Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

“Norming” and “Conforming”: Integrating Cultural and Institutional Explanations for Sustainability Adoption in Business

  • Published:
Journal of Business Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Sustainability is increasingly a matter of concern in the corporate world. Many business scholars have analyzed the phenomenon from institutional and cultural perspectives, addressing the key questions of what drives the spread of sustainability principles, and also why sustainability adoption varies so widely among organizations and cultures. In this article, we propose that sustainability adoption can be better explained by integrating the insights from the institutional and cultural perspectives. This would break the current practice of choosing one approach or the other, a trend that has estranged these fields despite their obvious overlap in questions, core constructs, and theoretic arguments. We therefore introduce a model that emphasizes a dual-effect of culture—namely, culture plays a role in “norming” the proliferation of sustainability-relevant institutions, while also influencing the “conforming” to pressures for sustainability emanating from these institutions. We offer theoretic insights not only for explaining sustainability adoption but also for addressing the recognized challenge of bringing culture back into institutional theory.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adams, G., & Markus, H. R. (2004). Toward a conception of culture suitable for a social psychology of culture. In M. Schaller & C. S. Crandall (Eds.), The psychological foundations of culture (pp. 335–360). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aguilera, R. V., Rupp, D., Williams, C. A., & Ganapathi, J. (2007). Putting the S back in corporate social responsibility: A multi-level theory of social change in organizations. Academy of Management Review, 32(3), 836–863.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Angus-Leppan, T., Metcalf, L., & Benn, S. (2010). Leadership styles and CSR practice: An examination of sensemaking, institutional drivers and CSR leadership. Journal of Business Ethics, 93(2), 189–213.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Antal, A. B., & Sobczak, A. (2007). Corporate social responsibility in France: Mix of national traditions and international influences. Business and Society, 46((March)), 9–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arnold, D. F., Bernardi, R. A., Neidermeyer, P. E., & Schmee, J. (2007). The effect of country and culture on perceptions of appropriate ethical actions prescribed by codes of conduct: A Western European perspective among accountants. Journal of Business Ethics, 70(4), 327–340.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aten, K., Howard-Grenville, J., & Ventresca, M. J. (2012). Organizational culture and institutional theory: A conversation at the border. Journal of Management Inquiry, 21(1), 78–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beekun, R. I., Hamdy, R., Westerman, J. W., & HassabElnaby, H. R. (2008). An exploration of ethical decision-making processes in the United States and Egypt. Journal of Business Ethics, 82(3), 587–605.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brammer, S., Pavelin, S., & Porter, L. (2009). Corporate charitable giving, multinational companies and controversial countries. Journal of Management Studies, 46(4), 575–596.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brammer, S., Williams, G., & Zinkin, J. (2007). Religion and attitudes to corporate social responsibility in a large cross-country sample. Journal of Business Ethics, 71(3), 229–243.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Campbell, J. L. (2007). Why should corporations behave in socially responsible ways? Academy of Management Review, 26(1), 22–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carrington, M., Neville, B. A., & Whitwell, G. (2010). Why ethical consumers don’t walk their talk: Towards a framework for understanding the gap between the ethical purchase intentions and actual buying behaviour of ethically-minded consumers. Journal of Business Ethics, 97(1), 139–158.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chan, G. (2008). The relevance and value of Confucianism in contemporary business ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 77(3), 347–360.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christie, P. M. J., Kwon, I.-W. G., Stoeberl, P. A., & Baumhart, R. (2003). A cross-cultural comparison of ethical attitudes of business managers: India Korea and the United States. Journal of Business Ethics, 46, 263–287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conzelmann, T. (2012). A procedural approach to the design of voluntary clubs: Negotiating the Responsible Care Global Charter. Socio-Economic Review, 10, 193–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dacin, M. T., Goodstein, J., & Scott, W. R. (2002). Institutional theory and institutional change: Introduction to the special research forum. Academy of Management Journal, 45(1), 45–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deephouse, D. L. (1999). To be different, or to be the same? It’s a question (and theory) of strategic balance. Strategic Management Journal, 20(2), 146–166.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deephouse, D. L., & Carter, S. M. (2005). An examination of differences between organizational legitimacy and organizational reputation. Journal of Management Studies, 42(2), 329–360.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • den Hond, F., & de Bakker, F. G. A. (2007). Ideologically motivated activism: How activist groups influence corporate social change activities. Academy of Management Review, 32(3), 901–924.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DiMaggio, P. J. (1988). Interest and agency in institutional theory. In L. Zucker (Ed.), Institutional patterns and organizations: Culture and environment (pp. 3–21). Cambridge, MA: Ballinger.

