The impact of institutional pressures on carbon mitigating behaviors of contractors: moderating roles of environmental leadership and cost perception

Purpose In the face of the escalating global climate change crisis, the construction industry, as an important contributor to carbon emissions, must proactively assume the responsibility of carbon mitigation. This paper aims to examine the influence of institutional pressures on the carbon mitigating behaviors of contractors and to investigate the moderating roles played by environmental leadership and cost perception in the relationships. Design/methodology/approach A survey of 272 questionnaires were conducted. Theoretical hypotheses were examined using hierarchical regression analysis. The simple slope test was employed to test the moderating effects of environmental leadership and cost perception. Findings The results reveal that (1) both coercive and normative pressures are positively related to carbon mitigating behaviors, while mimetic pressure's impact remains insignificant, (2) environmental leadership plays a different role in moderating the relationships between different types of institutional pressures and carbon mitigating behavior and (3) cost perception does not have a significant moderating effect. Originality/value Theoretically, the study contributes to the institutional theory by extending the theory by refining institutional pressures into three different forms, and validating the different influences of different forms of institutional pressures on carbon mitigating behaviors. It also reveals the boundary conditions of the relationship which provides a possible explanation for the inconsistencies in previous studies. Practically, this study provides guidelines for governments for directing and aligning the three types of institutional pressures more effectively to stimulate carbon mitigating behaviors among contractors, thereby fostering low-carbon development.