Sustainable development drivers of companies: An international and <scp>multilevel</scp> analysis

Abstract

Abstract By adopting a pluralistic theoretical framework from stakeholder theory, neo‐institutional theory, and the resource‐based view, this article aims to identify the determinants of the sustainable development commitment or corporate social performance (CSP) of companies in an international context through a macrolevel, mesolevel, and microlevel analysis. Using a methodology based on generalized estimation equation models and social data from the Vigeo Eiris longitudinal database (2004–2015), the study shows that the economic system, in the sense of Amable, and the industrial sector have the greatest influence on CSP and its dimensions. This finding puts into perspective work that attributes high explanatory power to macroeconomic and mesoeconomic variables and moderates the influence of microeconomic variables on CSP, as firm size, R&amp;D policy, and financial performance.