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This paper's purpose is to explore the current interest and knowledge that UK consumers hold around agroforestry. Despite the many reported benefits of agroforestry systems, uptake in the UK, as well as other temperate nations, has been low. As the consumer has a role to play in the transition of agriculture to methods that are more environmentally friendly it is vital to have an understanding of their perceptions. Yet to date no work has looked at agroforestry from the perspective of the UK consumer.

An online survey was conducted using a convenience sample accessed by floating a link through social media and messaging apps. The survey was also shared to the members of a private Facebook group associated with an organic vegetable box service. A mix of multiple choice and open text boxes were used. The survey received 139 responses.

Non-parametric tests indicate that this sample of UK consumers would be mostly likely to buy, and willing to pay more for, agroforestry produce; and the sample showed a split group regarding familiarity. Inductive thematic analysis of the qualitative data highlighted some important barriers to the purchase as well as capturing a snapshot of this sample's perceptions.

This paper presents, to the authors knowledge, the first set of data regarding a sample of UK consumers' perspective of agroforestry produce. The findings could bolster producers' confidence in adopting agroforestry practices, but also highlight the need for policymakers to bolster consumer support through parallel means.

Disinformation on social media is a serious issue. This study examines the effects of disinformation on COVID-19 vaccination decision-making to understand how social media users make healthcare decisions when disinformation is presented in their social media feeds. It examines trust in post owners as a moderator on the relationship between information types (i.e. disinformation and factual information) and vaccination decision-making.

This study conducts a scenario-based web survey experiment to collect extensive survey data from social media users.

This study reveals that information types differently affect social media users' COVID-19 vaccination decision-making and finds a moderating effect of trust in post owners on the relationship between information types and vaccination decision-making. For those who have a high degree of trust in post owners, the effect of information types on vaccination decision-making becomes large. In contrast, information types do not affect the decision-making of those who have a very low degree of trust in post owners. Besides, identification and compliance are found to affect trust in post owners.

This study contributes to the literature on online disinformation and individual healthcare decision-making by demonstrating the effect of disinformation on vaccination decision-making and providing empirical evidence on how trust in post owners impacts the effects of information types on vaccination decision-making. This study focuses on trust in post owners, unlike prior studies that focus on trust in information or social media platforms.

Research has established the prevalence and relevance of moral injury in healthcare workers, though less attention has been paid to the different classes of potentially morally injurious events (PMIEs) experienced by this population and their impact. This exploratory study sought to examine the frequency of self- and other-generated PMIE classes and their associations with demographic characteristics and well-being outcomes among mental healthcare staff.

Secondary analysis of data drawn from two cross-sectional surveys of 267 frontline and leadership staff from mental healthcare settings in the UK was conducted. Responses on the Moral Injury Events Scale and the Short Professional Quality of Life Scale were extracted for analysis.

Betrayal by others was most frequently endorsed (61.8%), whilst self-transgressions were least frequently reported (25.5%). After controlling for the number of PMIE classes experienced, betrayal significantly predicted secondary traumatic stress (p = 0.01) and burnout (p = 0.04). Additionally, other transgressions significantly predicted secondary traumatic stress (p = 0.008). The predictive effects of self-transgressions on burnout, secondary traumatic stress and compassion satisfaction were all nonsignificant after controlling for the number of PMIE classes experienced.

Findings highlight differences in the frequency and impact of self and other PMIEs experienced by healthcare professionals. Reducing cumulative exposure to differential PMIE classes appears to be of critical importance to improving occupational well-being in this group.

To our knowledge, this study is the first to explore the associations between PMIE classes and occupational well-being in a mental healthcare population, inclusive of frontline and leadership staff.

This chapter aims to examine the role of consumer demographics over the chosen parameters of online shopping. Online shopping had emerged as an important platform for the consumers during the phase of pandemic spread in India which even included several phases of lockdowns. The state of pandemic commenced at a severe note leading to restrictive movement, social distancing, observing least contact with objects, and several other limitations. Due to this, many businesses had moved to online selling in order to target greater sales. This study was conducted in order to provide insights to various businesses, experts, and academic researchers in this domain to find out the role of demographical and behavioral differences of different consumer segments. It could serve as a robust study providing information about the current consumer behavior at the time of pandemic spread toward online shopping. This would help marketing experts explore the different opportunities and challenges involved in this new scenario formed due to COVID-19. Apart from adding value to the existing literature, this study leads a way to future research.

Apples have always been considered a healthy product able to provide curative properties to consumers. In Italy, there is a long tradition of apple consumption and production both as a fresh product and as processed food. However, as with many other products, the consumption of fruits and vegetables and, more specifically apples, has been drastically affected by the first lockdown in 2020. In this project, the authors investigate whether the change in consumption habits had long-lasting consequences beyond 2020 and what are the main eating motivations, food-related behavior and socio-demographic affecting the consumption of fruits and vegetables after the pandemic.

