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There is a growing emphasis on sustainability; however, not all food packaging fits this remit and consumer knowledge is typically lacking. This paper investigates UK consumers' understanding, perception and preferences relating to sustainable food packaging and the impact that adding information to this packaging has on consumers' behaviour. Consumers (n = 405) completed an online survey covering the following sections: (1) sustainability habits and knowledge; (2) utilising images to understand the role of labelling; and (3) determining key sustainable packaging attributes. Consumers regularly recycle plastic, cardboard, metal, paper, and glass, as well as showing willingness towards recycling; however, they lack knowledge of the correct recycling procedures. Labelling was successful in changing consumer behaviour and encouraging more sustainable choices. Consumers identified key sustainable packaging attributes as biodegradability, disposal methods, renewable sources, recyclability, no excess packaging, and product quality. The main themes from this survey relate to consumers typically being confused about recycling and often lacking knowledge about sustainable materials. More targeted education is needed to help consumers, coupled with additional support from companies and governments, to ensure consumers can make sustainable choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Covid‐19 has changed consumer behaviour, probably forever. Initial consumer stockpiling led to stockouts, threat and uncertainty for consumers. To overcome shortages, consumers expanded their use of channels and many consumers started buying online for the first time. In this paper, we aim to address important research gaps related to consumer behaviour during the pandemic and especially stockpiling. Our paper starts by presenting the findings of our pre‐study, which used social media to elicit or confirm potential constructs for our quantitative models. These constructs complemented the protection motivations theory to explain stockpiling behaviour, forming the basis for study 1, the stockpiling preparation stage and study 2, the effects of the Covid‐19 pandemic disruptor on customer service logistics and lockdown shopping channel preferences. For studies 1 and 2 we gathered data via a UK online panel‐structured questionnaire survey (n = 603). Results confirm that consumer‐driven changes to supply chains emanate largely from consumer uncertainty. Lockdown restrictions led to consumers feeling socially excluded, but enhanced consumers' positive attitudes towards shopping online and increased consumers' altruism. In response, consumers stockpiled by visiting physical stores and/or ordering online. Lockdown restrictions led to feelings of social exclusion but, importantly, stockpiling helped to minimize consumer anxiety and fear and even increase wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the increase in online grocery ordering in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic is examined, and a prediction is made that is opposed to the balance of opinion expressed online. In their online comments, most practitioners claim that the increased use of the Internet for ordering groceries for home delivery will be sustained and will continue to grow after the risk of disease has subsided. Given the pattern of consumer behaviour in another field, discount purchasing, it seems more likely that online grocery ordering will fall back and then continue to grow at a modest pace, as it did before the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper investigates the impact of sustainability information disclosure on consumers' choice of order-to-delivery lead-time in relation to consumers' sustainability concern. Design/methodology/approach: Based on two choice experiments with participants from the Netherlands (n = 348) and the United Kingdom (n = 1,387), the impact of sustainability information disclosure was examined in connection with consumers' concerns for environmental and social sustainability. Information on environmental impact (carbon emission) and social impact (warehouse workers and drivers' well-being) was considered and compared. Findings: Disclosing sustainability impact information significantly increased consumers' preference and choice for longer delivery times, with equivalent effects for environmental and social impact information. Consumers' relevant (environmental or social) sustainability concern as personality traits enhanced effects on preferences, as did priming of environmental concern. Research limitations/implications: Future research may consider differences between product categories or e-commerce companies' reputation in sustainability activities. Practical implications: The findings provide opportunities for online retailers to influence consumer choice of delivery time, especially through disclosing environmental and/or social sustainability information. Originality/value: This study fills a gap in the literature on sustainability information disclosure to actively steer consumer choice of delivery time, particularly regarding the effect of social sustainability impact information in comparison to its environmental counterpart. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of this paper is on levels of service failure and recovery strategies in relation to UK online fashion retailers. In a changing social, political and economic environment the use of information technology has permeated all forms of organisations: from private to public, local to global, old and new. Parallel with this development, companies have developed and experimented with new means of interacting with customers, and have devised and applied a variety of marketing strategies. The deployment of the internet, along with its subsets, has created a number of new opportunities, as well as a range of uncertainties and burdens, particularly on consumer perceptions of service quality, service failure and recovery. This paper contributes to extant knowledge and offers an understanding of behavioural-related issues, e.g. understanding consumer behaviour in the development of innovative business models in the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loot boxes are a popular mechanic within many video games, but it remains unclear if some forms of loot boxes can be seen of as gambling. However, the perspectives of players are often neglected, such as whether they see them as 'fair' game elements and how closely they feel this aligns with gambling. In this paper, we synthesise a conceptualisation for loot boxes through players' actual experience and explore if there are any parallels with gambling. Twenty-one participants who played video games took part in the research through either an interview or online survey. Thematic analysis suggested that six themes were core to exploring loot boxes: Random Chance Effects, Attitudes Towards Content, Implementation, Parallels with Gambling, Game Design, and The Player. The results suggested both indirect and direct parallels with gambling from the players experiences. Implications of game design and classifying loot boxes as gambling are discussed in relation to game design and risk factors of gambling and purchasing behaviour., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

