Internal sustainability branding and employee organizational citizenship behavior for the environment (OCBE)

Dong, E., Ruoyu Sun, & Lee, Y. (2024). “Internal sustainability branding and employee organizational citizenship behavior for the environment (OCBE).” Public Relations Journal, 17(3).

Abstract: This study investigates how internal sustainability branding—encompassing internal communication, employee orientation/training, and rewards—affects employees’ organizational citizenship behavior for the environment (OCBE) in the forms of eco-civic engagement, eco-initiatives, and eco-helping. By conducting a survey with 443 employees in the hospitality industry, we found that internal sustainability branding significantly influences OCBE in the workplace. The nuanced results indicated that strategies focused on intrinsic motivations, such as internal communication and employee orientation/training, are more effective than actions targeting extrinsic motivations like rewards. This study highlights the importance of internal public relations in conducting sustainability branding to enhance employees’ prosocial eco-friendly behaviors. Practical implications for corporate leaders and public relations professionals regarding approaches to internal sustainability branding have also been discussed.