Governance of Greenwashing Behaviors: A Perspective of Heterogeneous Firm Types

Yi Zhang, Huiming Zhang, Kai Wu and Danyun Shen ()
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Yi Zhang: School of Management Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, China
Huiming Zhang: Institute of Climate Economy and Low-Carbon Industry, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, China
Kai Wu: School of Finance, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing 100081, China
Danyun Shen: School of Applied Technology, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, China

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 6, 1-15

Abstract: Corporate greenwashing in response to carbon neutrality strategies has received substantial academic attention. Distinct from previous studies, this paper establishes a differential game model incorporating both green and brown enterprise types. The model compares greenness and total profits under two government scenarios: subsidies for green enterprises and the regulation of brown enterprises. It further analyzes the mechanism behind brown enterprise greenwashing formation. The results show that subsidies alone encourage brown enterprises to engage in greenwashing. However, government regulation inhibits such behaviors, with the inhibition effect positively correlated to regulatory intensity. Consumers’ green perception of enterprises also significantly drives brown enterprise greenwashing degrees. Higher green enterprise perception coefficients reduce greenwashing, while higher brown enterprise perception coefficients increase it. Differential game and simulation analyses reveal that greenwashing governance should consider both direct policy effects on brown enterprises and indirect subsidy effects on green enterprises.

Keywords: corporate greenwashing; brown enterprises; subsidies; regulatory intensity; differential game (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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