IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/intemj/v21y2025i1d10.1007_s11365-025-01066-9.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Shaping effect of digitalisation on corporate social responsibility: evidence from Born Global Entrepreneurial firms

Author

Listed:
  • Juying Zeng

    (Hangzhou City University)

  • Francisco Ávila-Romero

    (Universidad Tecnológica Atlántico– Mediterráneo UTAMED, Tecnología y Derecho)

  • Jun Ren

    (Wenzhou Business College)

  • Samuel Ribeiro-Navarrete

    (University of Economics and Human Sciences
    Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences)

Abstract

Digitalisation has facilitated the cultivation of corporate social responsibility through the channels of information disclosure and financial stability of the enterprises under the background of globalisation and informationalization. This study explores the influence of digitalisation on the enhancement of Corporate Social Responsibility within 512 Born Global Firms (BGFs) listed on the Second-board Market during the period from 2014 to 2020. The study focuses on the extent to which digitalization contributes to corporate social responsibility, and the degree to which this impact is moderated by information disclosure and financial stability. The study employs the entropy weight method to accurately measure BGFs’ digitalisation. Moreover, both the information disclosure and financial stability exert important mediating role in bridging digitalisation and corporate social responsibility. The study designs enterprises’ information disclosure and financial stability as mediating paths and employs spatial mediating model to measure the shaping effect of digitalisation on corporate social responsibility. The digitalisation increased by 3.22%, and it had positively stimulated corporate social responsibility by 1.54% from 2014 to 2020. Enterprises’ information disclosure is identified as a significant mediator in this dynamic relationship between digitalisation and CSR to 10.34%. In contrast, financial stability did not have a significant mediating effect. The results underscore the strategic importance of leveraging digitalisation to enhance information disclosure, thereby bolstering BGFs’ CSR in response to external environmental pressures.The study provides a new perspective on embedding digital technologies into BGFs’ corporate stakeholder management and internal governance, and highlights information disclosure and corporate social responsibility through digitalisation. This study provides insights for seeking to leverage digital strategies to strengthen their corporate social responsibility stance and enhance stakeholder engagement.

