Search Results (117)

Jamu is a traditional Indonesian herbal beverage widely consumed for its perceived health benefits; however, its broader acceptance is often constrained by intense sensory characteristics. This study investigated the sensory characteristics and consumer acceptance of five commonly consumed jamu beverages (wedang jahe, beras kencur, kunyit asam, temulawak, and pahitan) using an integrated sensory and consumer research approach. Commercial powdered jamu products were evaluated by 120 consumers familiar with jamu. Significant differences in consumer acceptance were observed among formulations (p < 0.05), with beras kencur and wedang jahe showing the highest liking, kunyit asam moderate acceptance, and temulawak and pahitan the lowest. Sensory characterization revealed a clear perceptual continuum across jamu beverages, ranging from sweet, refreshing, and spicy profiles to strongly bitter, herbal, and medicinal characteristics. Analysis of sensory intensity perception indicated that excessive bitterness and herbal intensity, as well as insufficient sweetness, were the primary contributors to reduced consumer liking. Furthermore, consumer responses to jamu were heterogeneous, with distinct acceptance patterns observed across different consumer groups. By linking sensory perception with consumer preference, this study provides scientifically grounded insights to support the development, reformulation, and targeted positioning of jamu beverages as modern functional drinks while preserving their traditional identity. Full article

Algorithmic transparency is widely considered essential for fostering trust in AI-based financial e-commerce services. However, empirical evidence remains limited on whether transparency benefits all consumers uniformly and how it is evaluated relative to other service attributes in realistic decision contexts. This study examines how consumers trade off transparency, personalization, and user control in robo-advisor (RA) services across different consumer segments. Through a discrete choice experiment and latent class logit modeling, two distinct segments are identified: selective high-expertise investors, who prioritize personalization and user control over transparency, and receptive general consumers, who respond strongly to enhanced explainability. These findings indicate that algorithmic transparency does not serve as a universal design solution but operates conditionally based on consumer expertise and attribute interactions. Simulation results further show that while a regulation-compliant, uniform service design may facilitate market entry, it constraints long-term expansion in heterogeneous markets. In contrast, a segment-based service portfolio calibrated to the distinct preferences of each group significantly increases overall adoption under the same regulatory constraints. These results suggest that sustainable AI diffusion in financial e-commerce requires a nuanced approach that balances disclosure with functional autonomy to address the diverse needs of both sophisticated and novice users. Full article

Debates on sustainability have focused mainly on conventional and organic farming. However, little attention has been given to intermediate production approaches with potential benefits for environmental protection, food affordability, and food safety. This study investigated consumers’ acceptance of an intermediate farming method characterized by minimal use of agrochemicals. Using a preference-based grouping approach, 184 Japanese consumers were divided into organic-prone (OA-prone), conventional-prone (CA-prone), and balance-prone groups (χ² test, p < 0.001). The results revealed clear differences in how these groups evaluated and responded to the produce from the intermediate farming method. OA-prone consumers tended to evaluate such produce against the standards associated with organic food and therefore showed more cautious acceptance. In contrast, CA- and balance-prone consumers demonstrated relatively higher acceptance when product safety and taste were assured, reflecting a more pragmatic evaluation based on functional attributes and affordability. These findings suggest that the promotion of environmentally friendly intermediate farming depends more on pragmatic CA- and balance-prone consumers rather than those value-driven organic consumers. By highlighting consumer heterogeneity in the evaluation of such farming systems, this study contributes to a broader understanding of sustainable food consumption and underscores the role of intermediate farming in bridging environmental sustainability and food security. Full article

The digital transformation of education demands a comprehensive understanding of how leadership orientations and digital competencies intersect among educators. This exploratory cross-sectional study examined associations between self-reported leadership orientations, digital skills, and organizational readiness for innovation among 71 primary school teachers in Western Attica, Greece. Using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ Form-5x) adapted for respondents without administrative roles, we measured leadership self-concept—teachers’ preferences and tendencies regarding leadership—rather than enacted behaviors. This distinction is critical given that 94.4% of participants lacked principal experience; thus, responses reflect aspirational orientations rather than observed behavioral patterns. Descriptive profiling approaches, including K-means clustering and multinomial logistic regression, identified three tentative response pattern groupings: Passive-Moderate (53.5%), Balanced-Active (33.8%), and High-Engagement (12.7%), with observed multivariate differences. After reverse-coding the passive-avoidant items, transformational leadership showed the highest mean score (M = 4.33), followed by passive-avoidant (M = 4.15; reflecting low endorsement of avoidant behaviors) and transactional (M = 3.91). Transformational leadership demonstrated acceptable internal consistency (α = 0.783), while transactional (α = 0.583) and passive-avoidant (α = 0.617) scales showed lower reliability, warranting cautious interpretation. Critical competency gaps emerged in professional digital domains—particularly web development (22.5% deficit) and administrative systems (18.3% deficit)—despite a surplus in consumer technologies such as social media (−29.6%), revealing an ‘aspirational gap’ between leadership self-concept and digital readiness—technology familiarity does not automatically translate to digital leadership capability. Digital skills showed the strongest association with profile membership, with each additional skill associated with a 32–67% increase in the odds of membership in more engaged profiles. These findings suggest digital competency development may be associated with leadership orientation patterns, though the cross-sectional design precludes causal inference. Methodological limitations—including lower scale reliability, weak cluster separation (silhouette = 0.150), and modest sample size—require that findings be interpreted as hypothesis-generating rather than definitive. This work offers preliminary insights relevant to SDG4 (Quality Education) regarding heterogeneity in leadership orientation among primary educators, while highlighting the need for culturally validated instruments and for replication with larger samples. Full article

