Corporate citizenship and lobbying dataset 1995-2016

Bernhagen, Patrick (2019). Corporate citizenship and lobbying dataset 1995-2016. [Data Collection]. Colchester, Essex: UK Data Archive. 10.5255/UKDA-SN-852157

The Borderless Politics research project seeks to improve society’s understanding of how and why firms participate in public life by tracking and explaining the political behaviour of large corporations across different activities (lobbying, campaign contributions and corporate social responsibility) and venues (national, European Union and United Nations). At the core of the project is a unique database of 2,043 firms from across the globe. In addition to collecting information on the firms’ public affairs and CSR activities in national and international venues, we gathered relevant data to help explain this political engagement, such as the political system of their country of headquarter. CSR data include systematic content coding of the CSR policies of 165 firms at three different points in time. For an overlapping subset of firms we collected standardized survey data provided by Public Affairs and CSR managers who responded to an online questionnaire. For 77 firms, data have been collected from both the content analysis and the online survey. In addition, we conducted qualitative interviews with firm managers, regulators and NGOs to gain insight into the motivations behind, and the effects of, CSR activities. These data can be used to analyse how large active firms negotiate their increasingly complex political and social environments.

Data description (abstract)

The Corporate Citizenship and Lobbying Dataset contains information on 2,043 large corporations from across the globe. It is based on a stratified sample corporations taken from Standard & Poor’s Capital IQ database of corporations. The primary sampling units are four countries or regions: the UK, Germany, the US, and the rest of the world (ROW). The sample consists of corporations from 43 countries representing all regions of the world. For all 2,043 firms, the dataset contains information on headquarters and basic non-market variables, such as public affairs capacity and CSR activity at national, EU and UN levels) taken from public records and directories. For a subsample of 165 firms the data contain richer information on the quantity and quality of their CSR engagement. Variables include measures of the nature, extent and quality of self-reported CSR practices and performance. This is based on content analysis of CSR policies at three waves: 1995-99, 2005-6 and 2012-13. For 77 German, UK and US firms within this sub-sample, the dataset contains information on policy areas of political activity, lobby strategies, and the internal organization of corporate public affairs and social responsibility tasks. These latter data have been collected using an online survey of public affairs and CSR managers in 2015.

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