A Dual-Pathway Framework Linking Green Training and Employees’ Pro-Environmental Behavior: Evidence from a Chinese Energy Company

The increasing emphasis on sustainability in the energy sector has highlighted the importance of understanding the factors that promote employees’ pro-environmental behavior (PEB). Although green training (GT) is widely regarded as an effective organizational practice for encouraging PEB, the psychological mechanisms underlying this relationship remain insufficiently understood. Drawing on Social Learning Theory, this study proposes a dual-pathway framework through which GT is associated with employees’ PEB via perceived corporate environmental responsibility (CER) and environmental self-identity (ESI). Using purposively sampled, cross-sectional survey data from 1028 employees of a large Chinese energy company, the proposed framework was tested through structural equation modeling and bootstrap mediation analysis. The results indicate that perceived CER alone does not independently mediate the relationship between GT and PEB. However, perceived CER plays an important role by serving as a bridge through which employees internalize organizational environmental values into their ESI. Furthermore, ESI emerged as an independent and robust mediator, highlighting the central role of the identity-based pathway. This study contributes context-specific evidence from a large Chinese energy company, providing a deeper understanding of the psychological mechanisms linking GT and PEB and offering practical implications for organizations seeking to foster sustainability-oriented behaviors among employees.