Discussion on the Relationship between Environmental Regulation and Green Technology Innovation from the Perspective of Innovation External Cooperation: Evidence from Chinese Private Enterprises

Abstract

A number of studies have confirmed the Porter hypothesis that moderate environmental regulation can facilitate the adoption of green technology innovation strategies by cooperatives. However, the existing research has not clearly analyzed the paths of environmental regulation affecting green technology innovation and how internal factors act on the transmission path. To this end, this paper empirically examines the relationship between environmental regulation and enterprises’ green technology innovation from a collaborative innovation perspective, using data from the 13th Private Enterprise Survey in China as the sample. The findings show that: (1) the intensity of environmental regulation set by the Chinese government does promote enterprises’ green technological innovation, and this result will not change due to the difference between green process innovation and green product innovation; (2) under the constraints of environmental regulation, the allocation of resources through the mode of cooperative innovation to promote green technology innovation is an important transmission path, that is, cooperative innovation is an important mediating variable between environmental regulation and enterprises’ green technology innovation; (3) the management structure of enterprises can positively moderate the relationship between environmental regulation and collaborative innovation, i.e., the more managers, the more significant the influence of environmental regulation on collaborative innovation; (4) the stronger the social responsibility of enterprises, the more likely it is that the innovation resources obtained through collaborative forms will be allocated towards green technology innovation. However, such a moderating effect only exists in two types of cooperation: collaborative R&D and commissioned research. This research tells us that while environmental regulations continue to be strengthened, it is necessary to create an environment conducive to collaborative innovation but also to pay attention to the need for joint decision making and increase corporate social responsibility.