The road to hell is paved with good intentions: A review and research agenda on rebound effects and win–win strategies

Abstract Rebound effects describe how efficiency improvements in energy or resource use can increase demand, thereby partially or fully offsetting expected environmental savings. This dynamic complicates win–win strategies that aim to improve environmental and financial performance. Yet, management research has not systematically engaged with the concept. To address this gap, we review the rebound literature using bibliometric techniques and content analysis. We trace its origins in energy economics and document its subsequent theoretical and empirical diversification, particularly in industrial ecology. Across these domains, research has focused predominantly on estimating rebound magnitudes, offering limited insight into how rebound effects are perceived, managed or ignored by decision‐makers. Building on this review, we conceptualize rebound effects as a form of means‐ends decoupling and develop a taxonomy that distinguishes four types of win–win strategies based on how rebound effects are understood and acted upon. Overall, the paper advances the literature on corporate sustainability by clarifying when win–win claims are likely to be unreliable and by outlining directions for integrating rebound effects into future research in strategy, organization and innovation studies.