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Sustainability
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Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy
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Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Economic and Business Aspects of Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2023) | Viewed by 22822

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Saadi Lahlou

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Social Psychology, London School of Economics, London WC2A 2AE, UK
2. Paris Institute for Advanced Study, 75004 Paris, France
Interests: public policy; governance and evaluation; behavioural change; societal psychology; complexity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Production and consumption are two faces of the same coin: consumers will consume what is on offer, while innovators and producers will try to respond to demand. This chicken and egg problem blocks the transition to a sustainable economy. How can we create a viable path from the current state to a more sustainable one; a path enabling current businesses to transition while staying afloat? This requires redesigning carefully the “business”, keeping the users/consumers satisfied, and other stakeholders as well, while gradually changing what creates negative externalities.

In the line of the “installation theory” school of thought at the London School of Economics, this issue shows the way for a pragmatic approach to changing the world for a better place, anchored in a systematic approach of business redesign, informed by consumer psychology. It provides examples of what can be done, with concrete examples, to channel consumer behavior by combining actions targeting three determinants of consumer behavior: material design, embodied practices and social regulation. This approach can help redesign existing businesses or create new ones that address issues of sustainability.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Saadi Lahlou
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • consumer satisfaction
  • business models
  • sustainable economy

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

30 pages, 3168 KiB  
Article
Securing a Sustainable Future: A Path towards Gender Equality in the Indian Agricultural Sector
by Khyati Dharamshi, Liora Moskovitz and Sugandha Munshi
Sustainability 2023, 15(16), 12447; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151612447 - 16 Aug 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4111
Abstract
The Indian agricultural sector is the world’s largest producer of pulses, milk, and jute, and the second-largest producer of rice, wheat, vegetables, fruit, and cotton. Climate change threatens food security worldwide and has severely impacted the Indian agricultural sector. As a result of [...] Read more.
The Indian agricultural sector is the world’s largest producer of pulses, milk, and jute, and the second-largest producer of rice, wheat, vegetables, fruit, and cotton. Climate change threatens food security worldwide and has severely impacted the Indian agricultural sector. As a result of the unpredictable climate and low profits, economic uncertainty has forced men to seek employment in non-farming sectors. Under the deepening crisis, the farming landscape has transformed into a female-majority workforce. To identify pragmatic solutions to the deepening agrarian crisis, we employed a qualitative triangulation approach to our investigation of the feminisation of the farming sector, which was conducted in 2020. Our analyses of Indian media narratives, archive stories, responses to an online story completion task, and in-depth expert interviews show that, despite their developing role and increasing contribution, women remain marginalised and discriminated against in a culturally male-dominant sector. Supported by a long-term field ethnographic experience, we used Installation Theory to identify three domains in which policymakers can intervene to promote the interconnected issues of social sustainability, gender equality, and sustainable economic development in this sector. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy)
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18 pages, 314 KiB  
Article
Less Is More: Preventing Household Food Waste through an Integrated Mobile Application
by Cynthia Castro, Ekaterina Chitikova, Giulia Magnani, Julian Merkle and Maxi Heitmayer
Sustainability 2023, 15(13), 10597; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151310597 - 5 Jul 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3992
Abstract
This paper proposes an intervention using personal Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to help consumers reduce household food waste. Across the global food-supply chain, about one-third of all edible food is lost or wasted each year, and this issue is particularly pressing in [...] Read more.
This paper proposes an intervention using personal Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to help consumers reduce household food waste. Across the global food-supply chain, about one-third of all edible food is lost or wasted each year, and this issue is particularly pressing in in the Global North. We present a detailed overview of consumer activity in relation to household food waste using the Multilayered Installation Design Approach (MID). We trace consumer activity along the acquisition, storage, consumption, and disposal stages and provide a comprehensive set of recommendations on how to use personal ICTs to reduce household food waste rooted in the extant empirical literature. We then develop a concept for an application that integrates the full suite of potential avenues for intervention in one place. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy)
22 pages, 329 KiB  
Article
What Is the Possibility of Commercializing African Indigenous Crops?—The Case of Ethiopia
by Haggai Kennedy Ochieng and Yeonsung Cho
Sustainability 2023, 15(13), 10193; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151310193 - 27 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1568
Abstract
Africa has a rich diversity of indigenous crops whose commercial and economic value have been underutilized. Eragrostis tef is a crop with great potential for production and commercialization in Ethiopia. The nutritional and curative values of tef are recognized not only in Ethiopia [...] Read more.
Africa has a rich diversity of indigenous crops whose commercial and economic value have been underutilized. Eragrostis tef is a crop with great potential for production and commercialization in Ethiopia. The nutritional and curative values of tef are recognized not only in Ethiopia but also in the global market. Economically, tef and its value chain are a source of livelihood for more than six million small-scale Ethiopian farmers. Its large-scale commercialization has the potential to transform the livelihoods of many impoverished people. However, little research has been conducted to assess Ethiopian consumers’ attitudes toward tef products. The objective of this study is to understand product attributes that would affect consumer purchasing decisions. The study is based on pasta and baby food, the two most important products that could be made out of tef. The attributes analyzed are the inclusion of tef in the products, price, organic certification, and brand origin. The study relies on survey data that were randomly collected from 318 respondents and secondary data from the central statistical agency. The attributes were subjected to conjoint analysis, a method that is