This article examines public preferences for a proposed West Coast submarine high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission network in South Korea, installed by trenching and burying the cables in the seabed, which is essential for facilitating renewable energy integration and ensuring a stable electricity supply to the Seoul Metropolitan Area. The purpose of this study is to estimate South Korean households’ willingness to pay (WTP) for the proposed West Coast submarine HVDC network using contingent valuation (CV), thereby assessing its social acceptability amid renewable energy integration challenges. Employing a CV survey with a nationally representative sample of 1000 households conducted from late May to late June 2025, the research applies the one-and-one-half-bound spike model to address zero WTP responses and incorporates socio-demographic covariates to account for preference heterogeneity. The analysis estimates an average monthly WTP of KRW 1832 (USD 1.33) per household for the HVDC infrastructure. Results demonstrate statistically significant public support for the submarine HVDC project despite its high capital investment and potential electricity rate increases. These findings underscore notable consumer acceptance and provide valuable welfare insights for policymakers, reinforcing the prioritization of this project within South Korea’s energy transition framework. This paper contributes to the field of energy infrastructure valuation by advancing methodological approaches and offering policy-relevant recommendations for sustainable grid expansion. Full article

Expanded and intensified agriculture is a major driver of habitat loss for endangered species such as the Oriental White Stork (Ciconia boyciana), making wildlife-friendly farming an increasingly important approach for reconciling biodiversity conservation with agricultural development. Building on a 2018 feasibility study in the Sanjiang Plain, this research employs a choice experiment to examine how preferences for Oriental White Stork-friendly farming have evolved among urban consumers and residents of stork habitats under expanding green consumption and increasing experience with environmentally friendly farming. The results reveal pronounced preference heterogeneity and persistent cognitive separation between wildlife conservation and agricultural production, particularly among urban consumers, despite a stable group being willing to pay a premium for stork-friendly products. Rural residents’ decisions remain largely economically driven, though younger farmers with prior experience in environmentally friendly practices show more positive attitudes. Significant urban–rural differences suggest policy complementarities, whereby price-oriented incentives may encourage price-sensitive farmers to adopt green agriculture, while intrinsically motivated farmers require support through an Oriental White Stork-oriented value chain. Overall, the findings demonstrate that Wildlife-Friendly Farming cannot be effectively promoted through a one-size-fits-all approach; instead, stratified, group-specific policy and market mechanisms are essential for aligning producer incentives with consumer demand and supporting the long-term viability of biodiversity-friendly agricultural systems. Full article

In the context of global climate change and carbon-neutrality goals, carbon taxes and carbon tariffs have become key policy tools for regulating corporate emissions. However, most existing studies examine these policies in isolation and overlook firms’ behavioral responses under their joint implementation, especially with product heterogeneity. This study analyzes production and emission-reduction decisions of two-country manufacturers under carbon taxation and further investigates corporate behavior and social welfare outcomes when both carbon taxes and carbon tariffs are imposed. The results show that carbon taxes enhance emission-reduction efforts, though with diminishing marginal effects. Moderate carbon tariffs further motivate exporting firms to reduce emissions, while overly high tariffs may induce market exit, particularly for high-quality manufacturers. Consumer preferences also interact with policy effects: stronger preferences for high-quality products encourage firms to expand domestic markets and increase green investments, whereas weaker preferences shift focus toward exports. Social welfare responds asymmetrically, moderate tariffs improve environmental performance, while excessive tariffs lead to trade distortions and welfare losses. Overall, this study highlights nonlinear and heterogeneous firm responses under combined carbon policies, offering insights for policy design and corporate strategy. Full article

