A comprehensive literature review on, and the construction of a framework for, environmental legitimacy, accountability and proactivity
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Date
Authors
Alrazi, Bakhtiar
De Villiers, Charl Johannes
Van Staden, Chris J. (Christiaan Johan)
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier
Abstract
This paper identifies three conceptually distinct, but interrelated concepts regarding corporate environmental
behaviour from the literature e environmental legitimacy, environmental accountability, and
environmental proactivity e and shows how they can be integrated into a single framework. This is done
in a context where prior studies in the literature do not relate these concepts to each other or place the
concepts within a meaningful context, nor integrate them into a single framework. The framework
demonstrates an organisational journey towards achieving legitimacy in environmental endeavours.
Environmental legitimacy is conditional upon the public evaluation of corporate environmental performance
and environmental reporting (environmental accountability), which in turn, requires organisations
to invest in environmental management and accounting systems and stakeholder engagement
(environmental proactivity). The paper identifies company, stakeholder and other characteristics that
influence the constructs in the framework and also propose a research agenda based on this framework.
Environmental performance constitutes the central concept in the framework, acknowledging that
improved environmental performance promotes the ultimate goal of sustainability. The framework
suggests that the judicious management of environmental performance and reporting, the two components
of environmental accountability, results in environmental legitimacy. Furthermore, environmental
accountability can be enhanced by environmental proactivity, a concept comprising
environmental management and environmental accounting, as well as stakeholder engagement. This
synthesis of the factors that influence and contribute to environmental performance is the framework's
main contribution.
Description
Keywords
Environmental performance, Accountability, Legitimacy, Sustainability, Environmental legitimacy, accountability,, ELAP framework, Environmental legitimacy, Environmental accountability, Environmental proactivity, Environmental Legitimacy, Accountability, and Proactivity (ELAP)
Sustainable Development Goals
Citation
Alrazi, B, De Villiers, C & Van Staden, CJ 2015, 'A comprehensive literature review on, and the construction of a framework for, environmental legitimacy, accountability and proactivity', Journal of Cleaner Production, vol. 102, pp. 44-57.