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1 – 10 of 565Kharla Janinny Medeiros, Giana Zarbato Longo and Giovanna M.R. Fiates
Social expectations of body image can generate negative body feelings, exacerbate compensatory behaviors and discourage healthy food choices. This study examined the food choices…
Abstract
Purpose
Social expectations of body image can generate negative body feelings, exacerbate compensatory behaviors and discourage healthy food choices. This study examined the food choices and perceptions of adult consumers dissatisfied with their body image about food products available in the “healthy foods” section of a Brazilian supermarket.
Design/methodology/approach
Exploratory, descriptive and qualitative study. Body image dissatisfaction was assessed with the self-reported silhouette scale validated for the Brazilian population. Chosen items were classified according with degree of processing. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 26 men and women and transcribed and thematically analyzed.
Findings
Participants chose 81 food products, most of which (53%) were ultra-processed. Thematic analysis revealed that participants were motivated mainly by consumption habits, preference, convenience and brand loyalty. Participants questioned the concept of health promoted by the supermarket and suggested that the kind of food items available in “healthy foods section” may confuse consumers about the healthfulness of packaged processed foods (PF). Despite being critical of the concept of healthfulness promoted by the supermarket, participants predominantly selected ultra-processed foods (UPF) mentioning health-related motivations for their selection, revealing a realm of contradictions. The results indicate that, for individuals dissatisfied with their body image due to overweight and with emotional eating behavior, the environment of the healthy foods section of supermarkets is not conducive to healthy food shopping.
Originality/value
Qualitative approach can bring results which add to the body of evidence on the importance of the food environment's influence on food choices, especially of individuals prone to making poor choices for the sake of improving their perceived body image.
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Under pressure on cost-of-living issues, Canberra is reviewing competition laws to see what effect market dominance may be having in a handful of major sectors, including banking…
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DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-DB286078
ISSN: 2633-304X
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Geographic
Topical
Luis Hernan Contreras Pinochet, Cesar Alexandre de Souza, Adriana Backx Noronha Viana and Guillermo Rodríguez-Abitia
This research aims to propose the development of a model that identifies, in essential services, the determining factors affecting the technological advances offered by different…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to propose the development of a model that identifies, in essential services, the determining factors affecting the technological advances offered by different smart technologies in supermarket retail channels that influence citizens' quality of life, amidst the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach
The data were collected using a cross-sectional questionnaire survey (n = 469). The authors applied the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique to test the hypotheses, along with the partial least squares (PLS) method for estimating latent variables and combining with the necessary condition analysis (NCA) method.
Findings
According to the results of the NCA method, the results were adequate, and more attention should be paid to the quality of life construct after finding the bottleneck point of 50%. In this sense, adaptive resilience was characterized as the main necessary predictor construct for quality of life. In addition, Generation Z and Millennials have the highest frequency of use in all smart technologies, with “assisted purchase” being the most widely used.
Social implications
Finally, the effect of the pandemic changed the consumption routine with supermarkets, not being a mere option but a necessity in the context of a smart city.
Originality/value
As a result, the proposed model was consistent, showing that all direct and indirect SEM paths were validated, highlighting data security and privacy and resilience issues. In addition, the NCA method complemented the procedures performed in the SEM phase.
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Maddy Power, Bob Doherty, Katie J. Pybus and Kate E. Pickett
This article draws upon our perspective as academic-practitioners working in the fields of food insecurity, food systems, and inequality to comment, in the early stages of the…
Abstract
This article draws upon our perspective as academic-practitioners working in the fields of food insecurity, food systems, and inequality to comment, in the early stages of the pandemic and associated lockdown, on the empirical and ethical implications of COVID-19 for socio-economic inequalities in access to food in the UK. The COVID-19 pandemic has sharpened the profound insecurity of large segments of the UK population, an insecurity itself the product of a decade of “austerity” policies. Increased unemployment, reduced hours, and enforced self-isolation for multiple vulnerable groups is likely to lead to an increase in UK food insecurity, exacerbating diet-related health inequalities. The social and economic crisis associated with the pandemic has exposed the fragility of the system of food charity which, at present, is a key response to growing poverty. A vulnerable food system, with just-in-time supply chains, has been challenged by stockpiling. Resultant food supply issues at food banks, alongside rapidly increasing demand and reduced volunteer numbers, has undermined many food charities, especially independent food banks. In the light of this analysis, we make a series of recommendations. We call for an immediate end to the five week wait for Universal Credit and cash grants for low income households. We ask central and local government to recognise that many food aid providers are already at capacity and unable to adopt additional responsibilities. The government's – significant – response to the economic crisis associated with COVID-19 has underscored a key principle: it is the government's responsibility to protect population health, to guarantee household incomes, and to safeguard the economy. Millions of households were in poverty before the pandemic, and millions more will be so unless the government continues to protect household incomes through policy change.
