The Role of Mimicry Isomorphism in Sustainable Development Operationalisation by SMEs in South Africa

Reginald Masocha and Olawale Fatoki
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Reginald Masocha: School of Economics and Management, University of Limpopo, Sovenga 0727, South Africa
Olawale Fatoki: School of Economics and Management, University of Limpopo, Sovenga 0727, South Africa

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 4, 1-16

Abstract: The study surveyed 222 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from the Limpopo province of South Africa on the impact of mimicry isomorphism in making sustainable development operational. The research made use of self-administered questionnaires which were distributed, and the convenience sampling technique was used. Data analysis primarily comprised of exploratory factor analysis (EFA) through SPSS software version 24 confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM) through AMOS software version 24. The SEM results revealed that all three measured dimensions of sustainable development—namely, economic, environmental, and social—were significantly influenced by mimicry isomorphism. As such, the implications of the study are that strong evidence exists pertaining to the operationalisation of sustainable development due to mimetic isomorphism.

Keywords: mimicry isomorphism; sustainable development; SMEs; South Africa; structural equation modelling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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