The barriers and drivers of environmental management accounting practices' adoption in developed and developing countries for sustainable development

Abstract

AbstractBarriers and drivers of environmental management accounting practices' (EMAPs) adoption were compared between developed and developing countries. This may assist to promote adoption of EMAPs by targeting and overcoming applicable barriers while promoting drivers that are specific to their circumstances, leading to sustainable development ultimately. Methodology: A qualitative, six‐step systematic literature review (SLR) using ATLAS.ti 8 were employed. Four interdependent theories (institutional, contingency, legitimacy, and stakeholder) framed the SLR. Findings: developed countries have strong institutions that exert institutional isomorphic pressure on organisations to adopt EMAPs while developing countries with weaker institutions are hindered by low isomorphic pressure. Moreover, mimetic, and normative forces and contingent factors played a greater role in the adoption of EMAPs in developed countries, less important for developing countries. The findings may inform management who would want to enhance the environmental performance and sustainable development of their organisations and furthermore assist policymakers in developed and developing countries as they pursue environmental sustainability which is key to attaining the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) and Africa's Agenda 2063. Past studies investigated drivers and barriers in different countries however they did not distinguish between developed and developing countries. Since developed and developing countries have unique circumstances, this distinction exposes the different barriers and drivers.