Employee Green Behavior as the Core of Environmentally Sustainable Organizations

Abstract

Environmental sustainability has become an ethical and strategic imperative for organizations, and more and more employees are interested, encouraged, or instructed to act in environmentally sustainable ways. Consequently, organizational scholars have increasingly studied individual-level antecedents of employee pro-environmental or employee green behavior (EGB). We argue that, to advance this literature and to inform effective interventions, research should investigate how EGB, as a compound performance domain, is associated with antecedents and consequences at multiple levels (i.e., individual, team, work context, organization, society). Accordingly, we pursue three interrelated goals with this review. We first present a comprehensive review of research on EGB, including definitions, theoretical frameworks, methodological approaches, and empirical findings. Second, we develop an integrative conceptual model of EGB as the core of organizational environmental sustainability. Third, we conclude with recommendations for future theory development and methodological improvements, as well as practical implications for employees, leaders, and human resource management.