    Google Scholar 

  • DiMaggio, P. J., & Powell, W. W. (1983). The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields. American Sociological Review, 48(2), 147–160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Doh, J. P., & Guay, T. R. (2006). Corporate social responsibility, public policy, and NGO activism in Europe and the United States: An institutional-stakeholder perspective. Journal of Management Studies, 43(1), 47–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Earley, P. C. (2006). Leading cultural research in the future: A matter of paradigms and taste. Journal of International Business Studies, 37(6), 922–931.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eurosif. (2010). European SRI Study. www.eurosif.org/research/eurosif-sri-study/2010.

  • Fairclough, N. (1995). Critical discourse analysis. Boston: Addison Wesley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fransen, L. (2012). Multi-stakeholder governance and voluntary program interactions. Socio-Economic Review, 10(1), 163–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Freeman, R. E. (1984). Strategic management: A stakeholder approach. Boston: Pitman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedland, R., & Alford, R. R. (1991). Bringing society back in: Symbols, practices, and institutional contradictions. In W. W. Powell & P. J. DiMaggio (Eds.), The new institutionalism in organizational analysis (pp. 232–266). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gardberg, N. A., & Fombrun, C. J. (2006). Corporate citizenship: Creating intangible assets across institutional environments. Academy of Management Review, 31(2), 329–346.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gelfand, M. J., Nishii, L. H., & Raver, J. L. (2006). On the nature and importance of cultural tightness-looseness. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(6), 1225–1244.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gelfand, M. J., Raver, J. L., Nishii, L., Leslie, L. M., Lun, J., Lim, B. C., et al. (2011). Differences between tight and loose cultures: A 33-nation study. Science, 332(6033), 1100–1104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gilbert, D. U., Rasche, A., & Waddock, S. (2011). Accountability in a global economy: The emergence of international accountability standards. Business Ethics Quarterly, 21(1), 23–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gond, J.-P., Kang, N., & Moon, J. (2011). The government of self-regulation: On the comparative dynamics of corporate social responsibility. Economy & Society, 40(4), 640–671.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gould, S. J., & Grein, A. F. (2009). Think glocally, act glocally: A culture-centric comment on Leung, Bhagat, Buchan, Erez and Gibson. Journal of International Business Studies, 40, 237–254.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greening, D. W., & Gray, B. (1994). Testing a model of organizational response to social and political issues. Academy of Management Journal, 37(3), 467–498.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenwood, R., Oliver, C., Sahlin, K., & Suddaby, R. (2008). Introduction. In R. Greenwood, C. Oliver, K. Sahlin, & R. Suddaby (Eds.), Handbook of organizational institutionalism (pp. 1–46). London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gugler, P., & Shi, J. Y. J. (2009). Corporate social responsibility for developing country multinational corporations: Lost war in pertaining global competitiveness. Journal of Business Ethics, 87(1), 3–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Handelman, J. M., & Arnold, S. J. (1999). The role of marketing actions with a social dimension: Appeals to the institutional environment. Journal of Marketing, 63(4), 33–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hatch, M. J. (2012). Bringing culture back from institutional Siberia. Journal of Management Inquiry, 21(1), 84–87.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haxhi, I., & van Ees, H. (2010). Explaining diversity in the worldwide diffusion of codes of good governance. Journal of International Business Studies, 41(4), 710–726.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hiss, S. (2009). From implicit to explicit corporate social responsibility: Institutional change as a fight for myths. Business Ethics Quarterly: The Journal of the Society for Business Ethics, 19(3), 433–451.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture’s consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions and firms across nations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. J. (2005). Cultures and firms: Software of the mind. New York: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • House, R. J., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (Eds.). (2004). Culture, leadership, and firms: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Husted, B. W. (1999). Wealth, culture, and corruption. Journal of International Business Studies, 30(2), 233–242.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Husted, B. W. (2005). Culture and ecology: A cross-national study of the determinants of environmental sustainability. Management International Review, 45(3), 349–371.

