A Clustering Analysis to Support the Definition of Effective ESG Impact Assessment Practices

The change in the sustainability assessment paradigm based on the ESG pillars requires a fundamental methodological-operational change, promoting the search and definition of taxonomies, criteria and standardized performance indicators that support generally accepted ESG impact assessment practices. As of today (2023), there is a heterogeneity of terminology and meaning regarding the indicators, criteria and operational methods to be implemented in order to carry out ESG evaluations and analyses. The main objective of this paper is to systematize the range of ESG indicators that can be found in the academic literature of the sector. To this end, an analysis of the existing bibliography on ESG over the last 10 years (2013–2023) was carried out, as well as a content analysis of the reports of the main international rating agencies whose information on their evaluation work is publicly available. A text clustering analysis was used to identify thematic categories (criteria) for each of the ESG pillars, with the aim of contributing to the construction of a dataset of indicators and criteria as a starting point for pursuing the goal of standardizing ESG ratings.