The Patterns of Institutional Interaction and ISO 14001 Adoptions

Technology transfer classically has been associated with the diffusion of technologies and processes across national boundaries. But in recent years, the term has been attached with equal significance to the flow of ideas and knowledge within and between organizations within the same economy or nation. When the organizations involved are business corporations and government agencies, the term knowledge management often is used as a synonym for act of transfer or diffusion. This paper empirically addresses such transfer activities by focusing on how the patterns of institutional interaction influence corporate decisions to adopt International Standards Organization (ISO) 14001. Major foci are on interactions within and between government and business actors in the policy-making process. Three types of interactions are considered: interbusiness interactions; government–business interactions; and government interactions. The patterns of interactions provide individual firms with learning by which corporate managers determine the degree of uncertainty and thus make decisions to undertake (or reject) voluntary environmental initiatives. The paper analyzes data from the ISO 14001 survey report (2000) and measures the institutional characteristics of 34 democratic countries. The empirical result shows that a long and successful tradition of cooperative government–business interactions is an important determinant influencing the decisions to certify ISO 14001. It also indicates that the previous ISO 9000 adoptions could be at an advantage in terms of facilitating ISO 14001 adoptions.