| Variable type | Variable name | Variable symbol | Variable Definition | |
| Explanatory variable | Digital innovation | DI | The natural logarithm is taken after adding 1 to the word frequency of the digitized situational characteristic words in the annual report | |
| Explained variable | Innovation performance | lnapply | Number of patent applications for inventions plus 1 in natural logarithms | |
| Mediating Variables | Dynamic capability | Absorptive capability | RD | R & D expenditure/operating income |
| Innovative capability | IA | Intensity of R & D expenditure and proportion of technicians are standardised and summed separately | ||
| Adaptive capability | ACV | ACV = −∂/mean, with ∂ being the standard deviation of the intensity of R & D expenditures, the intensity of capital expenditures, and the intensity of advertising expenditures, and mean being the average of all three | ||
| Control variable | Enterprise size | Size | Natural logarithm of total assets | |
| Asset-liability ratio | Lev | Total liabilities/total assets | ||
| Return on total assets | ROA | Net profit/total assets | ||
| Cash flow | Cashflow | Net cash flows from operating activities/total assets | ||
| Enterprise growth | Growth | Growth rate of operating income | ||
| Ownership concentration | Top1 | Shareholding ratio of the largest shareholder | ||
| Enterprise nature | SOE | Dummy variables, 1 for state-owned enterprises and 0 for private enterprises | ||
| Number of years listed | Listage | Natural logarithm of the number of years listed | ||