British supermarket-panel data suggest no increases in overall sales and purchases of alcohol following COVID-19 lockdowns, yet survey and mortality data suggest otherwise. This paper attempts to unravel the paradox. Based on purchase data of 79,417 British households from Kantar Worldpanel, we undertake controlled interrupted time series analysis of the impact of COVID-19 confinement introduced on 23rd March 2020, and variably applied during 2020, compared to purchases during 2015 to 2019 as controls. We also undertook Poisson regression analyses to estimate if changes in purchases differed by household socio-demographic and economic factors. Excess off-trade household alcohol purchases (expressed as grams of ethanol) following the introduction of confinement, were 29.2% higher (95% CI = 25.8% to 32.5%) for the post-confinement months of 2020, being larger until mid-July 2020 (37.5%, 95%CI = 33.9 to 41.26%) when pubs re-opened with restrictions, and smaller (24.6%, 95%CI = 21.6 to 27.7) thereafter. During the time of complete pub closures, and fully adjusting for no on-trade purchases, household purchases of alcohol did not change when compared with the same time period during 2015-2019 (coefficient = -0.9%, 95%CI = -5.6 to 3.8). Excess purchases from 23rd March to 31st December 2020 varied by region of Great Britain, being higher in the north of England, and lower in Scotland and Wales. Excess purchases were greater in the most deprived households, compared with the least deprived households. Excess purchases increased substantially as the amount of alcohol normally purchased by a household increased, with the top one fifth of households that normally bought the most alcohol increasing their purchases more than 17 times than the bottom one fifth of households that bought the least alcohol. That the heaviest buyers of alcohol increased their purchases the most, with some independent impact of socio-economic disadvantage, might explain why reported alcohol problems and recent alcohol-related death rates might have increased. A conclusion of this is that alcohol policy to reduce high consumption of alcohol, and the availability of help and treatment to reduce alcohol consumption become more important during extraordinary times, such as COVID lockdowns., Competing Interests: E.J.L., A.O.’D. and E.K. declare no competing interests and declare no financial relationships with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work in the previous three years. Within the previous five years, P.A. has received financial support from AB InBev Foundation outside the submitted work, which does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

Usually, studies on the informal economy focus mainly upon those working in the informal economy (supply side). However, many exchanges in the informal economy are initiated by purchasers asking how much a good or service costs if paid cash in hand. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to advance understanding of who make purchases in the informal economy and the reasons of the consumers making these purchases (demand side). Two potential explanations are evaluated. Firstly, consumers are explained as rational economic actors seeking a more convenient deal or profit maximisation (i.e., lower price or better value for money), making purchases from the informal economy due to the lack of availability of the product or service they need on the formal market, or they make such purchases involuntarily, due to the lack of perfect information necessary to make a fully rational economic decision when purchasing. Secondly, the consumers are portrayed as social actors pursuing community help. Using a multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression analysis on a 2019 Eurobarometer interviews in 27 EU member states and the UK reveal how the prevalence of these motives significantly varies across populations and regions. The theoretical and policy implications of the findings are discussed in the concluding section., Competing Interests: No competing interests

Increased consumer usage of the internet has highlighted a number of problematic online marketing practices, including the use of online platforms to research consumers without full consumer awareness. Despite current debates regarding online research ethics from a marketing perspective, scant research has been published on consumers' concerns with how they are researched online, which is a knowledge gap this paper seeks to address through qualitative research with UK consumers. This is an important yet neglected topic, given that consumer voices have been under-represented in the online research ethics debate over the years. The paper makes a significant theoretical contribution as it extends the ethics of care and responsibility to an online context, which can frame ongoing online research ethics discussions where problematic power asymmetries may exist between researchers and consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1) Background: Consumers' response to threat is an important topic and needs further exploration, especially in times of Covid-19 pandemic. This paper contributes towards widening its understanding from the perspective of consumers' purchase behaviour in the context of convenience stores. It adds to the debate on the influence of the Covid-19 threat and all unprecedented pandemic circumstances (exogenous and endogenous impacts) on consumers' purchase routines and habits. 2) Methods: This study analyses a unique dataset of transactional data (783,502 observations) drawn from 1,291 convenience stores located in the United Kingdom (thanks to The Retail Data Partnership Ltd). The captured period includes 36 months (from January 2018 till December 2020). This panel data study concentrates on the particular aspects of purchase behaviour (one item transactions, average spend per transaction) in the prepandemic and pandemic period. 3) Results: This investigation reveals that the share of one item transactions fundamentally decreased in the analysed pandemic period (especially in April 2020) both in the overall number and value of transactions. The average transaction (basket) value increased in that period. Further analysis concerning the stores' location, affiliation and size adds depth to our contribution. 