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The Effects of Managerial Competency and Local Religiosity on Corporate Environmental Responsibility

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  • Chuluunbat Tsendsuren

    (School of Business and Technology Management, College of Business, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon 34141, Korea)

  • Prayag Lal Yadav

    (Global Commercialization Center, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon 34141, Korea)

  • Sangsoo Kim

    (Ingenium College of Convergence Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Seoul 02450, Korea)

  • Seunghun Han

    (School of Business and Technology Management, College of Business, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon 34141, Korea)

Abstract

This study investigates the influence of local religious beliefs to evaluate managerial motives towards corporate environmental engagement, considering the growing attention of the role of external factors in shaping corporate behavior. Using Newsweek’s green rankings of the largest publicly traded US firms by market capitalization from 2014–2016, we find that competent managers show a higher strategic preference for corporate environmental practices in firms located in low-Protestant or high-Catholic areas exhibiting higher risk and uncertainty, which tend to mitigate the negative effects of risky environments. We find that corporate environmental practices positively influence the sales of firms in high risk-taking states. This study provides significant contributions to the literature documenting the consequences of local religious risk-taking behavior and elaborates on the perceptions of competent managers on environmental management. The results provide valuable insights for practitioners and policymakers looking to incorporate environmental practices.

Suggested Citation

  • Chuluunbat Tsendsuren & Prayag Lal Yadav & Sangsoo Kim & Seunghun Han, 2021. "The Effects of Managerial Competency and Local Religiosity on Corporate Environmental Responsibility," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-14, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:11:p:5857-:d:560513
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