ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Phys.
Sec. Social Physics
Managerial Myopia and Corporate Green Innovation: Evidence from Chinese A-share Listed Firms
Provisionally accepted
- 1Tianjin University of Finance and Economics, Tianjin, China
- 2Tianjin University College of Management and Economics, Tianjin, China
- 3School of International Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
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Against the backdrop of escalating climate risks, firms increasingly position green innovation not merely as a sustainability tool but as a strategic response shaping long-term competitiveness. This study empirically investigates the relationship between managerial myopia and firms' green innovation capabilities, using data from Chinese A-share listed companies from 2013 to 2022. The research reveals that managerial myopia negatively impacts green innovation, as an overemphasis on short-term profits undermines firms' ability to allocate resources effectively for green initiatives, harming both environmental performance and long-term sustainability. Moreover, the negative influence of myopia is exacerbated by command-and-control environmental regulations; however, this effect can be mitigated by negative media scrutiny, which functions as an effective governance mechanism. Notably, the moderating role of command-based regulations is significant only for independent R&D and non-inventive green innovation, whereas negative media attention specifically mitigates adverse effects on independent R&D and inventive green innovation. Lastly, heterogeneity analysis shows that state ownership and operations within heavily polluting industries help constrain managerial myopia, thereby preserving firms' green innovation capabilities to some extent. By foregrounding the managerial decision-making perspective, this study deepens the understanding of how internal governance factors shape corporate green innovation and offers actionable implications for stakeholders attempting to restrain managerial myopia and strengthen firms' sustainable innovation dynamics.
Keywords: Corporate green innovation, environmental regulation, green innovation, Managerial myopia, Media coverage
Received: 02 Nov 2025; Accepted: 12 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Zhen, Li, Ma and Ma. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Lei Li
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