Toward a “theoretical toolbox” for sustainability research in marketing

By Brian L. Connelly, Dave J. Ketchen, S. Slater. 2011

405 citations recorded by the source corpus.

This paper provides a foundation for future marketing research on sustainability through the application of nine prominent organizational theories. Specifically, we consider the implications for sustainability offered by transaction cost economics, agency theory, institutional theory, population ecology, resource dependence theory, the resource-based view of the firm, upper echelons theory, social network theory, and signaling theory. We consider how each theory can help researchers to better understand the ways that firms engage in sustainable marketing and business practices, and we develop insights that emerge from simultaneous examination of complementary or competing theoretical perspectives.

Subfields: Marketing, Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management, Strategy and Management

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/3a0b4e64c20659be1351162bfdab67c6be66a702

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Citations in the corpus

Sustainable Behavior in the Business Sphere (2014, positive): “In terms of Intervention 1c, an example of measuring role models and social norms is provided by Cordano and Frieze (2000), who used original items from Ajzen (1991) and Taylor and Todd (1995) to measure social norms for environmental regulation.”
Inside the sustainable consumption theoretical toolbox: Critical concepts for sustainability, consumption, and marketing (2017, background): “sustainability as an economic liability, a division that assesses environmental impact, a distinct market segment; these limited perspectives are at best incomplete and at worst misinformed (Connelly et al., 2011).”
How Green Management Influences Product Innovation in China: The Role of Institutional Benefits (2014, background): “Among the various theoretical perspectives that examine green management (Connelly et al. 2011), institutional theory is gaining prominence.”
The role of institutional and reputational factors in the voluntary adoption of corporate social responsibility reporting standards (2011, background): “Connelly et al. (2010) present a theoretical toolbox suitable for sustainability research in marketing.”
Seven cognitive concepts for successful eco-design (2015, background): “ment in eco-technologies are all examples of signals that can communicate a commitment to sustainability to various stakeholders (Connelly et al., 2011).”
When Does It Pay to be Good? Moderators and Mediators in the Corporate Sustainability–Corporate Financial Performance Relationship: A Critical Review (2017, background): “Centrality determines how fast CS strategies and practices diffuse throughout the strategic network, which concerns the access to timely and novel information (Connelly et al. 2011).”