Introduction
Related research and hypothesis development
CSR disclosure
The relevance of corporate identity for CSR disclosure
H1: A high level of CSR-oriented corporate identity is positively associated with the level of CSR disclosure.
Sample, variable definition, and methodology
Sample selection
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. of companies | in % | No. of CSR reports | in % | No. of CSR surveys | in % | No. of companies with report + survey | in % | |
Initial sample | Full sample | |||||||
Panel A: Distribution by Industry | ||||||||
Industry | ||||||||
Banks and Insurance | 30 | 6.02 | 18 | 5.50 | 14 | 9.40 | 9 | 8.33 |
Chemicals, rubber, plastics, non-metallic products | 60 | 12.05 | 50 | 15.29 | 16 | 10.74 | 16 | 14.81 |
Food, beverages, tobacco | 52 | 10.44 | 35 | 10.70 | 11 | 7.38 | 7 | 6.48 |
Gas, water, electricity, construction | 30 | 6.02 | 19 | 5.81 | 10 | 6.71 | 8 | 7.41 |
Machinery, equipment, furniture, recycling | 105 | 21.08 | 88 | 26.91 | 26 | 17.45 | 25 | 23.15 |
Other services | 107 | 21.49 | 51 | 15.60 | 38 | 25.50 | 21 | 19.44 |
Post, telecommunications, transport, publishing | 37 | 7.43 | 26 | 7.95 | 12 | 8.05 | 10 | 9.26 |
Wholesale & retail trade | 77 | 15.46 | 40 | 12.23 | 22 | 14.77 | 12 | 11.11 |
Total | 498 | 100.00 | 327 | 100.00 | 149 | 100.00 | 108 | 100.00 |
Panel B: Distribution by Stock market activity | ||||||||
Stock market activity | ||||||||
Listed | 139 | 27.91 | 109 | 33.33 | 46 | 30.87 | 41 | 37.96 |
Not listed | 359 | 72.09 | 218 | 66.67 | 103 | 69.13 | 67 | 62.04 |
Total | 498 | 100.00 | 327 | 100.00 | 149 | 100.00 | 108 | 100.00 |
AIMD
academic | education training | ilo organization |
academy | emission energy | important stakeholder |
analysis materiality | emission reduction | information sustainability |
animal | emission scope | initiative support |
apprentice | employee germany | intercultural |
association freedom | employee health | international labor |
assurance report | employee make | international labor organization |
balance life | employee need | issue sustainability |
balance life work | employee new | labor organization |
bargain | employee opportunity | labor standard |
bargain collective | energy include | lighting |
biodiversity | energy resource | man woman |
business travel | energy saving | management safety |
carbon disclosure | energy water | management sustainability |
carbon footprint | engagement stakeholder | management waste |
carbon reduce | environment impact | mentor |
chain management supply | environmental issue | ngos |
charitable | environmental performance | occupational safety |
child labor | environmental reduce | offer program |
combustion | environmental responsibility | organization s |
community local | environmental social standard | pollution |
compact global principle | equal opportunity | process procurement |
condition working | gas greenhouse reduce | product responsibility |
consumption electricity | ghg | program support |
consumption energy reduce | global principle | project social |
consumption resource | governmental non | project support |
consumption water | governmental non organization | rate turnover |
convention | governmental organization | recycle |
country employee | greenhouse reduce | recycling |
course training | grus initiative | reduce use |
development professional | grus initiative reporting | relate work |
dialog stakeholder | hazardous | renewable use |
discrimination | hazardous waste | report sustainability |
disposal waste | help program | reuse |
donate | hiring | social standard |
drinking | hour work | sponsorship |
drinking water | hour working | square |
eco | illness | strategy sustainability |
economic environmental | ilo | use water |
economic environmental social | ilo labor organization | volunteer |
waste water |
Company survey
