Are born global firms environmentally more responsible? Evidence from the East Asia and Pacific region

• Published in: Asia Pacific journal of management Vol. 42; no. 2; pp. 1061 - 1093
• Main Authors: Mushtaq, Rizwan, Murtaza, Ghulam, Yahiaoui, Dorra, Vijay, Pereira, Talpur, Qurat-ul-Ain
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.06.2025; Springer Nature B.V; Springer Verlag
• Subjects: Business and Management; Business operations; Costs; Economic development; Emerging markets; Environmental impact; Environmental performance; Environmental policy; Environmental regulations; Globalization; Host country; Humanities and Social Sciences; International markets; Management; Multinational corporations; Small & medium sized enterprises-SME; Stakeholders; East Asia; Pacific region; Q56; East Asia-Pacific region; Environmental performance; Resource-based view; Born-global; M13; Q53; Born-global · Environmental performance · East Asia-Pacific region
• ISSN: 0217-4561; 1572-9958
• DOI: 10.1007/s10490-023-09915-3

This study examines the environmental performance (EP) of born-global firms (BGFs) in the East Asia-Pacific (EAP) region. Drawing on the resource-based view (RBV), we investigate whether BGFs exhibit greater environmental responsibility compared to other firms. By analyzing an unbalanced panel dataset of firms from seven EAP countries, we find that BGFs do indeed exhibit higher levels of environmental responsibility than non-BGFs. Our results suggest that BGFs are more likely to adopt policies that contribute to the reduction of natural resource use and emissions. On the other hand, our results suggest that BGFs may be less concerned about product innovation than non-BGFs. In addition, our results remain robust to alternative regression models, BGF proxies, and sample selection bias. The implications of our study are relevant for policymakers and environmental regulators, providing valuable insights into the environmental performance of BGFs.