There is scant empirical longitudinal evidence in the extant eco-innovation literature on how industry norms, standards and expectations influence firms' strategic choices and innovation activities in the context of environmental sustainability. This study fills this research gap by determining the causal effects of industry norms that promote environmentally sustainable business practices on developing a firm's proactive environmental strategy, which propels a firm's eco-innovation outputs or those innovations considered environmentally sustainable. It utilises two waves of survey data involving 274 small and medium enterprises and the cross-lagged panel method of longitudinal analysis to bring to light the explanatory mediating power of a firm's environmental strategy as a response to industry norms that push firms to pursue eco-innovations. Drawing on institutional and strategic adaptation theories, this study's main findings on the causal and predictive temporal effects of industry norms on firm strategy and eco-innovation offer robust empirical evidence that extends and overcomes the shortcomings of previous studies on firm-level eco-innovation and its institutional and strategy-related determinants. This article presents the significant theoretical, empirical, methodological and practical implications of the study.

中文翻译：

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企业的生态创新：对行业规范和积极环境战略作用的纵向分析

在现有的生态创新文献中，关于行业规范、标准和期望如何影响企业在环境可持续性背景下的战略选择和创新活动的实证纵向证据很少。本研究通过确定促进环境可持续商业实践的行业规范对制定公司的积极环境战略的因果影响来填补这一研究空白，该战略推动公司的生态创新产出或那些被认为是环境可持续的创新。它利用涉及274家中小企业的两波调查数据和纵向分析的交叉滞后面板方法揭示了公司的解释中介力 的环境战略作为对推动公司追求生态创新的行业规范的回应。借鉴制度和战略适应理论，本研究关于行业规范对企业战略和生态创新的因果和预测时间影响的主要发现提供了有力的经验证据，扩展和克服了先前关于企业层面生态创新和其体制和战略相关的决定因素。本文介绍了该研究的重要理论、经验、方法和实践意义。关于行业规范对企业战略和生态创新的因果和预测时间影响的主要发现提供了强有力的经验证据，扩展并克服了先前关于企业层面生态创新及其制度和战略相关决定因素的研究的缺点。本文介绍了该研究的重要理论、经验、方法和实践意义。关于行业规范对企业战略和生态创新的因果和预测时间影响的主要发现提供了强有力的经验证据，扩展并克服了先前关于企业层面生态创新及其制度和战略相关决定因素的研究的缺陷。本文介绍了该研究的重要理论、经验、方法和实践意义。