Section | Explanation |
---|---|
1 - Types and organization of CSR | Section 1 aims to capture the existing forms of CSR in the company and their organization and anchoring in directives. |
2 - Application of CSR | Section 2 is intended to cover how the company uses CSR, what objectives it pursues. |
3 - Cultural anchor | Section 3 is to identify the values and levels at which CSR is anchored in the company. |
Empirical model
Variable | Measure | Source | |
---|---|---|---|
Abbreviation | Explanation | ||
CSR disclosure | DISCLOSURE | CSR disclosure score measured by AIMD | From company websites |
Strategic integration | STRATEGY | Degree of strategic integration of CSR | Company survey |
CSR application | APPLICATION | Degree of CSR application | Company survey |
Employee integration | EMPLOYEE | Degree of employeee integration | Company survey |
Approach awareness | AWARENESS | Degree of approach awareness | Company survey |
Company size | logSIZE | Logarithm of number of employees | Orbis database |
Industry affiliation | INDUSTRY | Industry classification | Orbis database |
Profitability | logPROF | Logarithm of sales per employee | Orbis database |
Legal form | INCORPORATION | Indicator for limited company on shares | Orbis database |
Stock market activity | LISTED | Indicator for listed companies | Orbis database |
Reporting type | STANDALONE | Indicator for standalone reporting | Own assessment |
Application of GRI guidelines | GRI | Indicator for application of GRI guidelines | Company survey |
Results and discussion
Descriptive statistics
Variable | Number | Mean | Std. Dev. | Min | Max |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
DISCLOSURE | 327 | 314.09 | 402.23 | 0.00 | 2905.00 |
STRATEGY | 149 | 0.01 | 0.95 | −2.96 | 1.90 |
APPLICATION | 149 | 0.01 | 0.95 | −3.17 | 2.31 |
EMPLOYEE | 149 | −0.01 | 0.97 | −3.28 | 1.82 |
AWARENESS | 149 | 0.00 | 0.95 | −4.40 | 1.37 |
logSIZE | 481 | 7.72 | 2.38 | 0.00 | 13.29 |
logPROF | 459 | 5.81 | 1.34 | −1.47 | 14.29 |
(1) | (2) | (3) | (4) | (5) | (6) | (7) | (8) | (9) | (10) | (11) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
DISCLOSURE | (1) | 1 | ||||||||||
STRATEGY | (2) | .193* | 1 | |||||||||
APPLICATION | (3) | .180* | .038 | 1 | ||||||||
EMPLOYEE | (4) | −.118 | .035 | .012 | 1 | |||||||
AWARENESS | (5) | −.111 | .052 | .028 | .007 | 1 | ||||||
logSIZE | (6) | .059 | −.081 | .008 | .119 | −.030 | 1 | |||||
logPROF | (7) | .179* | −.037 | −.240* | −.079 | −.048 | −.354* | 1 | ||||
INCORPORATION | (8) | .004 | −.218* | −.081 | .067 | −.143* | .360* | −.070 | 1 | |||
LISTED | (9) | .017 | −.175* | −.099 | −.024 | −.021 | .323* | −.069 | .661* | 1 | ||
STANDALONE | (10) | .367* | .073 | .126 | .026 | .132 | −.014 | .018 | −.110* | −.114* | 1 | |
GRI | (11) | .440* | .265* | .057 | .05 | .133 | .126 | .118 | .030 | .048 | .227* | 1 |
Regression results
Dependent Variable = DISCLOSURE | Model 1 | Model 2 | Model 3 | Model 4 | Model 5 | Model 6 | Model 7 | Model 8 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
beta | beta | beta | beta | beta | beta | beta | beta | |
STRATEGY | .220*** | .215*** | .257*** | .261*** | .283*** | .281*** | .256*** | .165** |
APPLICATION | .188** | .182** | .178** | .224** | .223** | .225** | .200** | .167** |
EMPLOYEE | −.123 | −.13 | −.152* | −.134 | −.143* | −.140* | −.166** | −.167*** |
AWARENESS | −.116 | −.106 | −.110 | −.105 | −.090 | −.092 | −.114 | −.153* |
logSIZE | .207* | .192* | .238* | .201* | .194 | .220** | .147 | |
logPROF | .197* | .190* | .180* | .118 | .063 | |||
INCORPORATION | .110 | .070 | .053 | .072 | ||||
LISTED | .061 | .107 | .082 | |||||
STANDALONE | .385*** | .327*** | ||||||
GRI | .331*** | |||||||
INDUSTRY | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
R2 | 10% | 15% | 17% | 20% | 21% | 21% | 35% | 43% |
N | 108 | 108 | 108 | 108 | 108 | 108 | 108 | 108 |