Can Resource Dependency and Corporate Social Responsibility Drive Green Innovation Performance?

Abstract

As the producers of environmental pollution, it is urgent for enterprises to make up for their lack of environmental responsibility and to realize green transformation and development. At the same time, resource dependence is promoted from the single level of economic growth to the field of green development, which is a field of research and development on resource dependence and broadens the perspective of related research in the academic world. In this paper, we select panel data from 30 regions in China from 2009 to 2022 to validate the research on the impact of resource dependence and corporate social responsibility on green innovation performance. The conclusions are as follows: (1) From 2009 to 2022, the average industrial green innovation performance of the 30 provinces in China was 0.553, with the efficiency values of the eastern, central, and western regions showing a gradual decreasing trend. (2) We found a consistently negative correlation between resource dependency and green innovation performance, confirming the existence of a “resource curse” linking the two. Meanwhile, the regression coefficient of CSR for green innovation performance was positive, confirming the driving effect of the former on the latter. (3) The “resource curse” does not manifest conditionally or have a threshold effect. Instead, we found that it has long-term and persistent characteristics. Meanwhile, the impact of CSR on green innovation performance shows a “reverse N-shaped” double-threshold effect, where CSR can improve green innovation performance only when it reaches a certain threshold value. This paper provides insights to support Chinese enterprises in enhancing their green innovation performance and lays a theoretical foundation for enterprises to fulfill their social responsibility.