Business Ethics the Environment & Responsibility最新文献

Greenwashing has become a common way in which many enterprises address expectations related to corporate social responsibility. As an abnormal and fake type of social responsibility behavior, greenwashing causes many problems, thus highlighting the importance of exploring the impact of corporate greenwashing. However, previous studies have mainly examined the impacts of greenwashing on enterprises, industry, and society, and the impact of greenwashing on individual employee behavior, which is important with regard to the sustainability of the enterprise, remains limited. The main purpose of this study is to explore how perceived greenwashing affects employee green behavior (EGB). Based on the stimulus–organism–response theory and social cognitive theory, a two-wave survey was conducted to investigate 232 Chinese enterprise employees. The impact of perceived greenwashing on EGB was analyzed. The mediating role of green organizational identity (GOI) and the moderating role of self-serving leadership in this context were examined. The results reveal that perceived greenwashing is negatively related to EGB. Furthermore, GOI mediates the direct relationship between perceived greenwashing and EGB. Self-serving leadership weakens the positive relationship between GOI and EGB. This study thus develops a theoretical model of greenwashing and EGB. It also provides empirical evidence that can support attempts to promote EGB.

In tourism, the presence of different stakeholders, sometimes with conflicting interests, requires a clear understanding of how to manage and engage them effectively. Despite the importance of this topic, tourism studies lack a univocal framework for destinations aiming to develop a destination management system (DMS) focused on empowering stakeholder engagement. To fill this gap, this study aims to identify the key dimensions that can strengthen stakeholder engagement in the tourism sector. Particular attention is given to the role of technology in mediating relationships among DMS participants and to the role of ‘intermediary’ stakeholders in facilitating collaboration and engagement. By adopting a cross-disciplinary approach that integrates stakeholder theory, stakeholder engagement and destination management, and by examining a case study of an Italian best practice, DMS Puglia, a technology-enabled framework for stakeholder engagement in a DMS was elaborated. This study contributes to the advancement of the literature on stakeholder engagement in tourism by demonstrating that the structure and composition of a DMS, and the communication methods it enables, along with the role of the destination management organisation and the preparedness of stakeholders to participate in a DMS, significantly influence stakeholder engagement and can strengthen relationships among participants in a technologically advanced tourism system. This study also provides directions to stakeholder bridges about how to effectively improve stakeholder engagement through technology-focused tools and strategies.

Based on a sample of heavily polluting firms listed in China, we examine the impact of environmental taxes on the green M&A behavior of these firms. Our findings underscore that environmental taxes have significantly increased the likelihood of heavily polluting firms engaging in green M&A endeavors. This impact is particularly pronounced in areas with high media attention, low financing constraints, and high environmental investment. However, our examination of the economic consequences shows that green M&A does not improve the green innovation performance and ESG performance of firms. The analysis of M&A motivations shows that the majority of heavy polluters' green M&A targets are located in regions with weak environmental regulation, confirming that green M&A under the environmental tax burden is a tool used by firms to engage in pollution transfer. In addition, green M&A under the environmental tax burden is characterized by financial investment, connected M&A, and nonsignificant M&A, confirming that green M&A under the environmental tax burden may be a tool used by companies seeking only the appearance of “greenwashing.” Therefore, green M&A under the environmental tax burden tends to be underpinned by opportunistic motives of pollution transfer and “greenwashing,” rather than substantive green transformation and upgrading. We provide evidence from emerging markets on the impact of environmental taxes on green M&A, which adds to the literature in this area and has policy implications for government regulation of corporate environmental governance practices.

By accounting for stakeholders' conflicting values, in this study, we argue that the conceptualization of stakeholder value trade-offs can theoretically explain how stakeholder-oriented managers can make value-based decisions in pursuit of long-term value creation for all stakeholders. Specifically, drawing on prospect theory and the value trade-offs framework, we develop a value-based decision-making perspective when organizations manage for their stakeholders. Our framework encompasses four types of trade-offs: taboo, routine, virtuous, and tragic each plays an important role in the value-creating decision process. This interdisciplinary study proposes that managers should ground their value-based decisions on the extent to which the chosen trade-offs are morally justifiable. The study contributes to the current understanding of relationships between organizations and stakeholders from a decision-making perspective.

The objective of this research is to examine how and when employees' attributions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) affect their extra-role service behaviors. The research analyses the mediating role of work meaningfulness in the employees' CSR attributions–extra-role behaviors relationships. The moderating role of employees' attitudes toward CSR in both the relationships between CSR attributions and work meaningfulness and in the mediated relationship is also studied. The hypotheses were tested on a sample of 204 frontline employees of four- and five-star hotels in Spain using structural equations and the PROCESS macro. The results indicate that only substantive CSR attributions positively influenced employees' extra-role service behaviors and that the relationship occurs through the work meaningfulness experienced by employees. While substantive CSR attributions boosted work meaningfulness and subsequent extra-role service behavior regardless of personal attitudes toward CSR, the link between symbolic CSR attributions and work meaningfulness as well as the mediated relationship with extra-role service behaviors were found to be moderated by employees' personal attitudes toward CSR. When employees had lower personal attitudes toward CSR, symbolic CSR attributions positively affected work meaningfulness and extra-role service behavior; when attitudes toward CSR were higher, the relationships were not significant. Interesting theoretical contributions and practical insights follow from these findings.