4) Conclusions: Our findings show the meaning of convenience sector in times of threat. We demonstrate specific aspects of the claim that purchase behaviour habits and patterns have significantly changed in the era of Covid-19 pandemic. Understanding this change underpins the long-term process of knowledge building in the field of consumers' purchase behaviour. It also makes business practitioners, policymakers and consumers more proactive than reactive in the case of future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper: identifies personal and contextual factors that influence customer experience when service failures occur in rail transport; what is being conveyed through that factor (e.g. older age being used to convey vulnerability); and the implications for future service design. The results are from a thematic analysis of free-text rail passenger complaints (n = 516) reporting service failures that impacted on customer experience. The study differs from existing research on the pertinent personal and contextual factors for public transport service provision in that it: focuses on the passenger experience resulting from specific incidents (rather than evaluative, overall assessments of satisfaction), generates the factors inductively from the data (rather than a-priori) and uses detailed qualitative cases (rather than quantitative survey data). The findings (1) identify some similar factors to those used in previous research and uncover some new factors for both person and context, (2) provide an understanding of what they mean in terms of the passenger experience and (3) indicate how the factors might need to be measured if they are to be used by the rail industry. The paper concludes by using the outcome of an industry-based validation exercise to describe how the findings could be used in future rail services, namely: predicting where the customer experience is going to be sub-optimal, prioritising responses to particular circumstances, and designing services to better meet customer's needs. This exploratory research is timely, given the need for a more passenger-centric approach to service design and future developments such as smart-ticketing, which could potentially enable greater understanding of who is using the rail network and for what journeys., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors of this article have no competing interests to declare., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

This paper uses time series data on UK book sales to establish what correlation exists between the national income of a country and its sales of books. This is tested by comparing series data in real terms for GDP per capita and for various data series for the UK market, including sales invoiced by publishers and point of sale data on consumer purchasing. The first period, from 1985 to 1999, shows a strong relationship between total sales and GDP per capita. In the second period, from 2001 to 2015, the link appears to disappear when we examine invoiced sales from publishers, even before the impact of the 2008 crisis. This is also including the growth of digital sales towards the end of the period. The direct consumer data shows sales tracking GDP until the onset of the financial crisis; thereafter the only trade sector to have kept pace with GDP is children's, and this contrasts with the areas of adult fiction and non-fiction. Have we therefore seen a structural shift in the book market? If we have passed peak book, what has brought about this uncoupling of book sales from economic growth? Factors are considered including changes in retail, competition from other media, and a prioritization of experience over the accumulation of stuff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past half-century has been characterised by major technological developments and massive societal change, which have profoundly changed how food is produced, processed, sold and consumed. These days we are faced with a huge choice of pre-packaged foods when we shop in modern supermarkets and we can buy seasonal food all year round, in and out of season. For decades now, the need to guide choice has been recognised, and retailers and many manufacturers have provided increasing amounts of on-pack information and signposting, and more recently UK retailers have led the way in championing front-of-pack information provision, to supplement the standard back-of-pack nutrient composition table. From a European perspective, the present paper summarises developments in nutrition labelling information and signposting, the legislation that controls on-pack declarations, and research conducted to assess whether or not the information is used, understood and supports healthier choices. It also considers whether more could be done to influence behaviour change positively, giving examples of approaches identified in the research.

Purpose – This paper aims to explain voter perceptions and voting behaviour in the 2010 UK General Election on the basis of this theory, by evaluating the differential impact of government performance on key political issues defined as hierarchical voter satisfaction factor types. The validity of the three-factor theory of satisfaction in explaining consumer decision-making for products and services is well-established. Design/methodology/approach – British Election Survey (2010) data are used to test the relative influence of hierarchical voter satisfaction factor types in predicting the perceived overall performance of the former Labour government and actual voting behaviour. Sequential and multinomial logistic regression models are used in the perceived overall performance of the former Labour government and actual voting behaviour, respectively. Findings – “Basic” factors explain more of the variance in perceived overall government performance and voting behaviour than “performance” factors. There are significant positive main and interaction effects on Conservative and Liberal Democrat party votes from Labour’s underperformance on the “basic” factors. The results have important implications for political marketing and voting behaviour research. Originality/value – The study establishes the relevance of the three-factor theory of satisfaction within a political marketing context. It demonstrates that, controlling for party loyalty, perceived government performance on the hierarchical voter satisfaction factors explains voter perceptions and voting behaviour to a significant degree. In particular, it highlights the criticality for voting behaviour of both the direct and indirect impacts of “basic” factor underperformance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposure to large portion sizes is a risk factor for obesity. Specifically designed tableware may modulate how much is eaten and help with portion control. We examined the experience of using a guided crockery set (CS) and a calibrated serving spoon set (SS) by individuals trying to manage their weight. Twenty-nine obese adults who had completed 7-12 weeks of a community weight-loss programme were invited to use both tools for 2 weeks each, in a crossover design, with minimal health professional contact. A paper-based questionnaire was used to collect data on acceptance, perceived changes in portion size, frequency, and type of meal when the tool was used. Scores describing acceptance, ease of use and perceived effectiveness were derived from five-point Likert scales from which binary indicators (high/low) were analysed using logistic regression. Mean acceptance, ease of use and perceived effectiveness were moderate to high (3·7-4·4 points). Tool type did not have an impact on indicators of acceptance, ease of use and perceived effectiveness (P>0·32 for all comparisons); 55 % of participants used the CS on most days v. 21 % for the SS. The CS was used for all meals, whereas the SS was mostly used for evening meals. Self-selected portion sizes increased for vegetables and decreased for chips and potatoes with both tools. Participants rated both tools as equally acceptable, easy to use and with similar perceived effectiveness. Formal trials to evaluate the impact of such tools on weight control are warranted.

