Executive Overconfidence, Digital Transformation and Environmental Innovation: The Role of Moderated Mediator

Abstract

With the increasingly prominent energy and environmental problems, environmental innovation has become a critical path to achieving the goal of coordinating economic development and environmental protection fundamentally. This study aims to examine the impacts of executive overconfidence on environmental innovation and the mediating role of digital transformation. We conduct empirical tests based on the panel data of Chinese publicly listed enterprises during the period of 2007–2019. The results exhibit that (a) executive overconfidence can significantly promote environmental technology innovation but has no obvious effect on environmental management innovation; (b) executive overconfidence can significantly enhance digital transformation, and, accordingly, digital transformation can significantly promote environmental technology innovation and environmental management innovation; (c) industry competition and economic policy uncertainty can enhance the positive effect of executive overconfidence on digital transformation; and (d) a firms’ asset size can enhance the impact of digital transformation on environmental technology innovation; internal control positively moderates the impact of digital transformation on environmental technology innovation and negatively moderates the impact on environmental management innovation. This study not only breaks the stereotype about overconfidence and confirms its positive impact on digital transformation and environmental innovation but also provides insights for enterprises to improve environmental innovation through digital transformation.