    Google Scholar 

  • Husted, B. W., & Allen, D. (2008). Toward a model of cross-cultural business ethics: The impact of individualism and collectivism on the ethical decision-making process. Journal of Business Ethics, 82(2), 293–305.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Husted, B. W., Dozier, J. B., McMahon, J. T., & Kattan, M. W. (1996). The impact of cross-national carriers of business ethics on attitudes about questionable practices and form of moral reasoning. Journal of International Business Studies, 27(2), 391–411.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, G., & Apostolakou, A. (2010). Corporate social responsibility in Western Europe: CSR as an institutional mirror or a substitute? Journal of Business Ethics, 94(3), 371–394.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jamali, D. (2010). MNCs and international accountability standards through an institutional lens: Evidence of symbolic conformity or decoupling. Journal of Business Ethics, 95(4), 617–640.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jamali, D., & Mirshak, R. (2007). Business-conflict linkages: Revisiting MNCs, CSR, and conflict. Journal of Business Ethics, 93(3), 443–464.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jamali, D., & Neville, B. (2011). Convergence versus divergence of CSR in developing countries: An embedded multi-layered institutional lens. Journal of Business Ethics, 102(4), 599–621.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Javidan, M., House, R. J., Dorfman, P. W., Hanges, P. J., & De Luquet, M. S. (2006). Conceptualizing and measuring cultures and their consequences: A comparative review of GLOBE’s and Hofstede’s approaches. Journal of International Business Studies, 37(6), 897–914.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jepperson, R. L. (1991). Institutions, institutional effects, and institutionalism. In W. W. Powell & P. DiMaggio (Eds.), The new institutionalism in organizational analysis (pp. 143–163). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones, M. (1999). The institutional determinants of social responsibility. Journal of Business Ethics, 20(2), 163–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kang, N., & Moon, J. (2012). Institutional complementarity between corporate governance and corporate social responsibility: A comparative institutional analysis of three capitalisms. Socio-Economic Review, 10, 85–108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kiron, D., Kruschwitz, N., Haanaes, K., & von StrengVelken, I. (2012). Sustainability nears a tipping point. MIT Sloan Management Review, 53(2), 69–74.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kitayama, S. (2002). Culture and basic psychological processes—toward a system view of culture: Comment. Psychological Bulletin, 128(1), 89–96.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kluckhohn, F. E., & Strodtbeck, F. L. (1961). Variations in value orientations. Elmsford, NY: Row Peterson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kostova, T., & Roth, K. (2002). Adoption of an organizational practice by subsidiaries of multinational corporations: Institutional and relational effects. The Academy of Management Journal, 45(1), 215–233.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kroeber, A. L. & Kluckhohn, C. (1952). Culture: A critical review of concepts and definitions (Vol. 47). Harvard University Peabody Museum of American Archeology and Ethnology.

  • Lawrence, T., Suddaby, R., & Leca, B. (Eds.) (2009). Introduction: Theorizing and studying institutional work. In Institutional work: Actors and agency in institutional studies of organizations. (pp. 1–27). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

