Volume 27, Issue 6 p. 2849-2866
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Social determinants of sustainability: The imprinting effect of social class background on corporate environmental responsibility

Zhiyong Niu

Corresponding Author

Zhiyong Niu

Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Shanghai, 200433 China

Correspondence

Zhiyong Niu, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, 109 room Hongwa building, 777 Guoding road, Shanghai 200433, China.

Email: niu.zhiyong@mail.shufe.edu.cn

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Xiaoyan Zhou

Xiaoyan Zhou

University of International Business and Economics, Beijing, 100129 China

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Hongzhou Pei

Hongzhou Pei

Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Shanghai, 200433 China

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First published: 23 July 2020
Citations: 11

Funding information: National Natural Science Foundation of China, Grant/Award Number: 71572034

Abstract

Using a large sample of 10,668 small- and medium-sized private Chinese enterprises over the 2006–2014 period, this study investigates the effect of the social class background of entrepreneurs on firm corporate environmental responsibility (CER) activities. The research question is developed using the concepts of imprinting theory. We measure the social class background of entrepreneurs as the level of occupational prestige held by the individual prior to starting a business. Results show that entrepreneurs drawn from the upper and lower social classes show a preference for the pursuit of environmental governance investment strategies. Moderating influences based on political capital and institutional environment are also explored. The theory and findings highlight that the social class background of entrepreneurs has a lasting and varying impact on the CER activities of a firm. The results are robust to a variety of sensitivity tests. The study extends our understanding of how and why enterprise CER behaviour varies, particularly in the context of Chinese private firms, and offers important implications for the task of sustainable development by enterprises.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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