Constructive Deviant Behavior (CDB) raises an ethical dilemma that poses a significant challenge within the realm of business ethics. This ethical dilemma is the extent to which individuals should be allowed, or even encouraged, to challenge established norms in the name of organizational and stakeholder well-being before compromising ethical principles. Despite the growing body of research in this field, which highlights the emergence of a new domain, there remains a lack of a comprehensive framework to define and understand CDB within organizational contexts. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to fill this gap by conducting a thorough analysis of the literature using the PRISMA methodology. In order to systematically review previous research, a sample of relevant articles was selected and analyzed in depth with the aim of defining a comprehensive framework clarifying the nature, forms, and dimensions of CDB. In addition, the relationships between CDB and its antecedents and outcomes were investigated from a business ethics perspective. Within this context, the study proposes a unified CDB framework while acknowledging and integrating the diverse perspectives that have emerged in past studies. Furthermore, this research reveals that individual and organizational characteristics are the predominant antecedents of CDB. Finally, as an emerging domain of increasing practical relevance within business ethics, this subject offers fertile avenues for future research, as delineated by the findings of this study.

Building on attribution theory, this study investigates the antecedents of corporate annual report text manipulation from the perspective of managerial performance pressure. Using a data set comprising 15,076 samples from companies listed on China's Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share markets between 2009 and 2021, we reveal that as management faces performance pressure, they tend to increase content about external environmental risk and policy uncertainty in annual reports due to actor–observer bias. When incorporating Confucian cultural factors into the research framework, the study found that the strength of Confucian culture mitigates the correlation between the pressure of management performance and annual report manipulation. However, the level of marketization where a corporation is located can undermine the ethical norms upheld by Confucian culture. In additional analysis, we also discovered that the longer the duration of performance pressure, the greater the extent of manipulation within the annual reports initiated by the management. Interestingly, the social performance pressure generated from ESG performance also positively influences annual report textual manipulation, compared to operational performance pressure. This study explores the impact of management performance pressure on information disclosure decisions from the perspective of performance attribution, not only extending the boundaries of attribution theory but also providing guidance for policymakers to enhance the supervision of annual report disclosures and for capital market investors to optimize investment decisions.

Amidst growing calls for environmentally sustainable practices, this study delves into the nuanced relationship between CEO trustworthiness, managerial ability, and green innovation. Departing from surface-level examinations, we propose that managerial ability serves as the link between CEO trustworthiness and green innovation initiatives. Moreover, we contend that the influence of CEO trustworthiness on managerial ability is accentuated under specific contextual conditions including higher social capital, crisis situations, and state-owned firms. Drawing on a comprehensive analysis of Chinese firms over 12 years, this study provides robust support for these propositions. Our findings not only offer insights into the essential traits that CEOs should possess to foster competitiveness but also shed light on their role in driving sustainable innovation. By illuminating the intricate dynamics between CEO trustworthiness, managerial ability, and green innovation, our research contributes significantly to the literature offering novel perspectives and enriching the understanding of sustainable development strategies in organizational contexts.

This research delved into the dynamics between pride, sustainability detectability, and product consciousness through three experimental studies conducted among Chinese millennials focusing on lavish brand. Grounded in the positive emotions theory, this study sought to discern the circumstances in which individuals with materialistic tendencies exhibit willingness to engage with sustainable luxury brands. The results of this meticulous experimental design indicate a positive relationship between materialism and the intention to purchase sustainable luxury brands, with pride identified as a mediating factor, and discussed the involvement of high conspicuousness of the product in the context of detectability of the brand's sustainability. Furthermore, this study offers insights through the positive emotion theory and examining the impact of self-conscious emotions on buyer preferences regarding sustainable luxury brands. The findings from this theoretical research provide valuable insights for brand managers, scholars, and policymakers aiming to develop sustainable brands that resonate with the sentiments and values of conscientious consumers.

Drawing on the social cognitive theory of morality, we propose a moderated mediation model to explain why and how employees under the supervision of entrepreneurial leadership engage in unethical behaviors to achieve creative performance. Specifically, we anticipated that entrepreneurial leadership would cause employees to engage in moral justification, which in turn would lead to creative unethicality. Furthermore, we argue that politics perception serves as a critical boundary condition, strengthening the indirect effect of entrepreneurial leadership on creative unethicality. We conducted two multiwave and multisource surveys and constructed a structural equation model to test the proposed hypotheses. Study 1, which involved 201 coworker–employee dyads in a single company, provided full support for all hypotheses. Study 2, conducted in 12 companies with 400 employees and 69 supervisors, replicated the findings of Study 1 and further confirmed the moderated mediation model. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.