TY - JOUR
T1 - The effects of simmelian ties on innovation of low-carbon technology
T2 - a study of top managers' environmental awareness and stakeholder pressure in China
AU - Jiang, Yuguo
AU - Asante, Dennis
AU - Ampaw, Enock Mintah
AU - Zheng, Yangchen
PY - 2023/1
Y1 - 2023/1
N2 - Low-carbon technology innovation (LTI) engenders environmental protection and socioeconomic development. Hence, low-carbon innovation of enterprises becomes a crucial policy arena for national development and climate mitigation strategy. LTI is now associated with enhanced reputation and competitive edge of enterprises. We constructed a framework to empirically explore the impact of simmelian ties (ST) on LTI, testing the moderating effect of stakeholder pressure in this relationship. We used a sample of 385 employees from industrial enterprises in China through a structured questionnaire. The study results show that: first, when the enterprise is in a strong ST, the top managers' awareness of environmental benefits has a significant positive impact on LTI. Second, when the enterprise is in a weak ST, top managers' awareness of environmental risk has a significant positive impact on LTI. Third, pressure of key stakeholders and pressure of secondary stakeholders positively moderate the interaction between ST and top managers' environmental awareness (TMEA) on the impact of LTI. Fourth, the moderating effect of key stakeholders’ pressure was observed to be stronger than that of secondary stakeholders’ pressure. Theoretically, this paper contributes to literature by developing a framework to investigate interaction between ST, TMEA and LTI under different stakeholder pressures. Based on this framework, we provide a theoretical reference for enterprises to choose the appropriate and optimal TMEA for competitive edge.
AB - Low-carbon technology innovation (LTI) engenders environmental protection and socioeconomic development. Hence, low-carbon innovation of enterprises becomes a crucial policy arena for national development and climate mitigation strategy. LTI is now associated with enhanced reputation and competitive edge of enterprises. We constructed a framework to empirically explore the impact of simmelian ties (ST) on LTI, testing the moderating effect of stakeholder pressure in this relationship. We used a sample of 385 employees from industrial enterprises in China through a structured questionnaire. The study results show that: first, when the enterprise is in a strong ST, the top managers' awareness of environmental benefits has a significant positive impact on LTI. Second, when the enterprise is in a weak ST, top managers' awareness of environmental risk has a significant positive impact on LTI. Third, pressure of key stakeholders and pressure of secondary stakeholders positively moderate the interaction between ST and top managers' environmental awareness (TMEA) on the impact of LTI. Fourth, the moderating effect of key stakeholders’ pressure was observed to be stronger than that of secondary stakeholders’ pressure. Theoretically, this paper contributes to literature by developing a framework to investigate interaction between ST, TMEA and LTI under different stakeholder pressures. Based on this framework, we provide a theoretical reference for enterprises to choose the appropriate and optimal TMEA for competitive edge.
KW - Chinese
KW - Low-carbon economy
KW - Low-carbon technology innovation
KW - Simmelian ties
KW - Stakeholder pressure
KW - Top managers' environmental awareness
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85137066092&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s11356-022-22648-y
DO - 10.1007/s11356-022-22648-y
M3 - Article
C2 - 36006539
AN - SCOPUS:85137066092
SN - 0944-1344
VL - 30
SP - 6716
EP - 6729
JO - ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
JF - ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
ER -