IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v117y2013i1p173-187.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Sustainability, Epistemology, Ecocentric Business, and Marketing Strategy: Ideology, Reality, and Vision

Author

Listed:
  • Helen Borland
  • Adam Lindgreen

Abstract

This conceptual article examines the relationship between marketing and sustainability through the dual lenses of anthropocentric and ecocentric epistemology. Using the current anthropocentric epistemology and its associated dominant social paradigm, corporate ecological sustainability in commercial practice and business school research and teaching is difficult to achieve. However, adopting an ecocentric epistemology enables the development of an alternative business and marketing approach that places equal importance on nature, the planet, and ecological sustainability as the source of human and other species’ well-being, as well as the source of all products and services. This article examines ecocentric, transformational business, and marketing strategies epistemologically, conceptually and practically and thereby proposes six ecocentric, transformational, strategic marketing universal premises as part of a vision of and solution to current global un-sustainability. Finally, this article outlines several opportunities for management practice and further research. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013

Suggested Citation

  • Helen Borland & Adam Lindgreen, 2013. "Sustainability, Epistemology, Ecocentric Business, and Marketing Strategy: Ideology, Reality, and Vision," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 117(1), pages 173-187, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:117:y:2013:i:1:p:173-187
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-012-1519-8
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s10551-012-1519-8
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-012-1519-8?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Banerjee, Subhabrata Bobby, 2002. "Corporate environmentalism: the construct and its measurement," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 55(3), pages 177-191, March.
    2. Linnenluecke, Martina K. & Griffiths, Andrew, 2010. "Corporate sustainability and organizational culture," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 45(4), pages 357-366, October.
    3. World Commission on Environment and Development,, 1987. "Our Common Future," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780192820808.
    4. Mort, Gillian Sullivan, 2010. "Sustainable Business," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 45(4), pages 323-325, October.
    5. Ulrike Schultze & Charles Stabell, 2004. "Knowing What You Don’t Know? Discourses and Contradictions in Knowledge Management Research," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(4), pages 549-573, June.
    6. Guest, Ross, 2010. "The economics of sustainability in the context of climate change: An overview," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 45(4), pages 326-335, October.
    7. Pujari, Devashish & Wright, Gillian & Peattie, Ken, 2003. "Green and competitive: Influences on environmental new product development performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 56(8), pages 657-671, August.
    8. William Young & Fiona Tilley, 2006. "Can businesses move beyond efficiency? The shift toward effectiveness and equity in the corporate sustainability debate," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(6), pages 402-415, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Helen Borland & Yohan Bhatti & Adam Lindgreen, 2019. "Sustainability and sustainable development strategies in the U.K. plastic electronics industry," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(4), pages 805-818, July.
    2. Enes Ünal & Vikash Kumar Sinha, 2023. "Sustainability trade‐offs in the circular economy: A maturity‐based framework," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4662-4682, November.
    3. Sougata Ray & Bikramjit Ray Chaudhuri, 2018. "Business Group Affiliation and Corporate Sustainability Strategies of Firms: An Investigation of Firms in India," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(4), pages 955-976, December.
    4. Jay Joseph & Helen Borland & Marc Orlitzky & Adam Lindgreen, 2020. "Seeing Versus Doing: How Businesses Manage Tensions in Pursuit of Sustainability," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 164(2), pages 349-370, June.
    5. Jamee A. Pelcher & Sylvia Trendafilova & Brian P. McCullough, 2024. "Environmental Behavior Framework Revisited: Where Do We Stand Ten Years Later and Where Do We Go from Here?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-15, August.
    6. Kathleen Rodenburg & Kelly MacDonald, 2021. "Enhancing Business Schools’ Pedagogy on Sustainable Business Practices and Ethical Decision-Making," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-26, May.
    7. Julia Köhler & Sönnich Dahl Sönnichsen & Philip Beske‐Jansen, 2022. "Towards a collaboration framework for circular economy: The role of dynamic capabilities and open innovation," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(6), pages 2700-2713, September.
    8. Christina W. Y. Wong & Xin Miao & Shuang Cui & Yanhong Tang, 2018. "Impact of Corporate Environmental Responsibility on Operating Income: Moderating Role of Regional Disparities in China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 149(2), pages 363-382, May.
    9. Stephen Allen & Ann L. Cunliffe & Mark Easterby-Smith, 2019. "Understanding Sustainability Through the Lens of Ecocentric Radical-Reflexivity: Implications for Management Education," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 154(3), pages 781-795, February.
    10. Ana Criado-Gomis & Maria-Angeles Iniesta-Bonillo & Amparo Cervera-Taulet & Domingo Ribeiro-Soriano, 2020. "Women as Key Agents in Sustainable Entrepreneurship: A Gender Multigroup Analysis of the SEO-Performance Relationship," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-17, February.
    11. Gheorghe Epura & Bianca Tesca?iu & Raluca Dania Todor & Karin-Andreea Sasu, 2017. "Responsible Consumption – Source of Competitive Advantages and Solution for Tourist Protection," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 19(45), pages 447-447, May.
    12. Graf, Erika, 2015. "Raising sustainability awareness and understanding in higher education," Working Paper Series 08, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Business and Law.
    13. Jay Joseph & Marc Orlitzky & Bruce Gurd & Helen Borland & Adam Lindgreen, 2019. "Can business‐oriented managers be effective leaders for corporate sustainability? A study of integrative and instrumental logics," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(2), pages 339-352, February.