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Michail Katsigiannis, Minas Pantelidakis and Konstantinos Mykoniatis
With hybrid simulation techniques getting popular for systems improvement in multiple fields, this study aims to provide insight on the use of hybrid simulation to assess the…
Abstract
Purpose
With hybrid simulation techniques getting popular for systems improvement in multiple fields, this study aims to provide insight on the use of hybrid simulation to assess the effect of lean manufacturing (LM) techniques on manufacturing facilities and the transition of a mass production (MP) facility to incorporating LM techniques.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, the authors apply a hybrid simulation approach to improve an educational automotive assembly line and provide guidelines for implementing different LM techniques. Specifically, the authors describe the design, development, verification and validation of a hybrid discrete-event and agent-based simulation model of a LEGO® car assembly line to analyze, improve and assess the system’s performance. The simulation approach examines the base model (MP) and an alternative scenario (just-in-time [JIT] with Heijunka).
Findings
The hybrid simulation approach effectively models the facility. The alternative simulation scenario (implementing JIT and Heijunka LM techniques) improved all examined performance metrics. In more detail, the system’s lead time was reduced by 47.37%, the throughput increased by 5.99% and the work-in-progress for workstations decreased by up to 56.73%.
Originality/value
This novel hybrid simulation approach provides insight and can be potentially extrapolated to model other manufacturing facilities and evaluate transition scenarios from MP to LM.
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Michelle Watson, Sue Booth, Stefania Velardo and John Coveney
Globally, around one-third of food produced is wasted and thrown into supermarket bins or dumpsters. As a result, these dumpsters have become opportunistic sources of food…
Abstract
Purpose
Globally, around one-third of food produced is wasted and thrown into supermarket bins or dumpsters. As a result, these dumpsters have become opportunistic sources of food through dumpster diving. The authors' scoping review aimed to document the people that are dumpster diving and why these people engage in this potentially illegal practice.
Design/methodology/approach
A database search spanning 12 years yielded 29 articles for review.
Findings
The authors' analysis uncovered two main themes for why people were dumpster diving: (1) motivations which included political activism against consumerism, materialism and capitalism, a fun and thrilling social activity and to alleviate food insecurity and (2) the benefits derived, such as gaining free food, saving money, sharing food with others and gaining attention from the public and media.
Originality/value
In conclusion, the review was unable to provide definitive information on “who” was dumpster diving; however, this limitation provides a unique opportunity for further research that focusses on the specific demographics of dumpster divers rather than the “why” people are diving.
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Zhu Wang, Hongtao Hu and Tianyu Liu
Driven by sustainable production, mobile robots are introduced as a new clean-energy material handling tool for mixed-model assembly lines (MMALs), which reduces energy…
Abstract
Purpose
Driven by sustainable production, mobile robots are introduced as a new clean-energy material handling tool for mixed-model assembly lines (MMALs), which reduces energy consumption and lineside inventory of workstations (LSI). Nevertheless, the previous part feeding scheduling method was designed for conventional material handling tools without considering the flexible spatial layout of the robotic mobile fulfillment system (RMFS). To fill this gap, this paper focuses on a greening mobile robot part feeding scheduling problem with Just-In-Time (JIT) considerations, where the layout and number of pods can be adjusted.
Design/methodology/approach
A novel hybrid-load pod (HL-pod) and mobile robot are proposed to carry out part feeding tasks between material supermarkets and assembly lines. A bi-objective mixed-integer programming model is formulated to minimize both total energy consumption and LSI, aligning with environmental and sustainable JIT goals. Due to the NP-hard nature of the proposed problem, a chaotic differential evolution algorithm for multi-objective optimization based on iterated local search (CDEMIL) algorithm is presented. The effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is verified by dealing with the HL-pod-based greening part feeding scheduling problem in different problem scales and compared to two benchmark algorithms. Managerial insights analyses are conducted to implement the HL-pod strategy.
Findings
The CDEMIL algorithm's ability to produce Pareto fronts for different problem scales confirms its effectiveness and feasibility. Computational results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the other two compared algorithms regarding solution quality and convergence speed. Additionally, the results indicate that the HL-pod performs better than adopting a single type of pod.
Originality/value
This study proposes an innovative solution to the scheduling problem for efficient JIT part feeding using RMFS and HL-pods in automobile MMALs. It considers both the layout and number of pods, ensuring a sustainable and environmental-friendly approach to production.
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Wenting Feng, Yuanping Xu and Lijia Wang
Building on the theory of brand psychological ownership, this paper aims to explore the mediating role of brand psychological ownership in the relationship between brand…
Abstract
Purpose
Building on the theory of brand psychological ownership, this paper aims to explore the mediating role of brand psychological ownership in the relationship between brand personality (innocence/coolness) and consumers’ preferences, as well as identify the boundary conditions of this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
To test the hypotheses, a series of four experiments were conducted in Wuhan, a city in southern China, using questionnaires administered at two universities and two supermarkets. Hypotheses were tested using PLS-SEM in SmartPLS 4.
Findings
The results indicate that brand personality, specifically the dimensions of innocence and coolness, has a significant impact on consumers’ brand preferences. Brands with a cool personality are preferred over those with an innocent personality. Moreover, the relationship between brand personality and consumers’ brand preferences is moderated by power motivation and identity centrality.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by differentiating between brand personality of innocence and coolness as two separate constructs and proposing brand psychological ownership as a mechanism through which brand personality affects brand preferences. The study’s samples were drawn from universities and supermarkets in southern China, providing evidence for the significant moderating effects of power motivation and identity centrality on consumers’ brand preferences.
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