commonly used in consumer market research with hypothetical products consisting of multiple attributes to understand customers’ preference for different components of the product. The results of the analysis show that the inclusion of tef flour in the products is the most important factor consumers would consider when buying pasta or baby food. Further, consumers are interested in brand origin as they have a strong inclination to buy domestic brands and prefer products with organic certification. In the case of baby food, Ethiopians are likely to buy products containing more tef flour, packaged in sealed can rather than a paper bag, and concentrated in iron or protein. However, they are less willing to pay a premium even for products they perceive to be of greater utility. The preference for domestic brands and processed food with tef implies that there is opportunity for local brands to grow if they can understand and satisfy consumer expectations. It also means that consumers are interested in business practices that promote sustainable livelihoods. Overall, these findings suggest the potential for commercialization of tef products in Ethiopia and that the development of its value chain could combat nutritional deficiencies in the country. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy)
19 pages, 5390 KiB  
Article
Sustainable Death? Promoting Adoption of Green Passing
by Anne Charlotte Forstmann, George Edward Martin, Mariafernanda Valdez Orezzoli, Jia Ying (Gloria) Xu and Maxi Heitmayer
Sustainability 2023, 15(5), 4082; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054082 - 23 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3684
Abstract
Death practices are a highly individual and sensitive, but also strongly social and socially regulated issue. Passing rituals and types of burials have developed over centuries, and their significant environmental cost is rarely discussed. In this paper, we propose an intervention that aims [...] Read more.
Death practices are a highly individual and sensitive, but also strongly social and socially regulated issue. Passing rituals and types of burials have developed over centuries, and their significant environmental cost is rarely discussed. In this paper, we propose an intervention that aims to open up the conversation about green passing practices and help reduce the environmental impact of current death practices in the United Kingdom. We used the multilayered installation design approach, leveraging activity theory and installation theory to identify relevant stakeholders and entry points for intervention. We then developed a holistic intervention strategy subsumed under the green passer Initiative, which proposes intervention into burial practices at the physical, social, and embodied level. We illustrate the intervention strategy with three ideal-type journeys of future green passers and outline relevant implications for policy makers, researchers, and the general public. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy)
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21 pages, 2148 KiB  
Article
Installations for Civic Culture: Behavioral Policy Interventions to Promote Social Sustainability
by Paulius Yamin, Luis Artavia-Mora, Benita Martunaite and Shaon Lahiri
Sustainability 2023, 15(4), 3825; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043825 - 20 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2864
Abstract
Achieving more equitable, safer, and resilient societies—crucial dimensions of social sustainability—depends on durable transformations in people’s behavior. Traditional policy interventions attempt to influence people’s behavior in different ways, such as increased policing, fines, or awareness campaigns, but often have limited effects because they [...] Read more.
Achieving more equitable, safer, and resilient societies—crucial dimensions of social sustainability—depends on durable transformations in people’s behavior. Traditional policy interventions attempt to influence people’s behavior in different ways, such as increased policing, fines, or awareness campaigns, but often have limited effects because they fail to systematically address local determinants of behavior. In this paper, we analyze two complex behavioral policy interventions to illustrate how installation theory can provide a framework to systematically analyze and design for large-scale behavioral change to support social sustainability. We focus on two of Antanas Mockus’ iconic “civic culture” interventions to reduce deaths in traffic accidents and domestic violence in Colombia. To study them, we collected intervention reports, citizens’ narratives, creators’ accounts and press articles to identify their main characteristics and behavioral techniques. In our results, we find that the civic culture approach used in these two interventions addresses physical, psychological and social determinants of behavior in ways that reduce reactance and promote mutual regulation and collective agency. By unraveling the essential factors of behavioral influence, installation theory and related frameworks provide a useful guide to structure, analyze and report interventions that address the behavioral components of social sustainability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy)
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20 pages, 866 KiB  
Article
Understanding the Continuance Intention of Omnichannel: Combining TAM and TPB
by Hyo Geun Song and Hyeon Jo
Sustainability 2023, 15(4), 3039; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043039 - 7 Feb 2023
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 5467
Abstract
Nowadays, consumers use information devices to use products and services through various channels. Omnichannel promotes sales improvement by allowing businesses to secure multiple channels. It provides consumers with a wider range of choices and monetary advantages. As such, omnichannel facilitates economic sustainability as [...] Read more.
Nowadays, consumers use information devices to use products and services through various channels. Omnichannel promotes sales improvement by allowing businesses to secure multiple channels. It provides consumers with a wider range of choices and monetary advantages. As such, omnichannel facilitates economic sustainability as a major platform for commerce. The purpose of this study is to identify the determinants of consumers’ continuous intention to use omnichannel. This research collected data from 262 consumers who had used omnichannel. Partial lease square structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the empirical data. The results found that accessibility positively affects perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and relative advantage. Monetary saving positively influences relative advantage. Perceived risk has a negative association with relative advantage. Continuance intention is influenced by relative advantage, attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. This study offers an academic contribution in that the model was expanded by combining the theories of both technology and human behavior. It provides practical implications that omnichannel practitioners should prioritize money saving, perceived risks, and relative advantages. To enhance the generality of the results, future research needs to survey consumers in more countries. This work would be a useful guide to the sustainability of the economy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Consumer Satisfaction and Changing Business Models for a Sustainable Economy)
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