”. If the local social environment is not inclusive enough to enable all residents to share the fruits of development, older migrants will be caught in an awkward situation of not being able to participate in either their original community or their relocated community. This results in a tendency of older migrants to becoming “paradigms lost” in community participation, especially “rural-to-urban” older migrants who migrated from one province to another. It should be recognized congruously across the whole society that older migrants have the need and right to participate in the local community.Health is the foundation of community participation. In practice, maximization of older adults’ autonomy should be a main objective of local communities, ensuring that they are covered by community health services in order to reinforce the health foundation of their community participation. In terms of human capital, the ability to participate is a prerequisite for older migrants’ community participation, and the provision of services for local language learning is an effective way to improve the accumulation of human capital among this group. Opportunities are needed for older migrants’ community participation. Only when there are opportunities for community participation can older migrants put their thoughts and abilities of participation into action. This require an effective implementation of the existing policies on senior privilege and elderly care services. It also requires new policies to allow for the transfer of welfare benefits and entitlements between cities and to build systems connecting the provision of public services with length of residence in a community for new migrants. In addition, the transparency of urban cities and the friendly behavior of local residents can promote community solidarity, which strengthens the external environment to support older migrants’ participation.


With the increasing attention of the capital market to environmental, social and governance information, sustainability reporting has become an important carrier for stakeholders to gain insight into sustainability of companies. But the emerged “greenwashing” problem has also brought haze to the value creation of capital market. To study the consequences of the pseudo-social responsibility behavior of “greenwashing”, this paper takes China’s listed companies as the research sample to empirically examine the relationship between sustainability reporting “greenwashing” and “shared value” creation. It is found that the “greenwashing” behavior of corporate sustainability reporting significantly reduces the “shared value” creation, while the degree of sustainability information asymmetry and the quality of information disclosure play a partial mediation role between them. Further analysis shows that the more effective internal control of a company and the greater pressure of external media supervision, the more conducive to weaken the negative impact of “greenwashing” on “shared value” creation. This paper enriches the literature on the economic consequences of “greenwashing” in sustainability disclosure and the influencing factors of “shared value” creation, extends the research on information disclosure and “shared value” from financial information to non-financial information. The results call for the state to promote legislative work, formulate unified standards and compress the “greenwashing” gray space; Governments could implement mandatory disclosure, implement independent authentication and strengthen “greenwashing” social supervision; Companies should strengthen capacity building and improve the “greenwashing” governance mechanism with the help of digital empowerment. Adopted by United Nations Member States in 2015, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development defines the world’s vision and priorities for sustainable development for human, planet, prosperity, peace and partnership by 2030, and is committed to mobilizing global efforts to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) https://pacev2.apexcovantage.com/. PACE helps ensure that figures meet PLOS requirements. To use PACE, you must first register as a user. Registration is free. Then, login and navigate to the UPLOAD tab, where you will find detailed instructions on how to use the tool. If you encounter any issues or have any questions when using PACE, please email PLOS at figures@plos.org. Please note that Supporting Information files do not need this step.While revising your submission, please upload your figure files to the Preflight Analysis and Conversion Engine (PACE) digital diagnostic tool, AttachmentPONE-D-22-30440-Reviewer comments.docxSubmitted filename: Click here for additional data file. 13 Dec 2022Dear Dr. Vincenzo Basile and Reviewers,Thank you for your letter and for the reviewers’ comments concerning our manuscript entitled “Unveiling the ‘Veil’ of information disclosure: Sustainability reporting ‘Greenwashing’ and ‘Shared value’” (PONE-D-22-30440). Those comments are all valuable and very helpful for revising and improving our paper, as well as the important guiding significance to our researches. We have studied comments carefully and have made correction which we hope meet with approval. Revised portion are marked in red in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes. The reviewers’ comments are laid out below in italicized font and specific concerns have been numbered. Our response is given in the blue text.Responds to the reviewer’s comments:1. Response to comment: Title is good try to make it more attractive.Response: Thank you for the title suggested. Our manuscript entitled “Unveiling the ‘Veil’ of information disclosure: Sustainability reporting ‘Greenwashing’ and ‘Shared value’”, which fits well with the content of this research. As reviewer suggested that it is remarkable. So, after careful consideration, we decided not to change it for the time being and thank you very much for your valuable suggestions.2. Response to comment: Abstract: The methods can be used, however it would be helpful to have more background information on why they were selected.Response: We think this is an excellent suggestion. On the basis of the original, we modify the abstract and relevant content are added to the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 25-31): With the increasing attention of the capital market to corporate environmental, social and governance information, sustainability reporting has become an important carrier for stakeholders to gain insight into sustainability of companies. But the emerged “greenwashing” problem has also brought haze to the value creation among capital market. Its role is to study the consequences of the pseudo-social responsibility behavior of “greenwashing”.3. Response to comment: The abstract