The Impact of Digital Transformation on High-Quality Development of Manufacturing Enterprises: An Integrated Perspective on Efficiency and Social Responsibility

Abstract

With the rise of a new wave of technological revolution and industrial transformation, digital technology has become a key force driving global economic and social development. Digital technology holds significant advantages in promoting industrial transformation and upgrading, as well as facilitating the high-quality development of manufacturing enterprises. This study selects 482 manufacturing enterprises in the Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share markets from 2010 to 2022 as samples and comprehensively measures the high-quality development level of enterprises from the two dimensions of production efficiency and social responsibility. Based on this, a two-way fixed effect model is used to test the impact of digital technology on the high-quality development of manufacturing enterprises. The results show that the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises enhances their level of high-quality development by improving production efficiency and strengthening social responsibility. This conclusion remains robust after a series of robustness checks. The mechanism analysis reveals that digitalization influences the high-quality development of manufacturing enterprises by altering financing costs, innovation output, and human capital. The heterogeneity analysis indicates that this impact varies significantly across ownership types, industries, and regions. Therefore, further efforts should be made to promote the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises, strengthen technological innovation, enhance talent cultivation, and promote industrial integration, thereby leveraging digital technology to significantly improve high-quality development levels.