{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,28]],"date-time":"2026-08-28T05:38:18Z","timestamp":1787895498401,"version":"build-2784847793"},"reference-count":85,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,4]],"date-time":"2025-08-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1754265600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"The Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities","award":["2023JBWG008"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2023JBWG008"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Systems"],"abstract":"<jats:p>As a critical external mechanism driving green innovation, institutional and competitive pressure often coexist and jointly shape firms\u2019 strategic responses. However, existing studies primarily focus on the individual effects of these pressures, with limited attention to their interactive impacts on green innovation. Drawing on optimal distinctiveness theory, this study proposes a \u201cpressure\u2013response\u201d analytical framework that classifies institutional and competitive pressure combinations into congruent (i.e., high\u2013high or low\u2013low) and incongruent (i.e., high\u2013low or low\u2013high) pressure contexts based on their relative intensities. It further examines how these distinct configurations affect two types of green innovation: strategic green innovation (StrGI) and substantive green innovation (SubGI). Using panel data from Chinese A-share listed firms between 2010 and 2022, the empirical results reveal that under congruent pressure contexts, the alignment of institutional and competitive pressures tends to suppress green innovation. In contrast, under incongruent contexts, the misalignment between the two pressures significantly promotes green innovation. Regarding innovation motivation, the high institutional\u2013low competitive pressure context more significantly promotes StrGI, while the low institutional\u2013high competitive pressure context has a more prominent effect on SubGI. In addition, this study also investigates the mediating roles of StrGI and SubGI on ESG performance. The findings provide theoretical support and policy implications for improving green transition policies and institutional frameworks, as well as promoting sustainable corporate development.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/systems13080657","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,5]],"date-time":"2025-08-05T08:46:55Z","timestamp":1754383615000},"page":"657","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Achieving Optimal Distinctiveness in Green Innovation: The Role of Pressure Congruence"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Rong","family":"Cong","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Economics and Management, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hongyan","family":"Gao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Economics and Management, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4343-3442","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Liya","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Economics and Management, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bo","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Management, HeBei Finance University, Baoding 071051, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-1467-5052","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ya","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Economics and Management, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,4]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"870","DOI":"10.1108\/JKM-06-2024-0688","article-title":"Enhancing organizational sustainable performance through green innovation: The roles of knowledge application, government policy, and green market orientation","volume":"29","author":"Nguyen","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. 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