Green Human Resource Management in Vietnamese Small Restaurants: Integrating Institutional and Natural‐Resource‐Based Perspectives

ABSTRACT This work assesses green human resource management (GHRM)'s antecedents and outcomes in the contexts of Vietnamese small restaurants by using institutional theory and the natural‐resource‐based view (NRBV). Specifically, it identifies green coercive pressure (GCP), green normative pressure (GNP), and green mimetic pressure (GMP) as the antecedents of GHRM adoption based on institutional theory. Besides, it relies on NRBV to propose that GHRM adoption leads to green performance (GP) as well as restaurant performance (RP). Additionally, this study examines the mediating role of GP based on NRBV. To analyze those proposals, this study surveys 287 small enterprises within Vietnam's restaurant sector. Data were assessed by employing Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling. Results confirm that GCP, GNP, and GMP significantly drive GHRM adoption. GHRM adoption, in turn, significantly enhances GP and RP. They also confirm that GP directly improves RP. Besides, they show that GP significantly mediates the relationship between GHRM adoption and RP. This study makes four key contributions to the GHRM literature. First, it strengthens institutional theory and NRBV by providing empirical evidence on the antecedents and consequences of GHRM adoption in the restaurant industry. Second, it advances the operationalization of GHRM by conceptualizing it as a higher‐order construct comprising interdependent subdimensions. Third, it extends the understanding of external drivers of GHRM adoption and its performance outcomes, particularly in small hospitality enterprises. Lastly, it addresses the research gap in Vietnam, an underexplored emerging economy, by demonstrating the predictive validity of institutional theory and NRBV in this context.