Substantive or strategic: Government R&D subsidies and green innovation

Based on the data of Chinese A-share-listed manufacturing enterprises, this paper empirically tests the impact of government R&D subsidies on green innovation from the perspective of innovation motivation. The results show that R&D subsidies promote strategic green innovation, while there is a converse-U curve relationship between R&D subsidies and substantive green innovation. There exists remarkable heterogeneity in ownership and R&D background of firms. Environmental regulation, public attention, and green finance weaken the positive relationship between R&D subsidies and strategic green innovation and strengthen the converse-U relationship between R&D subsidies and substantive green innovation.