The aim of this research was to examine the influence of a UK national retailer on its customers' food waste behaviour. Using six communication channels (in-store magazine, e-newsletter, Facebook site, product stickers and in-store demonstrations), Asda presented standard food waste reduction messages to its customers during two time limited periods in 2014 and 2015. Six national surveys over 21 months tracked customers' self-reported food waste. Our results showed that the combined communication channels and repeated messages over time had a significant effect on reducing food waste of customers. Surprisingly, customers who said they did not recall seeing the messages also reduced their food waste, showing the wider influence of interventions. Those who saw a food waste reduction message saved an estimated £81 annually from reducing food waste. The main conclusion of this paper is that retailers can influence the pro-environmental behaviour of customers using conventional communication channels; however, repeat messages are needed in order to have a long-term impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reduction in meat consumption is urgently needed to address multiple harms related to the environment, animal welfare, and human health. Social norm interventions have been found to be feasible and effective at shifting consumer behaviour, however, evidence related to meat reduction behaviour is limited - especially in naturalistic settings. Two social norm interventions were conducted at university food outlets in Aotearoa New Zealand and in the UK, to assess the effect of social norm messages on meat and meatless food purchases. Both interventions consisted of a week-long intervention phase during which descriptive dynamic social norm messages referring to reduced meat intake were displayed in the food outlets (study one and two) and via social media (study two). Meat and meatless food purchases during the interventions were compared to pre- and post-intervention weeks. Surveys were also conducted with a sub-group of customers to assess demographics, dietary habits, and awareness of the social norm message. In both studies, there was no significant effect of the social norm interventions on meat or meatless food purchases, and awareness of the norms message across both studies was low. These findings indicate that social norm interventions alone may be ineffective in encouraging meat reduction. Implications for interventions to reduce meat intake to support pro-environmental food choices are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to identify the development, trends and research gaps related to start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, this research identified future research directions. Design/methodology/approach: This research is a bibliometric study using 192 Scopus-indexed articles with the assistance of the VOSviewer. The selected articles discussed start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic and were published between 2020 and 2022. The analyses included initial statistics on publication trend, distribution of research field, most productive journals, most productive authors, most cited article, geographic distribution, multinational collaboration and science. Findings: Between 2020 and 2022, the literature on start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic has increased. Most articles are in Business, Management and Accounting, Economics, Econometrics and Finance and Social Sciences. Regarding geographic distribution and multinational collaboration, the USA, India and the UK led the numbers. The UK was also the forerunner in research collaboration. Based on the science mapping results, COVID-19, fintech, entrepreneurship and innovation were the most simultaneously used keywords. Furthermore, this study also identified that there is a lack of study regarding consumer behavior, employee behavior and quality management of start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic. Research limitations/implications: This research also has several limitations. First, this research only used the Scopus database. Even though Scopus has advantages compared to other databases, combining the Scopus database with other databases will be able to provide more comprehensive data. However, there is a risk associated with combining two or more databases, namely, duplication. When using more than one database, researchers must ensure no repetition of the articles used because it will affect the analysis results. Future research can consider combining the Scopus database with other databases. Second, this bibliometric study covered the publication of start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic is still ongoing. This condition indicated that several research on start-ups during COVID-19 are still being performed and will be published. Thus, future bibliometric study start-ups during COVID-19 were needed to update the trend of the research on start-ups during COVID-19. Practical implications: The bibliometric study provided at least two main practical implications that can be used to support the growth of start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic. First, this research has mapped the existing literature on start-ups during the COVID-19 pandemic. This information can be used as input for start-up practitioners and policymakers when they need scientific reference and evidence in developing a policy and/or a management action/program needed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Second, this research highlighted several clusters of keywords that are attracted many researchers. These keywords can be viewed as important issues that are needed to be monitored by start-up practitioners and policymakers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Social implications: Start-ups have an important role in economic development. It is well known that start-ups can boost productivity and economic growth. As start-ups tend to use technology, it also has an important role in disrupting traditional economic practices. Start-ups may also offer a more convenient life. Furthermore, the availability of start-ups may also increase the quality of life of the people that are serviced by the start-ups. