Leaders and Laggards in Environmental Innovation: An Empirical Analysis of SMEs in Europe
研究了影响欧洲中小企业生态创新强度的因素，基于3852家样本识别出四类生态创新者（领先者、追随者、悠闲者、落后者），并分析了其驱动因素。
Abstract The main purpose of this article is studying the factors influencing eco‐innovative intensity in the European SMEs. Building upon the 'innovation triangle model', business competences, environmental orientation and network involvement are considered as the main determinants of 'greenness' of innovation in a sample of 3852 SMEs. Four categories of eco‐innovators (leaders, followers, loungers and laggards) are identified, and their profiles/driving factors are described using a generalized ordinal logistic model. Our results confirm that the increasing demand for green products and the adoption of eco‐organizational innovation affect positively the level of environmental innovation, while technological lock‐ins have the opposite effect across all categories. Neither leaders nor laggards are influenced by environmental policies. Small firms and those who give importance to financial constraints tend not to achieve upper categories, while valuing technological capabilities, market power and networks are crucial determinants of being in upper categories of eco‐innovation intensity. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment