Determinants of Sustainable Investment in the Shipping Supply Chain: A Fuzzy Multi-Method Assessment Approach

Xu, Songjun; Wang, Junjin; Gao, Xin; Kong, Yudan

doi:10.3390/math14101678

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Determinants of Sustainable Investment in the Shipping Supply Chain: A Fuzzy Multi-Method Assessment Approach

¹

School of Maritime Economics and Management, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, China

²

School of Public Administration, Dongbei University of Finance and Economics, Dalian 116025, China

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Mathematics 2026, 14(10), 1678; https://doi.org/10.3390/math14101678

Submission received: 17 April 2026 / Revised: 11 May 2026 / Accepted: 12 May 2026 / Published: 14 May 2026

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fuzzy Decision-Making and Risk Analysis in Transportation and Supply Chain Systems)

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Abstract

Port and shipping enterprises face significant uncertainty in making effective sustainable investment decisions to meet pressing carbon reduction targets. This study addresses this challenge by developing a fuzzy multi-method framework to identify and prioritize pivotal factors that guide sustainable investments. An evolutionary game model simulates the influencing factors, while the triangular fuzzy number (TFN) and evidential reasoning (ER) algorithm assess their importance and operability. The decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method further refines these assessments. Finally, the Bayesian probability method corrects the posteriori probability, providing a comprehensive ranking. The results reveal that low-carbon technology is the most critical driver of sustainable investment, whereas environmental factors consistently rank the lowest in importance. This methodology aids ports and shipping enterprises in making sustainable investment decisions to reduce carbon emissions.

Keywords: shipping supply chain; sustainable investment; carbon emission reduction; multi-criteria decision-making; fuzzy assessment

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MDPI and ACS Style

Xu, S.; Wang, J.; Gao, X.; Kong, Y. Determinants of Sustainable Investment in the Shipping Supply Chain: A Fuzzy Multi-Method Assessment Approach. Mathematics 2026, 14, 1678. https://doi.org/10.3390/math14101678

AMA Style

Xu S, Wang J, Gao X, Kong Y. Determinants of Sustainable Investment in the Shipping Supply Chain: A Fuzzy Multi-Method Assessment Approach. Mathematics. 2026; 14(10):1678. https://doi.org/10.3390/math14101678

Chicago/Turabian Style

Xu, Songjun, Junjin Wang, Xin Gao, and Yudan Kong. 2026. "Determinants of Sustainable Investment in the Shipping Supply Chain: A Fuzzy Multi-Method Assessment Approach" Mathematics 14, no. 10: 1678. https://doi.org/10.3390/math14101678

APA Style

Xu, S., Wang, J., Gao, X., & Kong, Y. (2026). Determinants of Sustainable Investment in the Shipping Supply Chain: A Fuzzy Multi-Method Assessment Approach. Mathematics, 14(10), 1678. https://doi.org/10.3390/math14101678

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Determinants of Sustainable Investment in the Shipping Supply Chain: A Fuzzy Multi-Method Assessment Approach

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