Consumer demand for organic products has grown substantially in Southern Europe, driven by health, environmental, and ethical concerns. Understanding cross-country differences in attribute preferences and sociodemographic influences is critical to inform marketing strategies and policy interventions targeting organic food consumption. To perform a comparative study across Portugal, Spain, and Greece, regular organic consumers were surveyed (250 per country) using a culturally adapted Best–Worst Scaling questionnaire. Socio-demographic variables and ten organic food attributes were analysed using MANOVA, Kruskal–Wallis tests, PCA, and cluster analysis. Spanish and Portuguese consumers prioritised health, environmental impact, absence of GMOs, and certification, while Greeks emphasised price, appearance, taste expectation, and nutrition. Age, gender, and education influenced attribute importance differently across countries, revealing distinct national consumption patterns and preferences. Findings highlight substantial heterogeneity: health and environmental attributes dominate in Portugal and Spain, reflecting strong certification and sustainability awareness, whereas Greek consumers focus on value, sensory qualities, and nutrition, indicating lower organic uptake and stronger price sensitivity. Older and more educated consumers valued certification and provenance, women emphasised health and environmental benefits, and men responded more to convenience and status cues. These patterns suggest that marketing and policy strategies should combine universal motivators with tailored approaches addressing national, demographic, and cultural differences to enhance organic consumption. Cross-country differences reveal the need for context-specific interventions promoting organic food while leveraging common health and sustainability drivers. Full article

To explore the mechanism of consumers’ battery electric vehicle (BEV) purchase behavior in depth and address research gaps related to insufficient consideration of psychological latent variables and neglect of consumer heterogeneity in existing studies, this study constructs a latent class model (LCM) that integrates personal attributes, vehicle attributes, and six psychological latent variables: perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived risk, environmental awareness, purchase attitude, and purchase intention. Based on 1044 valid questionnaires collected from Urumqi, latent profile analysis (LPA) is used to classify consumers. The results indicate that BEV consumers can be divided into five distinct latent profiles with significant differences in purchase preferences: the risk-avoidance type, the moderate–low intention wait-and-see type, the utility-oriented and low environmental concern type, the high utility cognition and low-risk proactive type, and the all-dimensional high-intention core type. Socioeconomic and vehicle-related factors exert heterogeneous impacts on the psychological variables and purchase decisions of each profile. This study clarifies the intrinsic psychological mechanism of BEV purchase behavior, providing a theoretical basis and targeted strategy references for the government and enterprises to promote BEV adoption and advance sustainable transportation development. Full article

Blockchain technology is increasingly adopted in supply chains to record product carbon footprints and environmental attributes on tamper-resistant ledgers. By improving the transparency and verifiability of emission-related information for governments, firms and consumers, blockchain reshapes the incentive effects of environmental taxes and subsidies that target emission abatement. This paper presents a government-manufacturer-consumer tripartite game model to analyze the abatement effects of tax and subsidy policies and their differences under heterogeneous consumer demand in a blockchain-driven framework. The results indicate that: (1) Both subsidy and tax policies can facilitate environmental improvement. When consumers’ green preference exceeds a specific threshold $X^{*}/\left(1+\gamma \right)$, the greenness of the tax policy is superior to that of the subsidy policy, and vice versa. (2) Under blockchain technology, tax and subsidy instruments differentially affect the profits of conventional and green manufacturers, shifting profits from high-emission sectors to green sectors. (3) The improvement of consumers’ environmental awareness can gradually reduce the implementation of the policy, urge enterprises to reduce emissions, and improve their profits. Nevertheless, the privacy concerns associated with blockchain technology present a significant obstacle to the effective implementation of carbon emission reduction strategies. Full article

Digital platforms face a fundamental strategic decision between subscription-only, advertising-only, and freemium (hybrid) monetization models. We develop a game-theoretic framework that unifies these strategies, explicitly modeling consumer heterogeneity in both willingness-to-pay and advertising disutility, while incorporating network effects through the platform’s valuation of user-base size. Our analysis yields closed-form solutions identifying optimal strategy thresholds based on advertising market conditions. We show that subscription-only dominates when advertising prices are low, advertising-only prevails when prices are high, and freemium emerges as strictly optimal in the intermediate region. Under freemium, we demonstrate strategic complementarity: both subscription fees and advertising intensity exceed their levels in pure strategies because each instrument’s effectiveness is amplified by the other through user reallocation across tiers. Network effects universally reduce monetization intensity but alter instruments’ relative sensitivities differently across regimes—when advertising prices are moderate, freemium adjusts ad length more aggressively, while the opposite holds at high prices. Critically, freemium’s profitability requires sufficient consumer heterogeneity in ad tolerance. As consumer preferences converge, the screening mechanism fails and freemium collapses to the superior pure strategy. These results provide operational guidance for platform monetization decisions and clarify when hybrid models create value beyond traditional approaches. Full article

