Inertia and change related to sustainability – An institutional approach

Abstract

PostprintThis is the accepted version of a paper published in Journal of Cleaner Production. This paper has been peer-reviewed but does not include the final publisher proof-corrections or journal pagination.Citation for the original published paper (version of record): Stål, H. (2015)Inertia and change related to sustainability: an institutional approach. Journal of Cleaner Production INERTIA AND CHANGE RELATED TO SUSTAINABILITY -AN INSTITUTIONAL APPROACH ABSTRACTDespite increased awareness of environmental crisis and social inequity the world is becoming more, not less, unsustainable. Obviously there is great inertia, a disinclination to enact change, in for instance environmentally detrimental practices. While there is much in the literature to explain inertia at the individual, organizational and societal level, there is a gap concerning approaches that focus upon the industrial level. This paper addresses this gap by developing an analytical approach based upon institutional theory brought together with the ontological principles of strong sustainability. Two interrelated case studies, concerning greenhouse gas reduction in the Swedish agri-field, are used to develop the approach. The empirical results show that greenhouse gas reduction is used in support for convergent changes within the industry, for instance to motivate increased efficiency and yields. Hence, the paper contributes to the sustainable development-literature by providing an analytical approach that can be utilized to increase the understanding of change processes at the industrial level. This approach is then discussed and further developed to accommodate for the case results.

The impact of sustainability exploration and sustainability exploitation practices on the organisational performance: a cross-country comparison

“…The literature utilizing institutional theory to investigate sustainability-related phenomena is sparse and covers a range of different topics. Some examples of this range include conceptual pieces illustrating whether an institution of CSR exists and the key isomorphic practices (Bondy, 2009), whether CSR is implicit or explicit within the national culture (Matten and Moon, 2008), how CSR is becoming institutionalized (Campbell, 2007), how institutional pressures at the community level shape corporate social action (Marquis et al, 2007), how corporate communications shape institutional perspectives (Schultz and Wehmeier, 2010), and how different institutional settings can generate industry-level inertia and as change related to sustainability (Stål, 2015).…”

Agricultural Entrepreneurship in the European Union: Contributions for a Sustainable Development

“…Innovation in farms brings about important insights for sustainability and animal welfare [90,91]. The aversion to change and to implementing new approaches is one important barrier against improving overall sustainability [92,93].…”

O papel das capacidades internas e o ambiente da firma no fomento de inovações verdes: evidências empíricas do setor elétrico brasileiro

“…Originally conceived as an alternative to theories that considered the organizations as independent rational actors (see DiMaggio & Powell, 1983;Meyer & Rowan, 1977), the institutional theory gained body and today is one organizational theory strongly established and rich in models and concepts that explain the influence of institutions on organizations (Stål, 2015). Therefore, the greatest strength of institutional theory is to explain the diffusion of organizational practices.…”

“…Friedland and Alford 4 (1991 apud Stål; originally introduced the institutional logic issue to define the macrostructures of the society. This logic includes prescriptions related to actors in a specific industry (Greenwood & Suddaby, 2006), whereas the prevalent practices and ideas derive from it (Stål;.…”

“…This logic includes prescriptions related to actors in a specific industry (Greenwood & Suddaby, 2006), whereas the prevalent practices and ideas derive from it (Stål;. Battilana, Leca and Boxenbaum (2009) complemented that this comprises the shared belief among industry actors concerning the goals to be pursued and how to reach them.…”