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first bibliometric study that discussed start-ups during the pandemic. It provided a comprehensive literature review process to identify research gaps that allowed future researchers to develop studies related to start-ups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the determinants that influence consumers' intention to purchase organic products. Ajzen's theory of planned behaviour (TPB) provides the conceptual framework of this study which is predominantly explanatory, as it aims to establish an understanding of the causal relationship between variables important to consumers' intent to purchase organic food. Initially, a pilot study was carried out to elicit the salient beliefs of the population under consideration concerning the purchase of organic food, followed by a survey. To reduce selection bias, recruitment includes random sampling of consumers aiming to determine the beliefs which influence their intent to purchase organic food. The survey of 144 respondents allowed access to respondents with a broad range of household incomes, educational attainment, occupation and age. Based on the analyses the theory of planned behaviour was found to be predictive of factors affecting consumers' intent to purchase organic food. Gender was also found to determine consumers' intent to buy organic food. Attitudes, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control were examined to determine whether they affect consumers' intention to make organic products purchases and it was found that consumers' intent to buy organic food was predicted by attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control. In addition, intent was associated with outcome beliefs. Moreover, our empirical evidence suggest that consumers are interested in purchasing organic food because they believe that they are healthier, taste better and overall they are better quality. In addition, the cost of purchasing, availability of organic products, product information and the subjective opinions of others were highlighted as important determinants of consumers' intent to buy organic products. Therefore, the results show that organic businesses have plenty of scope to grow their market by paying attention to a wide range of factors affecting consumers' intention to purchase and repurchase organic food products. Finally this study suggests that there is some ignorance among consumers about what organic food is and what its benefits are. Therefore, in order organic sales to continue to grow in the future, it is important to educate consumers and to make them develop trust for the retailers and the products. In addition, our respondents argued that product range and availability of organic products to stores is still limited. Hence, retailers should also consider expanding their food products portfolio to include more organic products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper focuses on the introduction of interactive digital television (DTV) in the UK at the turn of the millennium, and its take-up and use by early audiences. It discusses whether the processes of television technological convergence went together with 'consumer behaviour convergence,'1 enhanced audience engagement with the interactive TV services offered, and participation. Based on findings from a UK-wide survey and in-depth interviews with early Sky digital subscribers conducted during the early days of the service, the article shows that early interactive DTV was taken up because of its multichannel offering and thematic orientation and, interestingly, was approached and appreciated mostly as a television content provider. It thus notes a divergence on industry's attempts to promote convergence in broadcasting and on the level and pace with which users adopt and adapt to such change. In so doing it highlights the evolutionary nature and slow rate of change of cultural habits and forms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Smart Meter Implementation Programme (SMIP) is arguably one of the most expansive and complex smart meter programmes globally. The UK government regards smart meters to be enablers of a low-carbon energy grid and has set out ambitious consumer-orientated aims within their programme across England, Scotland, and Wales. Despite considerable amount of research on how consumers will (or not) engage with smart meters, media discourses, where some public debates about smart meters are created and reproduced, have received little attention. This paper presents a content analysis of how smart meters are discussed within 11 years of popular print media coverage. A collection of nine discourses are identified: Four of these – “empowered consumers”, “energy conscious world”, “low-carbon grid”, and “future smart innovation” – depict smart meters as a harbinger of positive social change. Five of these – “hacked and vulnerable grid”, “big brother”, “costly disaster”, “astronomical bills”, and “families in turmoil” – represent smart meters as negative forces on society. The results show that discourses and associated storylines mainly represent continuous struggles over particular socio-technical promises linked to smart meters. Somewhat missing are attempts to open up the smart energy debate to broader issues of democracy and energy justice within the print media coverage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper quantifies the impacts of policy objectives on the composition of an optimum new passenger vehicle fleet. The objectives are to reduce individually absolute energy use and associated emissions of CO 2 , NO x and PM 2.5 . This work combines a top down, diversity-led approach to fleet composition with bottom-up models of 23 powertrain variants across nine vehicle segments. Changing the annual distance travelled only led to the smallest change in fleet composition because driving less mitigated the need to shift to smaller vehicles or more efficient powertrains. Instead, managing activity led to a ‘re-petrolisation’ of the fleet which yielded the largest reductions in emissions of NO x and PM 2.5 . The hybrid approach of changing annual distance travelled and increasing willingness to accept longer payback times incorporates management of vehicle activity with consumers’ demand for novel vehicle powertrains. Combining these changes in behaviour, without feebates, allowed the hybrid approach to return the largest reductions in energy use and CO 2 emissions. Introducing feebates makes low-emitting vehicles more affordable and represents a supply side push for novel powertrains. The largest reductions in energy use and associated emissions occurred without any consumer behaviour change, but required large fees (£79–99 per g CO 2 /km) on high-emitting vehicles and were achieved using the most specialised fleets. However, such fleets may not present consumers with sufficient choice to be attractive. The fleet with best diversity by vehicle size and powertrain type was achieved with both the external incentive of the feebate and consumers modifying their activity. This work has a number of potential audiences: governments and policy makers may use the framework to understand how to accommodate the growth in vehicle use with pledged reductions in emissions; and original equipment manufacturers may take advantage of the bottom-up, vehicle powertrain inputs to understand the role their technology can play in a fleet under the influence