How official assessment mechanisms impact green innovation in enterprises: evidence from Chinese listed companies

Enterprise green innovation is a crucial step for China to take the green development path and achieve Chinese modernization, but the high cost and long lead time of green innovation lead to the reluctance of enterprises to innovate. Under such circumstances, the government’s guidance for enterprises’ green innovation becomes very important. In 2013, the assessment system for Chinese officials underwent fundamental changes. Prior to 2013, official promotions were solely determined by relative rankings of GDP growth. After 2013, the promotion evaluation system for officials increased the weight of green indicators such as resource consumption, environmental protection, and ecological benefits. It is worth conducting further research on whether this change can effectively promote green innovation in enterprises. This article utilizes data from Chinese A-share listed companies from 2000 to 2018 and constructs a fixed effects model to study the impact of promotion pressure based on economic growth and green assessment on corporate green innovation. Empirical results indicate that promotion pressures stemming from economic growth assessment have a significant inhibiting effect on enterprise green innovation, and this effect has strengthened after 2013. On the other hand, promotion pressures associated with green assessment have a significant stimulating effect on enterprise green innovation, particularly after 2013. Furthermore, government support for innovation serves as a mediator between promotion pressure and corporate green innovation. Additionally, a series of heterogeneity analyses are conducted, providing theoretical foundations for the government’s effective promotion of corporate green innovation.