The Impact of Military Culture on Innovation Risk-Taking: A Moderated Mediation Model

This study examines the impact of military cultural atmosphere on corporate innovation risk-taking within the unique institutional context of China. Leveraging an unbalanced panel dataset of 3506 Chinese A-share listed companies, comprising 15,381 observations from 2010 to 2022, this empirical analysis captures dynamic firm-level changes over time. Using ordinary least squares (OLS) regression to assess the effects of military cultural atmosphere and two-stage least squares (2SLS) to address potential endogeneity concerns, this study ensures robust results. The findings reveal that military cultural atmosphere, characterized by discipline, hierarchy, and collective responsibility, significantly enhances firms’ propensity for innovation risk-taking. Additionally, political connections emerge as a key mediating factor in this relationship, while perceived power within the organization moderates the mediation effect, exhibiting a negative moderation. These results underscore the critical role of military backgrounds among senior executives in shaping corporate culture and strategic decision-making, particularly in China’s policy-driven market environment. This study offers valuable insights for fostering long-term corporate resilience and strategic innovation, while also contributing to a deeper understanding of the interaction between corporate culture and innovation across different institutional settings.