of consumer behaviour change, external incentives and policy objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing evidence base indicates that sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) taxes are an effective tool to help reduce excess sugar intake. The effects of SSB taxes and the mechanisms which underlie them, however, are dependent on a number of interrelated factors such as policy design and responses of industry and consumers. Forde and colleagues contribute to unpacking these mechanisms by exploring the way in which the UK's Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL) shaped the four Ps of soft drinks marketing: product, price, placement, and promotion. This commentary builds on the authors' insights by connecting them to existing knowledge on corporate political activity and the commercial determinants of health (CDOH) more broadly. Specifically, I discuss the risk that an industry framing of regulation-induced marketing changes as a voluntary step towards corporate responsibility undermines the need for government intervention to address obesity in other contexts and countries. I conclude by arguing that the public health community would benefit from considering marketing responses to regulation alongside industry narratives about these changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to conceptualise the panic buying behaviour of consumers in the UK during the novel COVID-19 crisis, using the assemblage approach as it is non-deterministic and relational and affords new ways of understanding the phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach: The study undertakes a digital ethnography approach and content analysis of Twitter data. A total of 6,803 valid tweets were collected over the period when panic buying was at its peak at the beginning of the first lockdown in March 2020. Findings: The panic buying phase was a radical departure from the existing linguistic, discursive, symbolic and semiotic structures that define routine consumer behaviour. The authors suggest that the panic buying behaviour is best understood as a constant state of becoming, whereby stockpiling, food waste and a surge in cooking at home emerged as significant contributors to positive consumer sentiments. Research limitations/implications: The authors offer unique insights into the phenomenon of panic buying by considering DeLanda's assemblage theory. This work will inform future research associated with new social meanings of products, particularly those that may have been (re)shaped during the COVID-19 crisis. Practical implications: The study offers insights for practitioners and retailers to lessen the intensity of consumers' panic buying behaviour in anticipation of a crisis and for successful crisis management. Originality/value: Panic buying took on a somewhat carnivalesque hue as consumers transitioned to what we consider to be atypical modes of purchasing that remain under-theorised in marketing. Using the conceptual lenses of assemblage, the authors map bifurcations that the panic buyers' assemblages articulated via material and immaterial bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Social acceptance research should be critical, systematic, and holistic. • Domestic hydrogen acceptance is shaped by the interplay of five distinct dimensions. • Hydrogen acceptance hinges on cognitive, sociopolitical, and sociocultural legitimacy. • Hydrogen acceptance is composed of a rich matrix of potential consumer responses. • Overcoming attitudinal and behavioral barriers is critical to the hydrogen transition. The 'deep' decarbonization of the residential sector is a priority for meeting national climate change targets, especially in countries such as the UK where natural gas has been the dominant fuel source for over half a century. Hydrogen blending and repurposing the national grid to supply low-carbon hydrogen gas may offer respective short- and long-term solutions to achieving emissions reduction across parts of the housing sector. Despite this imperative, the social acceptance of domestic hydrogen energy technologies remains underexplored by sustainability scholars, with limited insights regarding consumer perceptions and expectations of the transition. A knowledge deficit of this magnitude is likely to hinder effective policymaking and may result in sub-optimal rollout strategies that derail the trajectory of the net zero agenda. Addressing this knowledge gap, this study develops a conceptual framework for examining the consumer-facing side of the hydrogen transition. The paper affirms that the spatiotemporal patterns of renewable energy adoption are shaped by a range of interacting scales, dimensions, and factors. The UK's emerging hydrogen landscape and its actor-network is characterized as a heterogenous system, composed of dynamic relationships and interdependencies. Future studies should engage with domestic hydrogen acceptance as a co-evolving, multi-scalar phenomenon rooted in the interplay of five distinct dimensions: attitudinal, sociopolitical, community, market, and behavioral acceptance. If arrived to, behavioral acceptance helps realize the domestication of hydrogen heating and cooking, established on grounds on cognitive, sociopolitical, and sociocultural legitimacy. The research community should internalize the complexity and richness of consumer attitudes and responses, through a more critical and reflexive approach to the study of social acceptance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, in France, people cleared the shelves of butter; in Italy, it was pasta; in Great Britain, it was chicken. While there may be cultural disagreement on what is essential, clearly, in times of crisis, consumers stockpile the 'essentials'. We address the problem of "panic buying", which is characterized by increasing demand in the face of diminishing inventory. In such cases, prices may hike and firms (retailers) selling the high-demand product are quantity takers, in terms of supply, and price setters. We consider a manufacturer who sells a scarce product to a single retailer. The retailer seeks to maximize her profit, while in contrast, the manufacturer pursues a social objective of regulating and lowering the amount that the end customer (consumer) pays (including the cost of traveling to obtain the scarce product). By analyzing the competition between the two parties, retailer and manufacturer, we find that even when the regulator (manufacturer) makes a significant social commitment, neither subsidizing the retailer nor subsidizing the consumers necessarily curbs price hikes. Furthermore, there is a threshold ratio (i.e., proportion of the end price subsidized by the regulator) that determines the minimal budget that the regulator would need to allocate in order for subsidization to make a difference to consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: In the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers increasingly opt for, or are forced to, use home delivery services. The authors study retailers' decisions regarding "delivery mode", which is about outsourcing (vs. insourcing) the delivery service to a traditional delivery company or an unbranded carrier and its effects on consumers' perceived overall quality, perceived hygienic quality, and subsequently, willingness to stay with the firm beyond the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: A pre-test, an experiment and a post-test were conducted with participants from the UK (Total N = 380). Findings: The results of this study show that (1) in a pandemic, perceived hygienic quality overshadows perceived service quality as a key determinant of consumers' choices, and (2) while consumers have a relatively negative view of the hygienic level of unbranded carriers, they do not differentiate between traditional delivery carriers and retailer-branded carriers. Thus, they are equally interested in using the services of the latter ones. Originality/value: This study shows that during a health crisis, consumers change their hierarchy of motivations to reflect the new protection motivations. The authors usher perceived hygienic quality as a variable that should be seriously considered as both a tactical and a strategic variable affecting the attractiveness of alternative home delivery methods and consumers' intentions to continue using them after the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing awareness of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has raised concerns surrounding antimicrobial use (AMU) in food-producing animals and has focused attention towards livestock production free from antibiotic use. As antibiotic-free livestock production proliferates in the UK, there is an increasing need to implement a system, such as the use of a QR code, to provide consumers with reliable antibiotic information while ensuring that animal welfare standards are upheld. Subsequently, this study aims to explore UK consumers' perceptions and purchase intention towards QR code labelled pork, and to identify determinants of its purchase, incorporating various theoretical constructs from the Theory of Planned Behaviour. Based on results, consumers' perceptions, perceived control, and attitudes towards QR code labelled pork are the main determinants of purchase intention. QR code labelled pork may offer a suitable alternative to antibiotic-free labelling as it provides consumers with antibiotic information without inadvertently communicating that conventionally produced pork is unsafe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Standardized packaging of tobacco products has now been fully implemented in 15 countries. However, there is limited evidence, apart from in Australia, on how consumers have responded to the policy. Two systematic reviews explored consumer, tobacco industry and retailer response to standardized packaging in the United Kingdom (UK), which became mandatory for cigarettes (factory-made and hand-rolled) from May 2017, following a twelve-month transition period. In the first review, electronic databases were searched for published primary research from January 2016 to February 2019. The second review used the same methods, with searches conducted between February 2019 and September 2020. The current study conducted a narrative synthesis of the findings exploring consumer response from these two systematic reviews. Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria. Studies examined consumer response to on-pack warnings (n=7 studies), appeal of packs and smoking (n=4), perceptions of harm (n=5), and behavioral responses (n=8). There was consistent evidence that standardized packaging was associated with increased warning salience and effectiveness, and reduced appeal. Findings were mixed with respect to whether standardized packs were associated with increased perceptions of harm. Standardized packaging was generally thought to deter never or occasional smokers. Standardized packaging was associated with increased thoughts of quitting during the transition period, but no study directly explored cessation or relapse prevention. Some smokers switched to cheaper cigarettes. Standardized packaging in the UK seems to be reducing the appeal of packaging and smoking and making warnings more salient, but the behavioral impact is unclear. More consumer research is needed to assess longer-term behavioral response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: During COVID-19 pandemic, the use of social media enhances information exchange at a global level; therefore, customers are more aware and make backup plans to take optimal decisions. This study explores the customer psychology of impulse buying during COVID-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: The researcher, being a social constructionist, aims at understanding social patterns in impulsive buying strategies during COVID-19 pandemic. Forty UK consumers were participated using the telephonic interview method with the purpose to maintain social distancing practices. Findings: Results revealed that vulnerable group of people, fear of illness, fear of empty shelves, fear of price increase and social inclination to buy extra for staying at home, increased panic impulsive buying behaviour among customers. Many people socially interpreted the evidence of death rate and empty shelves, which led to more disinformation, rumours and sensationalism, which increased customers' impulsive buying behaviour. Finally, risk of going outside, COVID-19 outbreak among employees of local retail stores, and health professionals' recommendations to stay at home, led to impulsive buying behaviour. Originality/value: This study has constructed a research framework of customer psychology of impulse buying based on the results of this study and fear and perceived risk theories. The study also explains how the fear of fear, risk perception and conformist tendency enhanced impulsive buying during COVID-19 pandemic. This study has discussed specific implications for retailers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The over-purchasing and hoarding of necessities is a common response to crises, especially in developed economies where there is normally an expectation of plentiful supply. This behaviour was observed internationally during the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic. In the absence of actual scarcity, this behaviour can be described as 'panic buying' and can lead to temporary shortages. However, there have been few psychological studies of this phenomenon. Here we propose a psychological model of over-purchasing informed by animal foraging theory and make predictions about variables that predict over-purchasing by either