would be fuller with policy suggestions included.Response: It is really true as reviewer suggested that we lack policy suggestions in the abstract section, so we have added them in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 48-53): The results call for the state to promote legislative work, formulate unified standards and compress the “greenwashing” gray space; Governments could implement mandatory disclosure, implement independent authentication and strengthen “greenwashing” social supervision; Companies should strengthen capacity building and improve the “greenwashing” governance mechanism with the help of digital empowerment.4. Response to comment: This is a well-written paper with intriguing implications for learning more about the origins, progressions, and longevity of eating disorders, but its relevance to nursing is unclear.Response: We agree with you that the content of our manuscript has limitations, its relevance to nursing is unclear. In fact, this is an exciting future area. Its main research purpose is to study the consequences of the pseudo-social responsibility behavior of “greenwashing”, therefore, more attention will be paid to the issue of corporate sustainability in the paper. In the Introduction and Literature Review section, we have gone to great lengths to explain the origins, progressions, and longevity of corporate sustainability “greenwashing” problem, and we have added theoretical and empirical context in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 204-220) to supplement the lack of relevant theoretical explanations.5. Response to comment: The author has to clarify and elaborate on why examining distinct dimensions of work engagement is useful.Response: Thanks for your suggestion. As you can see, we have examined distinct dimensions of corporate values to explain “shared value”. In Literature Review section, we have combed through the research of relevant scholars and the sustainable development theory advocates the concept of creating “shared value” . We have added more content in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes  to clarify and elaborate: From the above, it can be seen that the sustainable development theory advocates the concept of creating “shared value”, and companies will help promote the value sharing with society and the environment by investing in social and environmental improvement activities that can enhance their competitiveness, and form a symbiotic relationship in which corporate success and social progress complement each other. In general, corporate “shared value” creation activities can create different types of value for stakeholders, namely economic, social and environmental . Therefore, this paper uses this perspective to comprehensively measure the “shared value” creation activities of companies from three aspects: economic value, social value, and environmental value.6. Response to comment: Newer studies demonstrating the value of having a supportive superior should be added.Response: We sincerely appreciate this valuable comment. We have checked the literature carefully and added more references on having a supportive superior and the relevant factors of “greenwashing” and “shared value” in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 204-220) to support this idea, and new added literatures have listed in the Revised Manuscript .7. Response to comment: Important normalcy assumptions should be clarified.Response: We thank the reviewer of pointing out this issue. We indeed should have applied described and relevant statistics and more normality test to clarify its important assumptions. On this basis, first, we have added Descriptive Statistics and Correlation test in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 519-540) to verify the assumptions of the statistical model, such as mean, Standard Deviation, Median, Minimum, Maximum, and the variance inflation factor (VIF). See for details in Table 4 and Table 5 in the Revised Manuscript. Second, the Hausman test has a p-value of less than 0.05, rejecting the H_0 hypothesis and a fixed-effect model was applied to test our assumptions in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 542-546). Third, it can be seen that results of the fixed-effect model R^2 is 0.244, indicating that the model has a good good fit in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 547-548). We hope our data could clearly verify the Empirical assumptions and results in the paper and be well displayed.8. Response to comment: In the abstract, they should briefly discuss the most significant results of their research.Response: It is really true as reviewer suggested that we lack a briefly discuss the most significant results of our study in the abstract, so we have re-written and summarize this part. In the Abstract section, we have added a discussion of the results after summarizing the findings, including the practical significance and comparisons with other existing studies in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 41-45): This paper enriches the literature on the economic consequences of “greenwashing” in corporate sustainability disclosure and the influencing factors of “shared value” creation, extends the research on information disclosure and “shared value” from financial information to non-financial information. In the Introduction section, we have added a discussion of the questions and briefly discuss the most significant results of our research, which we think this will make the paper more informative in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 102-123): This research attempts to answer the following questions: 1) Does the “greenwashing” behavior of corporate sustainability reporting and its information disclosure affect the “shared value” creation of enterprises? 