Next Article in Journal
Eco-Scheme—Carbon Farming and Nutrient Management—A New Tool to Support Sustainable Agriculture in Poland
Previous Article in Journal
Crop Rotation and Weed Control as Factors in the Sustainable Cultivation of Winter Oilseed Rape
 
 
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

How Do Environmental Regulation and Media Pressure Influence Greenwashing Behaviors in Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises?

Business School, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471000, China
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2025, 17(11), 5066; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17115066
Submission received: 9 May 2025 / Revised: 28 May 2025 / Accepted: 29 May 2025 / Published: 31 May 2025

Abstract

Faced with mounting pressure to achieve high-quality green transformation, manufacturing enterprises are increasingly scrutinized for greenwashing behaviors. This study develops a novel hybrid modeling framework that combines evolutionary game theory with the SEIR epidemic model to investigate the dynamic interactions between environmental regulation, media pressure, and green innovation behavior. The model captures how strategic decisions among boundedly rational actors evolve over time under dual external pressures. Simulation results show that stronger environmental regulatory intensity accelerates the adoption of substantive green innovation and concurrently reduces the media pressure associated with greenwashing. Moreover, while social media disclosure has a limited impact during the early stages of greenwashing information diffusion, its influence becomes significantly amplified once a critical dissemination threshold is surpassed, rapidly transforming latent information into widespread public concern. This amplification triggers significant public opinion pressure, which, in turn, incentivizes local governments to enforce stricter environmental policies. The findings reveal a synergistic governance mechanism where environmental regulation and media scrutiny jointly curb greenwashing and foster genuine corporate sustainability.
Keywords: environmental regulation; media pressure; greenwashing behavior; manufacturing enterprise; evolutionary game model; epidemic model environmental regulation; media pressure; greenwashing behavior; manufacturing enterprise; evolutionary game model; epidemic model

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Yang, Z.; Zha, X. How Do Environmental Regulation and Media Pressure Influence Greenwashing Behaviors in Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises? Sustainability 2025, 17, 5066. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17115066

AMA Style

Yang Z, Zha X. How Do Environmental Regulation and Media Pressure Influence Greenwashing Behaviors in Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises? Sustainability. 2025; 17(11):5066. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17115066

Chicago/Turabian Style

Yang, Zhi, and Xiaoyu Zha. 2025. "How Do Environmental Regulation and Media Pressure Influence Greenwashing Behaviors in Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises?" Sustainability 17, no. 11: 5066. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17115066

APA Style

Yang, Z., & Zha, X. (2025). How Do Environmental Regulation and Media Pressure Influence Greenwashing Behaviors in Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises? Sustainability, 17(11), 5066. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17115066

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Metrics

Back to TopTop