IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v15y2018i6p1191-d151066.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Antecedents of Corporate Environmental Commitments: The Role of Customers

Author

Listed:
  • Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi

    (CENTRUM Católica Graduate Business School, Lima 15023, Peru
    Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Lima 15023, Peru)

  • Alexander Brem

    (School of Business and Economics, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), 90429 Nuremberg, Germany
    Technology Entrepreneurship and Innovation (TEI), University of Southern Denmark, 6400 Sønderborg, Denmark)

Abstract

The management of natural environments has become a fundamental issue for companies in recent years. A firm’s environmental commitment affects all levels of its operation. In this study, we investigated whether having an effective and constant relationship with customers over time (customer capital) makes a difference to firms with a high environmental commitment compared with less environmentally committed firms. We found support for our idea by using original survey data from 149 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Iran (2016–2017). Furthermore, we found that customer capital enhances environmental collaboration with customers which, in turn, has a positive impact on the firm’s environmental commitments. These findings provide empirical evidence for the important role of “getting closer to customers” as a way of enhancing corporate environmental responsibility in developing countries with weak institutional environments.

Suggested Citation

  • Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi & Alexander Brem, 2018. "Antecedents of Corporate Environmental Commitments: The Role of Customers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-10, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:6:p:1191-:d:151066
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/6/1191/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/6/1191/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wei Liu & Qiao Wei & Song-Qin Huang & Sang-Bing Tsai, 2017. "Doing Good Again? A Multilevel Institutional Perspective on Corporate Environmental Responsibility and Philanthropic Strategy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-15, October.
    2. Menguc, Bulent & Ozanne, Lucie K., 2005. "Challenges of the "green imperative": a natural resource-based approach to the environmental orientation-business performance relationship," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 58(4), pages 430-438, April.
    3. Fara Azmat & Ramanie Samaratunge, 2009. "Responsible Entrepreneurship in Developing Countries: Understanding the Realities and Complexities," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 90(3), pages 437-452, December.
    4. Han-Shen Chen, 2017. "Evaluation and Analysis of Eco-Security in Environmentally Sensitive Areas Using an Emergy Ecological Footprint," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-11, January.
    5. Bernd Carsten Stahl & Michael Obach & Emad Yaghmaei & Veikko Ikonen & Kate Chatfield & Alexander Brem, 2017. "The Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) Maturity Model: Linking Theory and Practice," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(6), pages 1-19, June.
    6. Peter Dobers & Minna Halme, 2009. "Corporate social responsibility and developing countries," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(5), pages 237-249, September.
    7. Yu-Shan Chen, 2008. "The Positive Effect of Green Intellectual Capital on Competitive Advantages of Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 77(3), pages 271-286, February.
    8. Kyriaki Remoundou & Phoebe Koundouri, 2009. "Environmental Effects on Public Health: An Economic Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 6(8), pages 1-19, July.
    9. Magali Delmas & Michael W. Toffel, 2004. "Stakeholders and environmental management practices: an institutional framework," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 13(4), pages 209-222, July.
    10. Gholamhossein Hosseininia & Ali Ramezani, 2016. "Factors Influencing Sustainable Entrepreneurship in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Iran: A Case Study of Food Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(10), pages 1-20, October.
    11. Sea-Jin Chang & Arjen van Witteloostuijn & Lorraine Eden, 2010. "From the Editors: Common method variance in international business research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 41(2), pages 178-184, February.
    12. C. Christopher Baughn & Nancy L. (Dusty) Bodie & John C. McIntosh, 2007. "Corporate social and environmental responsibility in Asian countries and other geographical regions," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 14(4), pages 189-205, September.
    13. Bill McEvily & Alfred Marcus, 2005. "Embedded ties and the acquisition of competitive capabilities," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(11), pages 1033-1055, November.
    14. Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi & Alexander Brem & Amitab Bhattacharjee, 2017. "Who Takes More Sustainability-Oriented Entrepreneurial Actions? The Role of Entrepreneurs’ Values, Beliefs and Orientations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-19, September.