Suggested Citation

  • Juying Zeng & Francisco Ávila-Romero & Jun Ren & Samuel Ribeiro-Navarrete, 2025. "Shaping effect of digitalisation on corporate social responsibility: evidence from Born Global Entrepreneurial firms," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 1-23, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:intemj:v:21:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s11365-025-01066-9
    DOI: 10.1007/s11365-025-01066-9
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11365-025-01066-9
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11365-025-01066-9?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Cevahir Uzkurt & Rachna Kumar & Halil Semih Kimzan & Hanife Sert, 2012. "THE IMPACT OF ENVIRONMENTAL UNCERTAINTY DIMENSIONS ON ORGANISATIONAL INNOVATIVENESS: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY ON SMEs," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 16(02), pages 1-23.
    2. Waisman, Maya & Ye, Pengfei & Zhu, Yun, 2015. "The effect of political uncertainty on the cost of corporate debt," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 16(C), pages 106-117.
    3. Amrou Awaysheh & Randall A. Heron & Tod Perry & Jared I. Wilson, 2020. "On the relation between corporate social responsibility and financial performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(6), pages 965-987, June.
    4. Jong-Chol Jin & Jong-Min Ri & Hong-Il Kim & Kwang-Son Ri & Chun-Sik Kang, 2024. "A New Outlook on Development of Knowledge Economy: Evidence from the Changed Distribution of Sectors of Knowledge Economy," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(2), pages 7542-7567, June.
    5. Zhao, Hongyan & Zhang, Fenghua & Kwon, Jongwook, 2018. "Corporate social responsibility research in international business journals: An author co-citation analysis," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 389-400.
    6. Knight, Gary A. & Liesch, Peter W., 2016. "Internationalization: From incremental to born global," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 51(1), pages 93-102.
    7. Albena Pergelova & Tatiana Manolova & Ralitsa Simeonova‐Ganeva & Desislava Yordanova, 2019. "Democratizing Entrepreneurship? Digital Technologies and the Internationalization of Female‐Led SMEs," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(1), pages 14-39, January.
    8. Andrey Zahariev & Petya Ivanova & Galina Zaharieva & Krasimira Slaveva & Margarita Mihaylova & Tanya Todorova, 2023. "Interplay between CSR and the Digitalisation of Bulgarian Financial Enterprises: HRM Approach and Pandemic Evidence," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-18, August.
    9. Ferreira, João J.M. & Fernandes, Cristina I. & Ferreira, Fernando A.F., 2019. "To be or not to be digital, that is the question: Firm innovation and performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 583-590.
    10. Elia, Stefano & Giuffrida, Maria & Mariani, Marcello M. & Bresciani, Stefano, 2021. "Resources and digital export: An RBV perspective on the role of digital technologies and capabilities in cross-border e-commerce," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 158-169.
    11. Adomako, Samuel & Amankwah-Amoah, Joseph & Tarba, Shlomo Y. & Khan, Zaheer, 2021. "Perceived corruption, business process digitization, and SMEs’ degree of internationalization in sub-Saharan Africa," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 196-207.
    12. Zhang, Weiwei & Chen, Fu & Liu, Enru & Zhang, Yichi & Li, Fangfang, 2023. "How does digital inclusive finance promote the financial performance of Chinese cultural enterprises?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    13. Ernesto Cassetta & Umberto Monarca & Ivano Dileo & Claudio Di Berardino & Marco Pini, 2020. "The relationship between digital technologies and internationalisation. Evidence from Italian SMEs," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(4), pages 311-339, April.
    14. Heli Wang & Ming Jia & Zhe Zhang, 2021. "Good Deeds Done in Silence: Stakeholder Management and Quiet Giving by Chinese Firms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 32(3), pages 649-674, May.
    15. Pei Sun & Jonathan P. Doh & Tazeeb Rajwani & Donald Siegel, 2021. "Navigating cross-border institutional complexity: A review and assessment of multinational nonmarket strategy research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(9), pages 1818-1853, December.
    16. Yi Tang & Daniel Z. Mack & Guoli Chen, 2018. "The differential effects of CEO narcissism and hubris on corporate social responsibility," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(5), pages 1370-1387, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Crespo, Nuno Fernandes & Crespo, Cátia Fernandes & Silva, Graça Miranda & Nicola, Maura Bedin, 2023. "Innovation in times of crisis: The relevance of digitalization and early internationalization strategies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 188(C).
    2. Zahoor, Nadia & Khan, Zaheer & Meyer, Martin & Laker, Benjamin, 2023. "International entrepreneurial behavior of internationalizing African SMEs – Towards a new research agenda," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    3. Cicchiello, Antonella Francesca & Pietronudo, Maria Cristina & Perdichizzi, Salvatore & Cheng, Yue, 2024. "Does a rising tide lift all boats? An empirical analysis of the relationship between country digitalization and low-tech SMEs performance," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 207(C).
    4. Hua Zhang & Qiwang Zhang, 2023. "How Does Digital Transformation Facilitate Enterprise Total Factor Productivity? The Multiple Mediators of Supplier Concentration and Customer Concentration," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-18, January.
    5. Appiah, Emmanuel Kusi & Gabrielsson, Peter & Rialp Criado, Alex, 2025. "The role of digitalization in early internationalization Research: A systematic literature review and future research directions," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).
    6. Zhu, Minghao & Yeung, Andy C.L. & Zhou, Honggeng, 2021. "Diversify or concentrate: The impact of customer concentration on corporate social responsibility," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 240(C).
    7. Leogrande, Angelo & Drago, Carlo & Arnone, Massimo, 2024. "Analyzing Regional Disparities in E-Commerce Adoption Among Italian SMEs: Integrating Machine Learning Clustering and Predictive Models with Econometric Analysis," MPRA Paper 122115, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Arias-Pérez, José & Vélez-Jaramillo, Juan, 2022. "Ignoring the three-way interaction of digital orientation, Not-invented-here syndrome and employee's artificial intelligence awareness in digital innovation performance: A recipe for failure," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    9. Salvi, Antonio & Vitolla, Filippo & Rubino, Michele & Giakoumelou, Anastasia & Raimo, Nicola, 2021. "Online information on digitalisation processes and its impact on firm value," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 437-444.
    10. Ting-Ting Li & Kai Wang & Toshiyuki Sueyoshi & Derek D. Wang, 2021. "ESG: Research Progress and Future Prospects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-28, October.
    11. Il Park, Byung & Xiao, Shufeng (Simon), 2021. "Doing good by combating bad in the digital world: Institutional pressures, anti-corruption practices, and competitive implications of MNE foreign subsidiaries," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 194-205.
    12. Feliciano-Cestero, María M. & Ameen, Nisreen & Kotabe, Masaaki & Paul, Justin & Signoret, Mario, 2023. "Is digital transformation threatened? A systematic literature review of the factors influencing firms’ digital transformation and internationalization," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    13. Saridakis, Charalampos & Angelidou, Sofia & Woodside, Arch G., 2023. "How historical and social aspirations reshape the relationship between corporate financial performance and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    14. Mnahel Babgi & Benyamin Aghhavani-Shajari & Marion Vieu, 2023. "Evolution of Digitalization and Internationalization Literature: A Bibliometric and Content Analysis for Future Research Agenda," Post-Print hal-04398156, HAL.
    15. László Erdey & Laisha Liu & Adrián Nagy, 2024. "The nonlinear relationship between digital affordances and firm‐level export performance: The moderating role of organizational ambidexterity," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 45(4), pages 1944-1964, June.
    16. Bhandari, Krishna Raj & Zámborský, Peter & Ranta, Mikko & Salo, Jari, 2023. "Digitalization, internationalization, and firm performance: A resource-orchestration perspective on new OLI advantages," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(4).
    17. Marino-Romero, Jorge Alberto & Palos-Sánchez, Pedro R. & Velicia-Martín, Félix, 2024. "Evolution of digital transformation in SMEs management through a bibliometric analysis," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 199(C).
    18. Fang, Xubing & Liu, Maotao, 2024. "How does the digital transformation drive digital technology innovation of enterprises? Evidence from enterprise's digital patents," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    19. Valero-Gil, Jesús & Suárez-Perales, Inés & Garcés-Ayerbe, Concepción & Rivera-Torres, Pilar, 2024. "Navigating toward the promised land of digitalization and sustainability convergence," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    20. Culasso, Francesca & Gavurova, Beata & Crocco, Edoardo & Giacosa, Elisa, 2023. "Empirical identification of the chief digital officer role: A latent Dirichlet allocation approach," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:intemj:v:21:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s11365-025-01066-9. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.