The Impact of Digital–Green Synergy on Total Factor Productivity: Evidence from Chinese Listed Companies

Dongfeng Chen, Junpeng Wang (), Bin Li, Huihui Luo and Guangming Hou
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Dongfeng Chen: School of Management, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
Junpeng Wang: School of Management, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
Bin Li: School of Management, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
Huihui Luo: School of Management, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
Guangming Hou: School of Management, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 5, 1-40

Abstract: Driven by the dual imperatives of global economic green transformation and the advancement of digital technologies, achieving synergistic enhancement through digitalization and greenization to promote sustainable development has become a focal point for both academia and practical fields. This study, utilizing a sample of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2023, aims to explore the transformative potential of digital–green synergy (DGS) for enhancing enterprise sustainable development within the realm of production efficiency improvement. Employing a coupling coordination model based on the entropy-weighted TOPSIS method, the research measures the DGS levels of enterprises. Grounded in strategic synergy theory, the resource-based view, and dynamic capability theory, this study thoroughly investigates the direct impacts of DGS on corporate TFP, intermediary mechanisms, moderating effects, and heterogeneous roles. The research findings robustly demonstrate that DGS can significantly improve enterprise TFP through optimizing resource allocation, reducing cost stickiness, and enhancing operational efficiency, thereby facilitating the dynamic reorganization of production factors and the creation of sustainable value. Furthermore, external factors, such as financing constraints and environmental regulation, alongside internal organizational factors like executive characteristics, are shown to exert significant moderating effects on the effectiveness of DGS. In summary, this research not only highlights the crucial role of DGS in enhancing production efficiency as a driver for high-quality corporate development and the pursuit of sustainable goals but also provides important theoretical guidance for policymakers to incentivize digital and green transformation. It also offers practical insights for enterprise managers to strategically formulate synergistic development strategies, enhance economic benefits, and achieve long-term sustainable performance. Beyond these practical implications, this study further enriches the theoretical landscape by first extending strategic synergy theory to firm-level digital–green synergy in emerging markets; second by enhancing sustainability research by adopting a broader “environment-society” framework; methodologically innovating by developing a novel “goal-strategy-input-technology” synergy measurement framework; and finally, deepening the theoretical understanding of DGS-TFP relationships through mechanism and moderator exploration.

Keywords: digital–green synergy; total factor productivity; cost stickiness; operational efficiency (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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