Rising ocean temperatures driven by climate change are impacting the distribution of fish stocks. In the Northeastern United States, fish scientists predict that well-known local species will shift further north and will be replaced by lesser-known southern species in the local waters. It is unclear whether New England seafood consumers will accept these unfamiliar species when they enter the market, posing a threat to the resiliency of fishing communities. This paper investigates how New England seafood consumers might respond to a shifting supply of seafood by conducting an online stated preference survey. The choice experiment leveraged in the survey revealed that, compared to Atlantic Cod, consumers are willing to pay less for the unfamiliar fish species. However, significant heterogeneity was detected in the consumers’ preferences for purchasing these species. We find the varying degree of willingness to pay being affected by factors such as the type of venues they purchase seafood from and whether they fish recreationally. Our results suggest there will be a challenge in marketing these species, although with proper marketing strategies and coordination among the industry, these challenges may be reduced. Full article

Frequent gradient exchange and heterogeneous data distribution in federated learning can lead to serious privacy leakage risks. Traditional privacy-preserving strategies fail to meet the personalized privacy needs from different users and may cause a decrease in model accuracy and convergence difficulties. The symmetry of federated learning may lead to the insufficiency of contribution evaluation mechanisms in protecting the privacy of sensitive data holders. However, federated learning avoids the risk of privacy leakage caused by data centralization because the raw data is always stored on the local device during the training process, and only encrypted model parameters or gradient updates are exchanged. To address these issues, this paper proposes an adaptive personalized differential privacy federated learning scheme APDP-FL. First, we propose an adaptive noise addition method that scores each round of training based on the parameters generated during training and dynamically adjusts the noise level for the next round. This method adds larger noise scales in the early stages of training, consuming less privacy budget, and gradually reduces noise addition during training to accelerate model convergence. Second, we design a personalized privacy protection strategy that adds noise tailored to individual needs for participating clients based on their privacy preferences. This solves the problem of insufficient or excessive privacy protection for some participants due to identical privacy budget sets for all clients, achieving personalized privacy protection for clients. Finally, we conduct extensive experimental simulations, comparisons, and analyses on three real federated datasets, MNIST, FMNIST, and CIFAR-10, verifying the advantages of APDP-FL in terms of privacy protection, model accuracy, and convergence speed. Full article

The trade-in service can enhance product sales and increase consumer loyalty; however, heterogeneity in consumer quality preferences significantly influences the provision and implementation of trade-in activities. By constructing a dynamic dual-supply chain model, this study examines the optimal choices for trade-in providers and the impact of consumer quality preferences on mode selection. The findings indicate that the decision of who should provide the trade-in service largely depends on the product’s quality decay rate. When the quality decay rate is low, collaboration between the manufacturer and the retail platform favors manufacturer-led trade-in service. Conversely, when the quality decay rate is high, both parties tend to fall into a prisoner’s dilemma, each preferring to dominate the trade-in process independently. Notably, as the share of pragmatic consumers increases, both sides of the supply chain are more inclined to prefer the manufacturer offering trade-in service. In our extended research, we found that the influence of government subsidies on mode selection primarily depends on the price discounts provided by the dominant party in trade-in arrangements within each mode. We also considered scenarios with asymmetric net residual values of recovered products, and the results robustly validate the stability of our core findings. Full article

As environmental and social sustainability become an increasingly critical concern, retailers are under rising pressure from both eco-conscious consumers and evolving regulatory frameworks to enhance the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance of their supply chains. Given that most ESG-related violations originate from upstream suppliers, downstream retailers are compelled to invest in promoting responsible practices beyond their immediate operations. To capture this dynamic, we develop a two-tier supply chain model in which a single supplier distributes products to multiple retailers engaged in Cournot competition. Each retailer independently determines its level of investment aimed at improving the supplier’s ESG outcomes while accounting for heterogeneous consumer preferences between supplier-driven and retailer-driven sustainability efforts. Our findings reveal that retailers are only incentivized to invest when the number of market participants falls below a critical threshold. We further extend the analysis to an asymmetric setting, where only a subset of retailers engage in ESG investments and pay a premium wholesale price. In contrast to the baseline scenario, this structure may encourage higher investment levels among participating retailers when more of them are involved. Moreover, under conditions of strong consumer preference heterogeneity, a larger number of investing retailers can incentivize the supplier to reduce the wholesale price, thereby reinforcing investment incentives and facilitating improved ESG performance across the supply chain. In summary, the results provide valuable managerial implications for retailers, suppliers, and policymakers seeking to foster coordinated and sustainable ESG investment within supply chains. Full article