Measuring the linkage between strategies on sustainability and institutional forces: an empirical study of Spanish universities

Abstract

Policy documents are commonly identified as key outcomes that guide initiatives directed by senior university leaders towards sustainability through plans and policies. Many studies have called for a more integration of sustainability into universities. Nevertheless, the interest in sustainability issues has been more recent in the specific case of Spain. This study analyses the strategic plans developed by Spanish universities in the last decade with two different aims: first, we examine the extent to which Spanish universities are incorporating strategies on sustainability. The second goal evaluates whether the presence of strategies on sustainability in Spanish universities could be associated with coercive and mimetic pressures. Findings indicate the low presence of strategies on sustainability in Spanish universities. Moreover, the results seem to suggest that the presence of strategies on sustainability in Spanish universities could be linked with coercive and mimetic pressures emanating from the State performance funding for universities. The results indicate that universities usually incorporate practices and strategies on sustainability as a response of the pressure exerted by institutional forces, such as the funding systems of higher education institutions.

Education for Sustainable Development: Emerging Themes from Adopters of a Declaration

“…Universities are obliged, on behalf of their stakeholders, to run their operations efficiently, effectively, and responsibly. A university may aspire to social or environmental objectives rather than the profit motive, but they still share the obligation to be efficient, effective, and well-governed [38][39][40]. Many of the interviewees also shared an individual commitment to mitigating climate change and felt a community spirit in conducting their roles, sometimes collaborating across institutional boundaries in spaces that would otherwise be strategically competitive.…”

“…Institutional theory explains the inherent resistance to creating organizational change [39,40]. Most managers were aware of the difficulties of asking people and systems to change.…”

Development of Organizational Sustainability Scale

“…While the studies dealing with organizational sustainability generally focus on maintaining a certain unit or only a center, the others focus on maintaining the activities and effects of the programs in these centers (Zemke, 2013). These studies are mainly the ones such as sustainability of the campus environment (Alshuwaikhat & Abubakar, 2008;Cole, 2003;Disterheft, Caeiro, Azeiteiro & LealFilho, 2015;Kamal & Asmuss, 2013;Kurland, 2011;Lang, 2015;Levy & Marans, 2012;Lidstone, Wright 6 Sherren, 2015;LealFilho, Shiel & Paco, 2016;Lo, 2015;Mitchell, 2011;Moganadas, Corral-Verdugo & Ramanathan, 2013;Savanick, Baker & Perry, 2007;Savanick, Strong & Manning, 2008;Savelyeva & McKenna, 2011;Shriberg, 2002;Sherman, 2008;Shriberg, & Harris, 2012); evaluation of sustainability in terms of curriculum and teaching in higher education (Fisher & McAdams, 2015;Lozano, Barreiro-Gen, Lozano & Sammalisto, 2019;Stough, Ceulemans, Lambrechts & Cappuyns, 2018); sustainability in terms of student exchange (Shields, 2019); leadership (Savage, Tapics, Evarts, Wilson ve Tirone, 2015); sustainability in terms of strategy (Larrán, Herrera & Andrades, 2016;Ramísio, Pinto, Gouveia, Costa & Arezes, 2019); environmental sustainability (Piza, Aparicio, Rodríguez, Marín, Beltrán & Bedolla, 2018); sustainability in terms of vision, mission and graduate quality (Lee, Barker & Mouasher, 2013); sustainability in terms of communication (Franz-Balsen & Heinrichs, 2007) or only the ones such as at the level of case study or literature review only (Bizerril, Rosa, Carval...…”

Urban(izing) University Strategic Planning: An Analysis of London and New York City

“…Notwithstanding these limitations, strategic plans do reveal important facets of universities' orientation and modes of engagement. Several studies have constructively utilized such documents to assess: the internalization of 'globalizing discourses' (Gaffikin and Perry 2009); the integration of sustainability concerns into broader planning discussions (Larrán, Herrera, and Andrades 2016); and the construction of mission and vision statements at public universities (Ozdem 2011).…”