exacerbating or mitigating the anticipation of future scarcity. These variables include additional scarcity cues (e.g. loss of income), distress (e.g. depression), psychological factors that draw attention to these cues (e.g. neuroticism) or to reassuring messages (eg. analytical reasoning) or which facilitate over-purchasing (e.g. income). We tested our model in parallel nationally representative internet surveys of the adult general population conducted in the United Kingdom (UK: N = 2025) and the Republic of Ireland (RoI: N = 1041) 52 and 31 days after the first confirmed cases of COVID-19 were detected in the UK and RoI, respectively. About three quarters of participants reported minimal over-purchasing. There was more over-purchasing in RoI vs UK and in urban vs rural areas. When over-purchasing occurred, in both countries it was observed across a wide range of product categories and was accounted for by a single latent factor. It was positively predicted by household income, the presence of children at home, psychological distress (depression, death anxiety), threat sensitivity (right wing authoritarianism) and mistrust of others (paranoia). Analytic reasoning ability had an inhibitory effect. Predictor variables accounted for 36% and 34% of the variance in over-purchasing in the UK and RoI respectively. With some caveats, the data supported our model and points to strategies to mitigate over-purchasing in future crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2008, fewer customers switched suppliers in British electricity and gas markets despite the potential for financial gains, suggesting that psychological factors may affect switching behaviors. Using a unique nation-wide British survey, we explore the influence of consumers' attitudes and perceptions on switching behaviors and assess the differences in switching propensity across different groups. Support for simplifying energy tariffs, professed less difficulty in understanding energy bills, expected difficulty in changing suppliers and lack of attention to the issue of energy prices are associated with lower switching activity. At a time of high saliency, political party voting intention was strongly related to switching. Unlike the bivariate analyses conducted by the regulator and the competition authority, our multivariate analysis show few demographic factors affect the likelihood of switching except for educational attainment and tariff payment patterns. Remedies aiming to encourage switching cannot be targeted correctly unless the supporting analysis is robust to alternative model specifications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the effects of carbon reduction labels using a detailed scanner data set. Using a difference-in-differences estimation strategy, we find that having a carbon label has no impact on detergent prices or demand. We also investigate possible heterogeneous effects of carbon labels using the synthetic control method. We find no evidence to indicate that the prices for the counterfactual detergents without the label would have been any different from the prices of the carbon-labeled detergents. We investigate the reasons for these results and conclude that the specific design of the carbon label is responsible for its lack of success. ( JEL D12, D83, L15, Q54) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the Great Recession, UK households reduced real food expenditure. We show that they were able to maintain the number of calories that they purchased, and the nutritional quality of these calories, by adjusting their shopping behaviour. We document the mechanisms that households used. We motivate our analysis with a model of shopping behaviour in which households adjust shopping effort and the characteristics of their shopping basket in response to economic shocks. We use detailed longitudinal data and focus on within-household changes in basket characteristics and proxies for shopping effort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite being critical to continuous technology usage, research on remote mobile payments (m-payments) post-adoption usage has received much less attention. Furthermore, information systems usage research has traditionally been positively oriented, generally assuming that the inhibiting and enabling factors influencing technology usage as being the opposite sides of one dimension, which may result in overlooking antecedents to technology continuance. Therefore, this study aims to explore the inhibiting factors that may directly influence customers' intention to discontinue m-payments during post-adoption usage. Drawing on behavioral theories, information systems, and marketing research, this study explores the inhibiting factors directly influencing consumers' intentions to discontinue using m-payments. Survey data were collected from 254 current users in the UK and the PLS-SEM technique is employed to test hypotheses. The results show that poor quality of system, information, and service, as usage inhibitors, directly influence consumers' discontinuance intentions. Importantly, usage frequency is found to have no moderating effect on the inhibitors of continuance intention, supporting the notion about different and asymmetric effects that negative factors can have on technology usage compared to positive ones. This interesting finding suggests that negative user experience will have different and asymmetric effects on intentions to use m-payments than positive user experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, there has been growing interest in insects as an alternative to soybean meal as laying hen feed due to nutrition, sustainability, and animal welfare benefits. Although some studies have investigated consumer acceptance and intentions towards insect-fed foodstuffs, no studies are available on eggs from insect-fed hens. This qualitative study aimed to explore consumers' attitudes and perceptions towards eggs from insect-fed hens and factors influencing intentions to consume and purchase the product. Three focus group discussions were employed with a total of 19 individuals from the UK. Results showed that the environmental, animal welfare, and food waste benefits of feeding hens with insects positively influenced attitudes. Results also indicated price and disgust towards insects as feed were the main barriers, while enhanced welfare standards (e.g., free-range labelling) and information on benefits were main drivers. Therefore, the study suggests that educating and informing consumers about the benefits of feeding hens with insects may increase intentions to consume and purchase eggs from insect-fed hens. Given this emerging area of research, this study contributes to the limited literature on insect-fed foodstuffs and paves the way for further research on the topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]