Embeddedness and Interactions in New Public Environmental Management Governance: International and Intertemporal Evidence on Voluntary Standards

Abstract

This chapter analyzes the indirect effects of environmental management system (EMS) implementation and its certification and relates these to international governance in the context of new public environmental management. Building on a comprehensive quantitative dataset, it assesses the effects of ISO 14001 and EMAS (Eco-Management and Auditing Scheme) certification as well as temporal experience with EMS implementation on organizational activities outside the scope of EMS, while taking into account embeddedness and interaction effects. The analysis reveals heterogeneous effects, with limited evidence of embeddedness and interaction effects. As well, no influences of national business systems can be identified. Implications for the role of national governments in implementing sustainability strategies, even beyond environmental management, and aspects of standard flexibility in the process of governing firms to implementing such strategies in an international context are discussed.

Citation

Wagner, M. (2021), "Embeddedness and Interactions in New Public Environmental Management Governance: International and Intertemporal Evidence on Voluntary Standards", Verbeke, A., van Tulder, R., Rose, E.L. and Wei, Y. (Ed.) The Multiple Dimensions of Institutional Complexity in International Business Research (Progress in International Business Research, Vol. 15), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 399-415. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1745-886220210000015022