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Necessity as the mother of ‘green’ inventions: Institutional pressures and environmental innovations

Author

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  • Pascual Berrone
  • Andrea Fosfuri
  • Liliana Gelabert
  • Luis R. Gomez‐Mejia

Abstract

Drawing on institutional theory and innovation literature, we argue that greater regulatory and normative pressures concerning environmental issues positively influence companies' propensity to engage in environmental innovation. Analysis of environment‐related patents of 326 publicly traded firms from polluting industries in the United States suggests that institutional pressures can trigger such innovation, especially in those firms displaying a greater deficiency gap (i.e., firms polluting relatively more than their industry peers). Moreover, we find that this effect is stronger when asset specificity is high, and that the availability of resources plays different roles depending on the type of pressures (regulatory vs. normative).Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Suggested Citation

  • Pascual Berrone & Andrea Fosfuri & Liliana Gelabert & Luis R. Gomez‐Mejia, 2013. "Necessity as the mother of ‘green’ inventions: Institutional pressures and environmental innovations," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(8), pages 891-909, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:stratm:v:34:y:2013:i:8:p:891-909
    DOI: 10.1002/smj.2041
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    Cited by:

    1. Shui, Xiaolong & Korosteleva, Julia & Nguyen, Bach, 2025. "From green to growth: The effect of Go Green on entrepreneurial growth aspirations," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 40(4).
    2. Chircop, Justin & Tarsalewska, Monika & Trzeciakiewicz, Agnieszka, 2025. "Learning to be green: Accounting comparability and environmental violations," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 57(5).
    3. Jing Xiao & Ping Zeng & Huafei Yan & Lanlan Niu, 2026. "Can digital transformation promote enterprise green innovation? Evidence from China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 28(4), pages 9065-9092, April.
    4. Benhong Peng & Fei Gao, 2026. "Fortune or Misfortune? Climate Risk and Corporate ESG Performance," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 17(2), pages 5097-5144, April.
    5. Gao, Daquan & Li, Songsong, 2025. "Top management team biographical similarity and persistent green innovation: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 77(PB).
    6. Weihua Liu & Rui Lan & Chaolun Yuan & Jingcheng Qiu & Yongzheng Gao & Ou Tang & Yang He & Yang Cheng, 2025. "Integration and innovation of China’s manufacturing and logistics industries and carbon emissions," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-23, December.
    7. Jianbang Xu & Yimin Wang, 2025. "Exploring New Green Frontiers? How CEO Green and Technological Experience Shapes Firm Ambidextrous Green Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-27, September.
    8. Wang, Jianli & Xiao, Xiao & Dong, Minghua & Li, Jingyuan, 2025. "Does ESG rating disagreement discourage corporate green innovation? Evidence from China," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    9. Du, Lei & Yang, Kening, 2025. "Does institutional change during the green transition influence low-carbon innovation? Evidence from China's Low-Carbon City Project," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    10. Ma, Zihao & Zhang, Pingdan, 2025. "Did the main functional area planning promote green development in China?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 220(C).
    11. Huixiang Zeng & Yuyao Shao & Ning Ding & Limin Zheng & Jinling Zhao, 2025. "Internal and External Cultivation to Drive Enterprises’ Green Transformation: Dual Perspectives of Vertical Supervision and Environmental Self-Discipline," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-35, August.
    12. Yu Wang & Michel Magnan & Yetaotao Qiu, 2025. "Going Green: An Analysis of Mutual Fund Investment and Green Innovation in the Context of China," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 88(12), pages 3547-3584, December.
    13. Guangchen Li & Qianlong Ma & Rsha Alghafes & Khaoula Aliani, 2026. "Firm-perceived economic policy uncertainty and corporate greenwashing: evidence from China," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 59(2), pages 1-29, April.
    14. Chenghao Ye & Igor A. Mayburov, 2025. "Does an Environmental Protection Tax Promote or Inhibit the Market Value of Companies? Evidence from Chinese Polluting Companies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-26, October.
    15. Li, Wei & Man, Yuanyuan & Liu, Jianing & He, Yongda & Hu, Yang, 2025. "Emission trading policy and firm-level carbon disclosure in China: Unveiling the potential of market-based environmental regulation," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    16. Rui Zhu & Pengfei Ge & Chuxiong Tang, 2026. "Can policy synergy empower green innovation? Theoretical and empirical insights from China," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 59(1), pages 1-46, February.

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