    15. Yu-Shan Chen, 2010. "The Drivers of Green Brand Equity: Green Brand Image, Green Satisfaction, and Green Trust," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 93(2), pages 307-319, May.
    16. Loren Kock & Audrey Prost, 2017. "Family Planning and the Samburu: A Qualitative Study Exploring the Thoughts of Men on a Population Health and Environment Programme in Rural Kenya," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-16, May.
    17. Hope, Aimie L.B. & Jones, Christopher R., 2014. "The impact of religious faith on attitudes to environmental issues and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technologies: A mixed methods study," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 48-59.
    18. Ching-Wei Ho, 2017. "Does Practicing CSR Makes Consumers Like Your Shop More? Consumer-Retailer Love Mediates CSR and Behavioral Intentions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-14, December.
    19. Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi & Alexander Brem, 2017. "Sustainability in SMEs: Top Management Teams Behavioral Integration as Source of Innovativeness," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-16, October.
    20. David Gadenne & Jessica Kennedy & Catherine McKeiver, 2009. "An Empirical Study of Environmental Awareness and Practices in SMEs," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 84(1), pages 45-63, January.
    21. Gillian Rice, 2006. "Pro-environmental Behavior in Egypt: Is there a Role for Islamic Environmental Ethics?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 65(4), pages 373-390, June.
    22. Hayam Wahba, 2008. "Does the market value corporate environmental responsibility? An empirical examination," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 15(2), pages 89-99, March.
    23. Najib Harabi, 1998. "Innovation Through Vertical Relations Between Firms, Suppliers And Customers: A Study Of German Firms," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(2), pages 157-179.
    24. Ching-Hsun Chang, 2011. "The Influence of Corporate Environmental Ethics on Competitive Advantage: The Mediation Role of Green Innovation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 104(3), pages 361-370, December.
    25. Xiaonuo Li & Wentao Jiao & Rongbo Xiao & Weiping Chen & Yanying Bai, 2016. "Regional Variations of Public Perception on Contaminated Industrial Sites in China and Its Influencing Factors," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-16, April.
    26. Morrow, David & Rondinelli, Dennis, 2002. "Adopting Corporate Environmental Management Systems:: Motivations and Results of ISO 14001 and EMAS Certification," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 159-171, April.
    27. Dawn L. Keig & Lance Eliot Brouthers & Victor B. Marshall, 2015. "Formal and Informal Corruption Environments and Multinational Enterprise Social Irresponsibility," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(1), pages 89-116, January.
    28. Henning Madsen & John P. Ulhøi, 2001. "Integrating environmental and stakeholder management," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(2), pages 77-88, March.
    29. Henriques, Irene & Sadorsky, Perry, 1996. "The Determinants of an Environmentally Responsive Firm: An Empirical Approach," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 381-395, May.
    30. Fiona Cocker & Angela Martin & Jenn Scott & Alison Venn & Kristy Sanderson, 2013. "Psychological Distress, Related Work Attendance, and Productivity Loss in Small-to-Medium Enterprise Owner/Managers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-21, October.
    31. Vachon, Stephan & Klassen, Robert D., 2008. "Environmental management and manufacturing performance: The role of collaboration in the supply chain," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(2), pages 299-315, February.
    32. Mehran Nejati & Sasan Ghasemi, 2012. "Corporate social responsibility in Iran from the perspective of employees," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 8(4), pages 578-588, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Xinpeng Xing & Jianhua Wang & Lulu Tou, 2019. "The Relationship between Green Organization Identity and Corporate Environmental Performance: The Mediating Role of Sustainability Exploration and Exploitation Innovation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-16, March.
    2. Yuan Ma & Qiang Zhang & Qiyue Yin, 2019. "Influence of Environmental Management on Green Process Innovation: Comparison of Multiple Mediating Effects Based on Routine Replication," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-13, November.
    3. Colin B. Gabler & Omar S. Itani & Raj Agnihotri, 2023. "Activating Corporate Environmental Ethics on the Frontline: A Natural Resource-Based View," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 186(1), pages 63-86, August.
    4. Yuan Ma & Qiang Zhang & Qiyue Yin & Bingcheng Wang, 2019. "The Influence of Top Managers on Environmental Information Disclosure: The Moderating Effect of Company’s Environmental Performance," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(7), pages 1-15, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi & Khaled Nawaser & Alexander Brem, 2019. "The EFFECTS OF CUSTOMER CAPITAL ON CUSTOMER RESPONSE SPEED AND INNOVATIVENESS: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF MARKETING CAPABILITY," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 23(06), pages 1-25, August.
