How green HRM practices, organisational citizenship behaviour towards environment, technological competence and resistance to change influence the environmental performance of Saudi universities

Saudi Arabia ranks amongst those nations with the highest amount of fossil carbon dioxide emissions. Due to the rising environmental and economic sustainability challenges in Saudi Arabia, investigating environmental sustainability in the nation has become imperative. Similar to business organisations, universities in Saudi Arabia are also intensifying their initiatives to enhance sustainability, contending with the nation’s established dependence on increasing greenhouse gas emissions, high energy and fossil fuels. There is a gap in research on the green human resource management (GHRM) practices of these universities aimed at promoting sustainability with the involvement of their faculty members. To address this gap, this study employs ability–motivation–opportunity (AMO) theory and change management theory to examine the effect of GHRM practices on the organisational citizenship behaviour towards environment (OCBE) and environmental performance (EP) of universities in Saudi Arabia. This study also investigates the moderating effect of technological competence and resistance to change on the association of GHRM practices with OCBE and EP. Results demonstrate that all three GHRM practices (green training and development, green employee involvement and green performance appraisal) have a positive and significant impact on OCBE, which subsequently influences EP. The mediating effect of OCBE and the moderating effects of technological competence and resistance to change were also confirmed. This study advances the existing research on the influence of GHRM practices on environmental outcomes through the lens of the AMO framework and change management theory in the university context of Saudi Arabia. This pioneering study also explores the role of technological competence and resistance to change as moderators in the above relationship. In addition to theoretical implications, this study offers novel insights for policymakers in higher educational institutions.