    14. Jon Fernández Carrera & Alfredo Amor del Olmo & María Romero Cuadrado & María del Mar Espinosa Escudero & Luis Romero Cuadrado, 2021. "From Lean 5S to 7S Methodology Implementing Corporate Social Responsibility Concept," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-17, September.
    15. Dirk Clercq & Narongsak Thongpapanl & Maxim Voronov, 2018. "Sustainability in the Face of Institutional Adversity: Market Turbulence, Network Embeddedness, and Innovative Orientation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(2), pages 437-455, March.
    16. Giacomo Buzzao & Francesco Rizzi, 2021. "On the conceptualization and measurement of dynamic capabilities for sustainability: Building theory through a systematic literature review," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 135-175, January.
    17. Maria Cristina Zaccone & Cristina Santhià & Martina Bosone, 2022. "How Hybrid Organizations Adopt Circular Economy Models to Foster Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-20, February.
    18. Frederick Ahen, 2018. "Dystopic Prospects of Global Health and Ecological Governance: Whither the Eco-Centric-Humanistic CSR of Firms?," Humanistic Management Journal, Springer, vol. 3(1), pages 105-126, July.
    19. Helen Borland & Véronique Ambrosini & Adam Lindgreen & Joëlle Vanhamme, 2016. "Building Theory at the Intersection of Ecological Sustainability and Strategic Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 135(2), pages 293-307, May.
    20. Johannes (Joost) Platje & Markus Will & Monika Paradowska & Ynte K. van Dam, 2022. "Socioeconomic Paradigms and the Perception of System Risks: A Study of Attitudes towards Nuclear Power among Polish Business Students," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-15, October.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lueg, Rainer & Radlach, Ronny, 2016. "Managing sustainable development with management control systems: A literature review," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 158-171.
    2. Helen Borland & Véronique Ambrosini & Adam Lindgreen & Joëlle Vanhamme, 2016. "Building Theory at the Intersection of Ecological Sustainability and Strategic Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 135(2), pages 293-307, May.
    3. Gutierrez, I. & Alcaraz, J.M. & Susaeta, L. & Suarez, E. & Pin , José Ramón, 2015. "Managing Sustainability for Competitive Advantage: Evidence From the Hospitality Industry," IESE Research Papers D/1115, IESE Business School.
    4. Anselm Schneider, 2015. "Reflexivity in Sustainability Accounting and Management: Transcending the Economic Focus of Corporate Sustainability," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 127(3), pages 525-536, March.
    5. Abdullah Yıldızbaşı & Cihat Öztürk & Deniz Efendioğlu & Serol Bulkan, 2021. "Assessing the social sustainable supply chain indicators using an integrated fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making methods: a case study of Turkey," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 4285-4320, March.
    6. López-Gamero, María D. & Molina-Azorín, José F. & Claver-Cortés, Enrique, 2011. "Environmental uncertainty and environmental management perception: A multiple case study," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 64(4), pages 427-435, April.
    7. Yang Chen & Guiyao Tang & Jiafei Jin & Ji Li & Pascal Paillé, 2015. "Linking Market Orientation and Environmental Performance: The Influence of Environmental Strategy, Employee’s Environmental Involvement, and Environmental Product Quality," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 127(2), pages 479-500, March.
    8. Maria Giovanna Confetto & Maddalena Della Volpe & Claudia Covucci, 2018. "Dual marketers and sustainability communication. Empirical evidence from corporate websites," MERCATI & COMPETITIVIT?, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2018(3), pages 41-68.
    9. Markus Milne & Rob Gray, 2013. "W(h)ither Ecology? The Triple Bottom Line, the Global Reporting Initiative, and Corporate Sustainability Reporting," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 118(1), pages 13-29, November.
    10. Thaís Vieira Nunhes & Merce Bernardo & Otávio José de Oliveira, 2020. "Rethinking the Way of Doing Business: A Reframe of Management Structures for Developing Corporate Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-32, February.
    11. Abraham Carmeli & Ari Dothan & Dev Kumar Boojihawon, 2020. "Resilience of sustainability‐oriented and financially‐driven organizations," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(1), pages 154-169, January.
    12. Mehdi Amini & Carol C. Bienstock & John A. Narcum, 2018. "Status of corporate sustainability: a content analysis of Fortune 500 companies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(8), pages 1450-1461, December.
    13. Wagner, Marcus, 2015. "A European perspective on country moderation effects: Environmental management systems and sustainability-related human resource benefits," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 379-388.
    14. Farida Saleem & Saiqa Saddiqa Qureshi & Muhammad Imran Malik, 2021. "Impact of Environmental Orientation on Proactive and Reactive Environmental Strategies: Mediating Role of Business Environmental Commitment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-16, July.
    15. Tobias Hahn & Frank Figge & Jonatan Pinkse & Lutz Preuss, 2018. "A Paradox Perspective on Corporate Sustainability: Descriptive, Instrumental, and Normative Aspects," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(2), pages 235-248, March.
    16. Paula Benevene & Ilaria Buonomo, 2020. "Green Human Resource Management: An Evidence-Based Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-25, July.
    17. HERCIU Mihaela & OGREAN Claudia, 2018. "Business Sustainable Competitiveness – A Synergistic, Long-Run Approach Of A Company’S Resources And Results," Studies in Business and Economics, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 13(3), pages 26-44, December.
    18. Gabriel Eweje, 2011. "A Shift in corporate practice? Facilitating sustainability strategy in companies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(3), pages 125-136, May.
    19. Fabien Martinez, 2021. "Ecological responsiveness and business performance: Four scenarios of compatibility and a multi‐faceted strategies framework," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(8), pages 3606-3625, December.
    20. Chrysanthi Charatsari & Iosif Fragkoulis & Evaggelos Anagnou & Evagelos D. Lioutas, 2022. "Can Adult Education Boost Sustainability Transitions? Some Evidence from Farmers and Teachers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-13, August.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:117:y:2013:i:1:p:173-187. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.