Researching fairness in business and society: Spotlight on Irina Gazizova

For Irina Gazizova, questions about responsibility, inequality, and opportunity have shaped a decade of her research. Irina joined the House of Sustainable Society (then Misum) as an affiliated researcher already in 2020, a few months after starting her position as an assistant professor in the Department of Accounting at the Stockholm School of Economics.  

Her research centers on how information moves between firms and their stakeholders, with a strong focus on the consequences and implications of these information flows. At the core of her work lies a long-standing curiosity about fairness. 

“I have always been curious about questions such as why, as humans, we take so much from nature and give back so little, or why some people are born into very privileged positions while others are far less fortunate,” Irina says. “Today, these are the kinds of issues that fall under corporate social responsibility — but my interest in them started long before I knew the term.”

CSR close at heart 

Formalizing this interest during her PhD, Irina began investigating the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in relation to accounting questions. Since the very first paper she wrote during her PhD — on how firms respond to increased pressures to improve their CSR — it has remained at the core of her research interests. 

“Even though CSR receives a lot of attention today, I think many important questions remain open,” she says. “That is what makes it so interesting to me — the potential impact of this research is substantial, which is why I have genuinely enjoyed working in this area for almost ten years now.”  

Challenging prevailing narratives 

In recent years, Irina has expanded her focus to another dimension of fairness: how socioeconomic background shapes professional success. In a current working paper, she and coauthors study the auditing profession to understand whether career paths differ depending on family background. 

The results so far suggest they do. Auditors from higher socioeconomic backgrounds tend to earn more over time, and the income gap becomes especially pronounced at the partner level. They are also more likely to become audit partners or join the boards of audit firms. 

“This project is still work in progress, but we think that even the current findings are striking and challenge the meritocratic narrative of public accounting.” 

And that’s not all. The study also points to differences in mental health outcomes. Auditors from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are significantly more likely to be diagnosed with depression, suggesting that the psychological burdens of the profession fall disproportionately across groups.  

These findings connect back to Irina’s broader interest in CSR. If organizations aim to be fair and sustainable, they must also examine how internal structures affect people differently. 

Research as a long-term commitment 

Although Irina approaches the end of her tenure track as Assistant Professor at SSE, the plan for the next five years remains firmly rooted in academia. 

“Of course, I hope to obtain a permanent position at SSE,” she says. “But more than anything I hope that, five years from now, I will still be collaborating with coauthors I enjoy working with, on projects that genuinely excite me, and that I will feel even more passionate about the work I do.” 

From auditing to Dostoevsky 

Before entering academia Irina worked in the banking industry. She might have stayed there, if she had not switched paths for a career in research — exploring the questions that have followed her throughout her life. 

And even outside of work, Irina’s interests coincide with her research. She has recently been reading about social class and inequality, recommending The Class Ceiling by Sam Friedman and Daniel Laurison for an eye-opening read. She has also finally gotten around to reading The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky.  

“Growing up, it was something we were expected to read at school, but I only managed to get to it now. It is truly a masterpiece and the best book I have read so far this year.” 

And what does Irina like most about life in Sweden? 

“Access to nature, very friendly people, and IKEA in the city center,” she says with a smile.