The Effects of Managerial Competency and Local Religiosity on Corporate Environmental Responsibility

This study investigates the influence of local religious beliefs to evaluate managerial motives towards corporate environmental engagement, considering growing attention role external factors in shaping behavior. Using Newsweek’s green rankings largest publicly traded US firms by market capitalization from 2014–2016, we find that competent managers show a higher strategic preference for practices located low-Protestant or high-Catholic areas exhibiting risk and uncertainty, which tend mitigate negative effects risky environments. We positively sales high risk-taking states. provides significant contributions literature documenting consequences behavior elaborates on perceptions management. The results provide valuable insights practitioners policymakers looking incorporate practices.