How Do Resource-Based Listed Firms Achieve Sustainable Development? A Dynamic fsQCA Analysis Based on the TOE Framework

Amid escalating climate change and China’s “dual carbon” policy imperative, resource-based listed firms face urgent yet complex green transition challenges that single-factor approaches fail to adequately explain. Grounded in complex adaptive systems theory and the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework, this study employs dynamic fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) to analyze a panel of 160 Chinese resource-based A-share listed firms (2019–2024) to identify configurational pathways driving Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance. The results reveal eight high-performance pathways categorized into three archetypal patterns and six low-performance pathways reflecting distinct systemic misalignment traps. High- and low-performance pathways are causally asymmetric. Dynamic analysis further uncovers strong path-locking effects and divergent regional transition strategies. These findings advance configurational theory of corporate sustainability and offer strategic guidance for resource-dependent firms and policymakers.