Public Value and Public Service: Reconsidering Humans in a Vuca-D Society
A special issue of Systems (ISSN 2079-8954).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 March 2026 | Viewed by 2834
Special Issue Editors
2. American Institute of Applied Sciences in Switzerland (AUS), 1814 La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland
Interests: public sector; innovation and digital transformation for public sector organizations; comparative studies (public–private); organization studies and complex systems; motivation and group dynamics; accounting and organizational history; influences and consequences on the introduction of new tools in the workplace; business ethics; CSR and D&I
Interests: consumer behaviour; tourism industry; sustainability and greenwashing; individual factors; electronic WOM
2. American Institute of Applied Sciences in Switzerland (AUS), 1814 La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland
Interests: aviation psychology; digital assistants; aviation sustainability; industrial and organizational psychology; UAVs; human factors
2. American Institute of Applied Sciences in Switzerland (AUS), 1814 La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland
Interests: consumer complaining behaviour; service recovery; quality perceptions and product defects
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
In the complex system of a VUCA-D (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity and Digital) society, the decline of trust and the “theatricalization” of the self, amplified by an exacerbated and often improper use of technology, undermine authentic relationships and result in isolation. Despite various reforms, the public sector struggles to achieve the SDGs, demonstrating the presence of difficult barriers. The network organization emerges as a model for co-creation, aiming to generate public value and promote collaboration between citizens, businesses and administrations. Co-creation empowers citizens as active participants in the design of services, triggering a “new humanism” perspective in public service, focused on sustainability and the rediscovery of the role of the civil servant. Adopting this model requires a cultural change in public administration and ethical governance that promotes well-being and trust, overcoming superficial interactions. A renewed balance between technology and humanity is crucial to unleash the potential of value co-creation in a more efficient and citizen-friendly public sector.
The Special Issue is directed toward scholars and practitioners in the field and embraces a transdisciplinary perspective, welcoming contributions from a wide range of disciplines, including administrative, governance, policy, social, organizational, psychological or welfare elements.
The Special Issue is considered a privileged publication output for the FMOS 2025 Conference (#FMOS2025—https://aus.swiss/fmos-2025) and SSRM (#SSRM2025—https://aus.swiss/ssrm-2025). We will also invite the interdisciplinary community of the American Institute of Applied Sciences in Switzerland (around 700 members) and their respective networks to contribute to this Special Issue.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following research areas:
Post-pandemic sustainability;
Diversity, equity and inclusion;
New visions for transport and infrastructure;
Innovation in transport;
Artificial intelligence and sustainability;
Metaverse and sustainability;
Poverty reduction;
Responsible and sustainable tourism;
Risk management;
Challenges in retail operations;
Service operations management;
Servitization as a business model;
Supply chain management;
Sustainable solutions in operations and logistics;
Corporate social responsibility;
Total quality management and six sigma;
Sustainable operations;
Emerging countries;
Renewable energy production/solutions;
Environmental recovery;
Financial technology;
Network organization model;
Organizational and strategic anti-crisis solutions;
Social reporting;
Human-centric view;
Value co-creation;
Blockchain digital technologies.
Dr. Giuseppe Modarelli
Dr. Mouna Nasr
Dr. Seda Çeken
Dr. Giuseppe Catenazzo
Guest Editors
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
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. Systems is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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
- public sector
- new humanism
- technology
- digitalization
- co-creation
- network organization
- innovation
- sustainability
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
