Relationship between corporate social responsibility at the micro-level and environmental performance: The mediating role of employee pro-environmental behavior and the moderating role of gender

Since Pakistan is vulnerable to changing climatic conditions, the country needs emergency measures at every level to mitigate their effect. Many studies have addressed Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) at the macro or institutional level, but its effect at the micro-level is largely ignored in the contemporary literature. The present study aims at filling this gap by highlighting the role of micro-level CSR on Environmental Performance (ENP) and how it is influenced by employees' pro-environmental (PEB) behavior and gender. This study has been carried out in the context of deteriorating environmental conditions, scarce CSR activities and a male dominant society. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire targeting the manufacturing and the service sectors of Pakistan and analyzed through the structural equation modeling technique, using AMOS and SPSS software. The results of this study confirm that micro-level CSR initiatives directly (beta = 0.39**) and indirectly (beta = 0.031**) influence the environmental performance of an organization by means of employees' PEB. A conditional indirect gender effect on this interaction was also observed, with women (beta = 0.17**) exerting a stronger effect than men (beta = 0.031**). These findings may be helpful for policymakers involved in environmental management: It is possible to reduce the environmental footprint of Pakistan's organizations by encouraging employee's PEB and particularly by actively involving women which are systematically set apart from decision making in Pakistan. (C) 2021 Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.