    2. Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi & Alexander Brem & Mohammad Shahabinezhad, 2018. "Does Thinking Style Make a Difference in Environmental Perception and Orientation? Evidence from Entrepreneurs in Post-Sanction Iran," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-19, May.
    3. Kawai, Norifumi & Strange, Roger & Zucchella, Antonella, 2018. "Stakeholder pressures, EMS implementation, and green innovation in MNC overseas subsidiaries," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(5), pages 933-946.
    4. Norifumi Kawai & Roger Strange & Antonella Zucchella, 2016. "Stakeholder Pressures, EMS Implementation, and Green Innovation in MNC Overseas Subsidiaries," DEM Working Papers Series 121, University of Pavia, Department of Economics and Management.
    5. Julia Wolf, 2013. "Improving the Sustainable Development of Firms: The Role of Employees," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(2), pages 92-108, February.
    6. Behrooz Gharleghi & Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi & Khaled Nawaser, 2018. "The Outcomes of Corporate Social Responsibility to Employees: Empirical Evidence from a Developing Country," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-15, March.
    7. Zhiqiang Liu & Ji Li & Hong Zhu & Zhenyao Cai & Luning Wang, 2014. "Chinese firms’ sustainable development—The role of future orientation, environmental commitment, and employee training," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 31(1), pages 195-213, March.
    8. Gema Albort-Morant & Jörg Henseler & Antonio Leal-Millán & Gabriel Cepeda-Carrión, 2017. "Mapping the Field: A Bibliometric Analysis of Green Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(6), pages 1-15, June.
    9. Figueira, Sandra & Gauthier, Caroline & Torres de Oliveira, Rui, 2023. "CSR and stakeholder salience in MNE subsidiaries in emerging markets," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(5).
    10. Mariana Dubravská & Martina Marchevská & Petra Vašaničová & Rastislav Kotulič, 2020. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management Linkage: An Empirical Analysis of the Slovak Republic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-18, July.
    11. Corsini, Filippo & Appio, Francesco Paolo & Frey, Marco, 2019. "Exploring the antecedents and consequences of environmental performance in micro-enterprises: The case of the Italian craft beer industry," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 340-350.
    12. Tariq, Adeel & Badir, Yuosre F. & Tariq, Waqas & Bhutta, Umair Saeed, 2017. "Drivers and consequences of green product and process innovation: A systematic review, conceptual framework, and future outlook," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 8-23.
    13. Nuryakin Nuryakin & Tri Maryati, 2020. "Green product competitiveness and green product success. Why and how does mediating affect green innovation performance?," Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 7(4), pages 3061-3077, June.
    14. Eduardo Duque‐Grisales & Javier Aguilera‐Caracuel & Jaime Guerrero‐Villegas & Encarnación García‐Sánchez, 2020. "Does green innovation affect the financial performance of Multilatinas? The moderating role of ISO 14001 and R&D investment," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(8), pages 3286-3302, December.
    15. Christin Seifert & Edeltraud Guenther, 2020. "Who cares?—Stakeholder relevance for voluntary environmental management in hospitals," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(4), pages 1786-1799, July.
    16. Nathasit Gerdsri & Boonkiart Iewwongcharoen & Kittichai Rajchamaha & Nisit Manotungvorapun & Jakapong Pongthanaisawan & Watcharin Witthayaweerasak, 2021. "Capability Assessment toward Sustainable Development of Business Incubators: Framework and Experience Sharing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-20, April.
    17. Christin Seifert & Matthias Damert & Edeltraud Guenther, 2020. "Environmental Management in German Hospitals—A Classification of Approaches," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-24, May.
    18. Yu-Shan Chen & Ching-Hsun Chang, 2013. "The Determinants of Green Product Development Performance: Green Dynamic Capabilities, Green Transformational Leadership, and Green Creativity," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 116(1), pages 107-119, August.
    19. Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi & Alexander Brem & Hussain Gholami, 2019. "Working in a Physically Dangerous Work Environment: Employee Vitality and Sustainable Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-20, September.
    20. Hua-Hung (Robin) Weng & Ja-Shen Chen & Pei-Ching Chen, 2015. "Effects of Green Innovation on Environmental and Corporate Performance: A Stakeholder Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(5), pages 1-30, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:6:p:1191-:d:151066. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.