Driving forces of sustainability in the mining industry: Evidence from a developing country

There is an increased understanding that mining companies should focus on sustainability practices to remain competitive, but there is limited research that captures the drivers of and barriers to implementing and maintaining sustainability practices. Drawing upon institutional theory, a study was conducted to explore the drivers of sustainability decisions by surveying 164 respondents from the mining sector in Ghana. Coercive and normative pressures emerge as potent drivers of the triple bottom line of sustainability. However, mimetic institutional pressures can influence environmental and social sustainability but not economic sustainability. It is expected that the study findings would guide managers and policymakers on the importance of the various institutional pressures in driving sustainability policies in mining organizations. Implications of this research are also discussed. •Mining companies should focus on sustainability practices to remain competitive.•Coercive and the normative pressures have the potency to drive all the triple bottom line of sustainability.•Mimetic institutional pressures also influence environmental and social sustainability but not economic sustainability.