  • Lee, M.-D. P. (2011). Configuration of external influences: The combined effects of institutions and stakeholders on corporate social responsibility strategies. Journal of Business Ethics, 102, 281–298.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lin, L.-H., & Ho, Y.-L. (2010). Guanxi and OCB: The Chinese cases. Journal of Business Ethics, 96(2), 285–298.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lounsbury, M. (2001). Institutional sources of practice variation: Staffing college and university recycling programs. Administrative Science Quarterly, 46(1), 29–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lytle, A. L., Brett, J. M., Barsness, Z. J., Tinsley, C. H., & Janssens, M. (1995). A paradigm for confirmatory crosscultural research in organizational behavior. Research in Organizational Behavior, 17, 167–214.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maguire, S., Hardy, C., & Lawrence, T. (2004). Institutional entrepreneurship in emerging fields: HIV/AIDS treatment advocacy in Canada. Academy of Management Journal, 47(5), 657–679.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maignan, I. (2001). Consumers’ perceptions of corporate social responsibilities: A cross-cultural comparison. Journal of Business Ethics, 30(1), 57–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marquis, C., Glynn, M. A., & Davis, G. F. (2007). Community isomorphism and corporate social action. Academy of Management Review, 32(3), 925–945.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maseland, R., & van Hoorn, A. (2009). Explaining the negative correlation between values and practices: A note on the Hofstede–GLOBE debate. Journal of International Business Studies, 40(3), 527–532.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matten, D., & Moon, J. (2008). ‘Implicit’ and ‘explicit’ CSR: A conceptual framework for a comparative understanding of corporate social responsibility. Academy of Management Review, 33(2), 404–424.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maurice, M., Sorge, A., & Warner, M. (1980). Societal differences in organizing manufacturing units. A comparison of France, West Germany and Great Britain. Organization Studies, 1, 59–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McSweeney, B. (2002). Hofstede’s model of national cultural differences and their consequences: A triumph of faith—a failure of analysis. Human Relations, 55(1), 89–118.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, R. E., & Höllerer, M. A. (2010). Meaning structures in a contested issue field: A topographic map of shareholder value in Austria. Academy of Management Journal, 53(6), 1241–1262.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, J. W., & Rowan, B. (1977). Institutionalized firms: Formal structure as myth and ceremony. American Journal of Sociology, 83(2), 340–363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, J. G. (2002). Bringing culture to basic psychological theory—beyond individualism and collectivism. Psychological Bulletin, 128(1), 97–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Montiel, I., & Husted, B. W. (2009). The adoption of voluntary environmental management programs in Mexico: First movers as institutional entrepreneurs. Journal of Business Ethics, 88, 349–363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morrill, C. (2012). From bridges to trading zones in organizational culture and institutional research. Journal of Management Inquiry, 21(1), 109–113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muthuri, J., & Gilbert, V. (2011). An institutional analysis of corporate social responsibility in Kenya. Journal of Business Ethics, 98(3), 467–483.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oliver, C. (1991). Strategic responses to institutional processes. Academy of Management Review, 16(1), 333–363.

    Google Scholar 

  • Orlitzky, M., Schmidt, F. L., & Rynes, S. L. (2003). Corporate social and financial performance: A meta-analysis. Organization Studies, 24(3), 403–441.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osland, J. S., & Bird, A. (2000). Beyond sophisticated stereotyping: Cultural sensemaking in context. Academy of Management Executive, 14(1), 65–77.

    Google Scholar 

  • Özen, S., & Küskü, F. (2009). Corporate environmental citizenship variation in developing countries: An institutional framework. Journal of Business Ethics, 89(2), 297–313.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parboteeah, K. P., Addae, H. M., & Cullen, J. B. (2012). Propensity to support sustainability initiatives: A cross-national model. Journal of Business Ethics, 105, 403–413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paul, P., Roy, A., & Mukhopadhyay, K. (2006). The impact of cultural values on marketing ethical norms: A study in India and the United States. Journal of International Marketing, 14(4), 28–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pelto, P. (1968). The difference between “tight” and “loose” societies. Transactions, 5, 37–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Phillips, N., Lawrence, T., & Hardy, C. (2004). Discourse and Institutions. Academy of Management Journal, 29(4), 635–652.

    Google Scholar 

  • Phillips, N., & Malhotra, N. (2008). Taking social construction seriously. In R. Greenwood, C. Oliver, R. Suddaby, & K. Sahlin-Andersson (Eds.), The SAGE handbook of organizational institutionalism (pp. 702–720). Singapore: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Porter, M., & Kramer, M. (2011). Creating shared value. Harvard Business Review, 89(1/2), 62–77.

    Google Scholar 

  • Posner, R. A. (1997). Social norms and the law: An economic approach. The American Economic Review, 87(20), 365–369.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ralston, D. A. (2008). The crossvergence perspective: Reflections and projections. Journal of International Business Studies, 39, 27–40.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richter, U. H. (2011). Drivers of change: A multiple-case study on the process of institutionalization of corporate responsibility among three multinational companies. Journal of Business Ethics, 102, 261–279.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ringov, D., & Zollo, M. (2007). Corporate responsibility from a socio-institutional perspective: the impact of national culture on corporate social performance. Corporate Governance, 7(4), 476–484.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruef, M., & Scott, W. R. (1998). A multidimensional model of organizational legitimacy: Hospital survival in changing institutional environments. Administrative Science Quarterly, 43(4), 877–904.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Russell, J. (2006). Liberté, Egalité, Responsabilité. Ethical Corporation, October, 10–12.

