Year: 2024
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Employees have a key role in translating the corporate sustainability objectives to concrete initiatives and practices. However, scarce theoretical and conceptual attention has been paid to the process by which employees at the individual level engage in corporate sustainability objectives and become autonomous sustainability thinkers. My dissertation examines this phenomenon through three interlinked essays that are based on empirical studies in a multinational enterprise (MNE) context, and with psychological ownership theory as the focus driver. Essay I investigates which factors strengthen or hinder the development of psychological ownership of corporate sustainability at the individual level in local business units of MNEs. There are several factors that can have contradictory effects, both strengthening and hindering the routes to psychological ownership of corporate sustainability. Essay II examines how the professional role of management accountants (MAs) could develop to incorporate advancing sustainability. MAs themselves tend to exclude corporate sustainability from their job role; instead, they see it as a subject of other functions. The findings also reveal features connected to the current perceived professional role of MAs that may impede the development of psychological ownership of corporate sustainability. The study reveals justified development paths for strengthening the role of MAs in promoting corporate sustainability. Essay III is a case study that further elaborates the process of individual engagement when an environmental accounting project act as an intervention. The findings show that incorporating sustainability-related tasks into one’s work stimulates the routes of psychological ownership of corporate sustainability, irrespective of the individual’s initial level of competence and commitment. My dissertation contributes to the academic discussion related to business sustainability transition and the role of accounting in this change. By utilizing the psychological ownership theory, it introduces a novel processual perspective to explore how individuals may become engaged in enhancing corporate sustainability. On a practical level, the research shows how, for example, job design influences employee engagement and how the routes of psychological ownership can be used to cultivate sustainability thinking. Moreover, it provides management with means to navigate potential pitfalls in building a sustainability-oriented organizational culture. It also gives insights for MA professional organizations and education providers to foster sustainability thinking among MAs.
Source: Osuva (University of Vaasa)
Author: Kurki, Martina
Institution: University of Vaasa
Language: English
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7006245331