Theories and Theoretical Approaches in Double Materiality Research: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

Double materiality has rapidly emerged as a central construct in sustainability reporting under the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), yet the literature remains theoretically fragmented and descriptive. This study maps its theoretical foundations through a PRISMA‐guided systematic review combining qualitative content analysis and bibliometric mapping of 77 English‐language, peer‐reviewed journal articles published between 2019 and 7 July 2026 and retrieved from Scopus and Web of Science. Findings show that 51.9% of articles are theory‐based; Stakeholder, Institutional, and Legitimacy theories account for 60.2% of all theoretical occurrences. Theory Application represents 85.0% of theory‐based studies, whereas Extension, Refinement, and Building remain limited. The literature is heavily concentrated in Europe. The study identifies theoretical concentration, application dominance, and geographic parochialism as key vulnerabilities and proposes a research agenda examining when double materiality may move beyond regulatory compliance toward substantive organizational transformation and strategic value creation.