Which “green” is better? An empirical study of the impact of green activities on firm performance

This study aims to distinguish an array of green activities (ISO 14000, green processes, pollution prevention, and green certifications) and analyze their relationships with firm performance. Employing data from the sampled publicly listed firms in Taiwan and regressions to examine the hypotheses, we find that the degree of a firm's R&D investment fails to affect companies' choice of green activities; however, the degree of firm internationalization can. That is, more internationalized firms are also more likely to employ green certifications among these activities. In terms of the impacts of these green activities on firm performance, a company employing green processes can perform better, followed by ISO 14000, pollution prevention, and lastly, green certifications.