2) If there is an influence between them, how does the influence path unfold? and 3) What kind of constraint mechanism can maximize the negative impact of the “greenwashing” behavior in corporate sustainability reporting? Accordingly, this paper comprehensively considers the “shared value” creation needs of environmental, social, enterprise and other stakeholders, and use the data of China’s listed companies for empirical testing. It is found that the “greenwashing” behavior of information disclosure in corporate sustainability reporting significantly reduces “shared value” creation, and the degree of sustainability information asymmetry and information disclosure quality play a partial role as an intermediary between them. Further analysis shows that the more sound the internal control of the enterprise and the greater the pressure of external media supervision, the more conducive it is to weaken the negative impact of “greenwashing” on “shared value” creation. The research conclusion enriches the relevant literature on the economic consequences of “greenwashing” in sustainability disclosure and the influencing factors of “shared value” creation, and extends the research of information disclosure and “shared value” from financial information to non-financial information, which provides scientific evidence for improving the quality of information disclosure in sustainability reporting, achieving the goal of “shared value” creation, and further improving corporate sustainable development capabilities.9. Response to comment: The work has to detail its key contributions, such as new methods or insights.Response: Based on the research results of previous scholars in the Literature Review section, we have complemented this part in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 231-255): In summary, the existing research provides theoretical guidance and thoughtful reference for the study of this paper. However, the following issues need further research: First, the influencing factors of “shared value” creation currently mainly focused on the research of various factors such as innovation ability and big data on “shared value” creation, and the exploration of situational influencing factors such as “greenwashing” is insufficient and scattered. Second, since the information effect is subject to the quantity and quality of information disclosure, this paper distinguishes the information effect brought by the “greenwashing” behavior into the degree of information asymmetry (quantity) and the quality of information disclosure , and explores the mediating role of information asymmetry and information disclosure quality respectively. Third, existing research mainly studies the governance of “greenwashing” behavior from the perspectives of policy system and macro collaborative governance, however, there are few studies on multi-level and integrated governance strategies that “filter” sustainability reporting. According to the accurate identification of “greenwashing” behavior of corporate sustainability information, this paper’s findings reveal the mechanism of “greenwashing” behavior and a company’s “shared value” creation. It also explores scientific and reasonable “filtering” governance strategies, which can extend the research on information disclosure and “shared value” from financial information to non-financial information. The findings could help to improve the quality of information disclosure in sustainable development reports, and encourages corporates companies to achieve the goal of “shared value” creation, and further enhance sustainable development capabilities.10. Response to comment: Author should offer theoretical and empirical context for important variables. Adding solid theoretical explanations for underlying links between variables is recommended to strengthen this section. Response: In view of this valuable suggestion, we have revised the content of the paper and added more new references to clarify the underlying links between variables. And research on sustainability reporting "greenwashing" and “shared value” creation has been supplemented in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 204-220): At present, the research data on the impact of “greenwashing” behavior on “shared value” is scarce, but “shared value” is actually a comprehensive concept, which can be reflected in the financial performance, environmental performance, and social behavior of companies to a certain extent. First, fulfilling social responsibility can help companies profit from capital markets, and in the long run, substantial environmental actions can improve corporate financial performance ; Once the “greenwashing” activity is recognized by investors, the capital market will respond to it , which is reflected in the more serious the “greenwashing” situation, the lower the cumulative excess yield during the window period. Secondly, “greenwashing” activities will reduce the enthusiasm of companies for green product research and development, reduce consumers' willingness to consume green products , mislead stakeholders to make decisions, and lead to a vicious circle of corporate environmental performance. Finally, “greenwashing” will imitate and spread within the group, forming a “ripple effect”, causing other companies to imitate , distorting the ethical standards of the industry or region, and people will question the authenticity of the proposition of social responsibility, and eventually weaken the social responsibility awareness of the entire group.11. Response to comment: It is suggested that the article be revised since the section on policy suggestions is very simple and the author did not provide thorough policy recommendations based on the study results presented here. In order to strengthen the discussion sections, it is helpful to draw parallels between the current study and others that have been conducted on similar topics.Response: In order to take reviewer’s concern into account, and improve the quality of our manuscript, we have drawn parallels between the current study and others on similar topics. First, studies consistent with the conclusions of our Benchmark analysis’ results are discussed in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 554-564): This is consistent with the findings of Walker and Wan et al.(2012), on the one hand, corporate “greenwashing” behavior has a negative impact on its financial performance, and investors as "rational people" will reduce the losses caused by the negative financial performance of companies by selling stocks, etc., resulting in negative market reactions; On the other hand, the increase in environmental awareness has led to shareholders paying more and more attention to the companies’ environmental performance. Marquis and Toffel (2016), pointed out that corporate investors will evaluate their environmental performance through the environmental information disclosure, and will respond quickly once they find “greenwashing”, which seriously affect the value sharing of the capital market. Second, studies consistent with the conclusions of our Extensive test’s results are discussed in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 704-709): Lokuwaduge and Heenetigala (2017), examined the influencing factors of social and governance reporting and found that companies’ motivation to voluntarily disclose social and governance reporting was highly influenced by regulatory isomorphic factors, so “greenwashing” behavior could naturally be curbed when external regulatory pressure increased. It is hoped that the addition to the above discussion will help to strengthen this paper.13. Response to comment: If you can, cut out some of the tangential details that aren't essential to the study's argument.Response: Thank you very much for your kind consideration of this manuscript. We agree with this suggestion and have modified and cut out some of details that aren't essential to the study as much as possible. However, due to the content and structure of the paper, the content we cut may only be a minority, and we believe that every sentence in the discussion section exists to support our conclusions. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause to reviewers.14. Response to comment: Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?Response: To study the consequences of the pseudo-social responsibility behavior of “greenwashing”, this paper takes China's listed companies as the research sample to empirically examine the relationship between sustainability reporting “greenwashing” and “shared value” creation. We have drawn our conclusions by proposing research hypotheses, descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, regression analysis, and robustness testing on experimental data. So, our manuscript has described a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Moreover, the experiments in the paper have been conducted rigorously. In Methodology and data section, we show the variable design of the paper as well as the source of the data, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. By listing the above content, we present our experimental results in full.15. Response to comment: Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?Response: Before conducting our experiment, we first performed the Hausmann test to prove a fixed-effect model should be applied to test our assumptions in the paper. Then we validated the research assumptions using regression analysis, and some robustness testing methods, such as replacing the explanatory variable, lagging the dependent variable, individual and temporal double cluster regression, and tool variable regression were used to further confirm the robustness of the benchmark regression results. However, we are very sorry for our negligence as reviewer suggested that 1. The sample needs to described and relevant statistics such as mean, standard deviation, kurtosis and asymmetry needs to be displayed. A normality test should also be displayed. 2. The assumptions of the statistical model needs to be verified. 3. Residual tests should also be presented in a detailed manner. Considering the reviewer’s suggestion, we have added Descriptive Statistics and Correlation test in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes (Line 519-540) to verify the assumptions of the statistical model, such as mean, Standard Deviation, Median, Minimum, Maximum, and the variance inflation factor (VIF). See for details in Table 4 and Table 5 in the Revised Manuscript.16. Response to comment: Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?Response: There are no restrictions on publicly sharing data in our research, but since most of the data in our paper is collated from third-party data from the CSMAR database, we did not disclose our data when we first submitted. Considering the requirements of journal editors and reviewers, we have uploaded the raw data used in our paper in the Supporting information (S_4Table) for review.17. Response to comment: Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?Response: We apologize for the poor language of our manuscript. We worked on the manuscript for a long time and repeated addition and removal of sentences and sections obviously led to poor readability. We have now worked on both language and readability and have also involved native English speakers for language corrections. We really hope that the flow and language level have been substantially improved.We tried our best to improve the manuscript and made some changes in the manuscript. These changes will not influence the content and framework of the paper. And here we did not list the changes but marked in red in the Revised Manuscript with Track Changes.We appreciate for your warm work earnestly, and hope that the correction will meet with approval.Once again, thank you very much for your comments and suggestions.Yours sincerely,Mingzhu LiCorresponding authorBusiness School, Xi’an University of Finance and Economics, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China2121031016@xaufe.edu.cnAttachmentResponse to Reviewers.docxSubmitted filename: Click here for additional data file. 19 Dec 2022Unveiling the "Veil" of information disclosure: Sustainability reporting "Greenwashing" and "Shared value"PONE-D-22-30440R1 <span style="color: rgb; font-family: verdana, geneva, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11.2px; background-color: rgb;"> Mingzhu Li </span> ,Dear Dr. We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.Within one week, you’ll receive an e-mail detailing the required amendments. When these have been addressed, you’ll receive a formal acceptance letter and your manuscript will be scheduled for publication.http://www.editorialmanager.com/pone/, click the 'Update My Information' link at the top of the page, and double check that your user information is up-to-date. If you have any billing related questions, please contact our Author Billing department directly at authorbilling@plos.org.An invoice for payment will follow shortly after the formal acceptance. To ensure an efficient process, please log into Editorial Manager at onepress@plos.org.If your institution or institutions have a press office, please notify them about your upcoming paper to help maximize its impact. If they’ll be preparing press materials, please inform our press team as soon as possible -- no later than 48 hours after receiving the formal acceptance. Your manuscript will remain under strict press embargo until 2 pm Eastern Time on the date of publication. For more information, please contact Kind regards,Vincenzo Basile, PhDAcademic EditorPLOS ONEAdditional Editor Comments :Reviewers' comments: 22 Dec 2022PONE-D-22-30440R1 Unveiling the "Veil" of information disclosure: Sustainability reporting "greenwashing" and "shared value" Dear Dr. Li:I'm pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been deemed suitable for publication in PLOS ONE. Congratulations! Your manuscript is now with our production department. onepress@plos.org.If your institution or institutions have a press office, please let them know about your upcoming paper now to help maximize its impact. If they'll be preparing press materials, please inform our press team within the next 48 hours. Your manuscript will remain under strict press embargo until 2 pm Eastern Time on the date of publication. For more information please contact plosone@plos.org. If we can help with anything else, please email us at Thank you for submitting your work to PLOS ONE and supporting open access. Kind regards, PLOS ONE Editorial Office Staffon behalf ofDr. Vincenzo Basile Academic EditorPLOS ONE