  • Sarkis, J., Ni, N., & Zhu, Q. (2011). Winds of change: Corporate social responsibility in China. Ivey Business Journal, 75(1), 1–4.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scherer, J. G., & Palazzo, G. (2011). The new political role of business in a globalized world: A review of a new perspective on CSR and its implications for the firm, governance, and democracy. Journal of Management Studies, 48(4), 899–931.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scholtens, B., & Dam, L. (2007). Cultural values and international differences in business ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 75(3), 273–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schuler, D. A., & Cording, M. (2006). A corporate social performance-corporate financial performance behavioral model for consumers. Academy of Management Review, 31(3), 540–558.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schultz, M. (2012). Relationships between culture and institutions: New interdependencies in a global world? Journal of Management Inquiry, 21(1), 102–106.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scott, W. R. (2001). Institutions and organizations (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott, W. R. (2008a). Approaching adulthood: The maturing of institutional theory. Theory and Society, 37(5), 427–442.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scott, W. R. (2008b). Institutions and organizations: Ideas and interests (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Selznick, P. (1975). Leadership in administration: A sociological interpretation. New York: Harper & Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Suddaby, R. (2010a). Challenges for institutional theory. Journal of Management Inquiry, 19(1), 14–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suddaby, R. (2010b). Construct clarity in theories of management and organization. Academy of Management Review, 35(3), 346–357.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suddaby, R., Elsbach, K., Greenwood, R., Meyer, J., & Zilber, T. B. (2010). Organizations and their institutional environments: Bringing meaning, culture and values back in—introduction to the special research forum. Academy of Management Journal, 53(6), 1234–1240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taras, V., Kirkman, B. L., & Steel, P. (2010). Examining the impact of culture’s consequences: A three-decade, multilevel, meta-analytic review of Hofstede’s cultural value dimensions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(3), 405–439.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taras, V., Rowney, J., & Steel, P. (2009). Half a century of measuring culture: approaches, challenges, limitations, and suggestions based on the analysis of 121 instruments for quantifying culture. Journal of International Management, 15(4), 357–373.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Terlaak, A. (2007). Order without law: The role of certified management standards in shaping socially desired firm behaviors. Academy of Management Review, 32(3), 968–985.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Triandis, H. C. (1989). The self and social behavior in differing cultural context. Psychological Review, 96(3), 506–520.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tsui, A. S., Nifadkar, S. S., & Ou, A. Y. (2007). Cross-national, cross-cultural organizational behavior research: Advances, gaps, and recommendations. Journal of Management, 33, 426–478.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Marrewijk, M. (2003). Concepts and definitions of CSR and corporate sustainability: Between agency and communion. Journal of Business Ethics, 44(2/3), 95–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waddock, S. (2008). Building a new institutional infrastructure for corporate responsibility. Academy of Management Perspectives, 22(3), 87–108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waldman, D. A., Luque, M. S., Washburn, N., House, R. J., et al. (2006). Cultural and leadership predictors of corporate social responsibility values of top management: A GLOBE study of 15 countries. Journal of International Business Studies, 37(6), 823–837.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weaver, G. R., Treviño, L. K., & Cochran, P. (1999). Integrated and decoupled corporate social performance: Management commitments, external pressures, and corporate ethics practices. Academy of Management Journal, 42, 539–552.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weed, F. J. (1981). Interpreting ‘institutions’ in Veblen’s evolutionary theory. American Journal of Economics & Sociology, 40(1), 67–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitley, R. (1999). Divergent capitalisms: The social structuring and change of business systems. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, G., & Zinkin, J. (2008). The effect of culture on consumers’ willingness to punish irresponsible corporate behaviour: Applying Hofstede’s typology to the punishment aspect of corporate social responsibility. Business Ethics: A European Review, 17(2), 210–226.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Witt, M. A., & Redding, G. (2012). The spirits of corporate social responsibility: Senior executive perceptions of the role of the firm in society in Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and the USA. Socio-Economic Review, 10(1), 109–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zilber, T. B. (2012). The relevance of institutional theory for the study of organizational culture. Journal of Management Inquiry, 21(1), 88–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Australian School of Business, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia

    Dan V. Caprar

  2. Faculty of Business & Economics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia

    Benjamin A. Neville

Authors
  1. Dan V. Caprar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Benjamin A. Neville
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dan V. Caprar.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Caprar, D.V., Neville, B.A. “Norming” and “Conforming”: Integrating Cultural and Institutional Explanations for Sustainability Adoption in Business. J Bus Ethics 110, 231–245 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1424-1

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1424-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation