*3.3. Research Sample*

As many as 242 managers in the physical distribution, wholesale, and retail sectors participated in the survey. The representativeness of the selected sample stems from the fact that the respondents are FSC managers who are directly responsible for food marketing, who know best the dependence of marketing on the mentioned indicators, and who have experience with the implementation of digitalization processes in the FSC. This type of sample belongs to the group of large statistical samples and is suitable for testing set hypotheses and achieving the research goal. In addition, the sample was uniform in terms of the number of FSC participants, the managerial position of the respondents, and their demographic characteristics, which contributed to obtaining representative data. The research sample is presented in Table 1.



Source: Author's calculations.

The reliability of the conducted testing and the correctness of the selected scales were confirmed using standard statistical coefficients: Cronbach's alpha, skewness, and kurtosis (Table 2). From the tabular presentation, there are no statistically significant deviations for the skewness and kurtosis coefficients, whereas Cronbach's alpha coefficient for all variables has values that are above 0.750. The obtained coefficient values confirm that the selected questions describe an identical problem and can be used to examine the opinions and attitudes of FSC managers on the impact of critical indicators on its sustainability and functionality as well as on the possibilities of implementing modern technology in business processes related to food marketing.

**Table 2.** Cronbach's alpha, skewness, and kurtosis coefficients.


Source: Author's calculation.
