Adoption of symbolic versus substantive sustainability practices by lower-tier suppliers: a behavioural view
研究了印度喀拉拉邦可持续可可供应商的行为特征（风险规避和模糊规避）如何预测其采纳符号性还是实质性可持续实践，发现风险规避和模糊规避与实质性实践相关，企业规模和协作强度也影响供应商的可持续行为。
Buying firms adopt various governance mechanisms to ensure sustainability compliance among upstream suppliers. While, certification is the most popular governance mechanism used worldwide, mounting evidence indicates that there is an incongruity in sustainability efforts between what is declared by supplier firms and their actual practices. Our empirical analysis of sustainable cocoa suppliers in Kerala (a state in South India) indicate that behavioural characteristics of suppliers, specifically their attitude towards risk and ambiguity can be used to assess suppliers’ tendency to adopt symbolic versus substantive sustainability postures. Risk aversion and ambiguity aversion were found to predict the sustainability posture of substantive (over symbolic) sustainability practices. Also, firm size and collaboration intensity played a significant role in supplier sustainability behaviour. The findings have important implications for academic research on sustainability, and policy implications for agencies charged with compliance with sustainability standards and guidelines. Finally, our study is beneficial for practicing managers who find it difficult to monitor sustainability compliance with respect to their supply base.