This paper aims to explore whether entrepreneurs’ rural experiences can influence corporate environmental investment.
This study uses data from a survey of Chinese privately-owned enterprises from 2006 to 2014. The authors use regression analysis, the Heckman two-stage model and propensity score matching (PSM) to test research hypotheses and address endogeneity issues as well as unobserved heterogeneity.
The results show that entrepreneurs’ rural experiences are positively associated with corporate environmental investment. Furthermore, the authors investigate boundary conditions, finding that urban green space rate and regional environmental regulation intensity strengthen this positive relationship. This effect is most pronounced in enterprises in the eastern region and those with strong financial performance.
The findings have significant implications for policymakers and corporate managers in understanding the drivers of corporate environmental protection. The results suggest that companies should organize rural hiking and nature immersion activities, and governments should implement relevant policies to better leverage the pro-environmental values of entrepreneurs with rural experiences.
The results provide new strategies for encouraging sustainable development and corporate environmental investment.
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to discuss the association between entrepreneurs’ rural experiences and corporate environmental investment. Moreover, the conclusions contribute to the literature on the imprinting theory and antecedents of corporate environmental investment. Finally, this study identifies two important contingent factors that strengthen the effect of entrepreneurs’ rural experiences on corporate environmental investment decisions.