The authors ran two online surveys with 1,000 Italian consumers across a year (from October 2021 to December 2022). In the study, participants answered questions about their consumption habits and their eating motives. Out of 1,000 consumers, the authors included in the final analysis only the participants who answered both surveys, leaving a final sample of 651 consumers.

The results show that participants have allocated more budget to fruit and vegetables after the lockdown than before it. Moreover, consumers reported an average increase in the consumption of apples. However, the increase was more pronounced for people aged between 30 and 50 years old and identified as female. After showing the difference across time, a cluster analysis identified three main segments that differ in their eating motives, place of purchase and area of residence.

Overall, the results contribute to a better understanding of how the global pandemic is still affecting people's daily life. Moreover, the findings can be used to guide the marketing and communication strategies of companies in the food sector.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that investigates changes in the consumption of fruits and vegetables, and, more specifically, apples, in Italy more than one year after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, the study proposes a classification of consumers based on their habits in a time frame during which the COVID-19 wave was at its bottom which is not currently present in the literature.

The present study examines the fluctuations in Socioeconomic and demographic (SED) factors and the prevalence of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) across clusters of states in India. Further, it attempts to analyze the extent to which the SED determinants can serve as predictive indicators for the prevalence of NCDs.

The study uses three rounds of unit-level National Sample Survey self-reported morbidity data for the analysis. A machine learning model was constructed to predict the prevalence of NCDs based on SED characteristics. In addition, probit regression was adopted to identify the relevant SED variables across the cluster of states that significantly impact disease prevalence.

Overall, the study finds that the disease prevalence can be reasonably predicted with a given set of SED characteristics. Also, it highlights age as the most important factor across a cluster of states in understanding the distribution of disease prevalence, followed by income, education, and marital status. Understanding these variations is essential for policymakers and public health officials to develop targeted strategies that address each state’s unique challenges and opportunities.

The study complements the existing literature on the interplay of SEDs with the prevalence of NCDs across diverse state-level dynamics. Its predictive analysis of NCD distribution through SED factors adds valuable depth to our understanding, making a notable contribution to the field.

The investment behaviour of individuals has been a major area of interest for several researchers and policymakers due to its great impact on the economy. This study aimed to assess the investment behaviour of individuals in light of their risk appetite and how financial literacy regulates this relationship.

A self-administered structured questionnaire was used to collect responses from individuals using purposive and convenience sampling techniques. Individuals were presented with 16 investment avenues widely offered by the Indian financial market to choose from to construct a hypothetical portfolio. The association between risk appetite, financial literacy and the composition of the hypothetical portfolio was analysed using a gologit model.

Increased risk appetite increased the probability of respondents creating a portfolio with a greater proportion of risky assets and less diversification. Lower levels of financial literacy pointed towards portfolios with traditional and low-risk avenues. The results also revealed a significant moderating impact of financial literacy on risk appetite and the creation of the type of a hypothetical portfolio.

Even though the intended behaviour is a close estimate of actual behaviour, there is a possibility of deviation that cannot be ignored.

The present study provides insights into how individuals make portfolio choices by incorporating risk appetite and diversification factors whilst making investment decisions, thereby expanding the literature from an emerging economy perspective. The role of financial literacy as a moderator has not been studied in the domain of hypothetical portfolio creation in India, which has been empirically explored in the current study.

Comfort foods consumption and linkages to stress coping strategies have received little attention in the business research on food products and services. This paper aims to explore comfort foods consumption among older Americans and how stress-coping strategies are related to their consumption frequency and variety of comfort foods.

Older Americans aged 50–99 years (N = 1,428) in the Health and Retirement Study were surveyed on their frequency and variety of comfort foods consumption and their consumption coping strategies. Data were analyzed and regression models were estimated.

Demographically, baby boomer, male, and non-Hispanic whites reported higher frequency and variety of comfort foods consumption. Comfort foods consumption in frequency and variety was significantly higher (lower) when “eat more” (“use alcohol”) was the endorsed coping strategy.

Research findings furthered research on the consumption of comfort foods among older American adults and added new insights into their coping behavior, both of which may help businesses be more targeted in serving comfort foods to the mature market and the public sector to tailor their services to older adults.

This study aims to evaluate the impact of the proposed CARICOM Octagon “High In” Warning Label (OWL), against four alternative Front-of-Package Nutrition Labels (FOPNLs): US “Facts Up Front” (FUF), UK Multi-Traffic Light (MTL), Mexican OWL and the Brazilian Magnifying Glass “High In” Warning Label, on respondents’ purchase intentions, perception of healthiness and understanding of nutritional information across and within food products.

In an online randomized control experiment, adults from eight CARICOM countries (n = 948) were randomly assigned to a control and four treatment FOPNL groups. Respondents were tasked to choose between four categories of mock products with three variations in healthfulness across and within products.

No statistically significant difference (p > 0.05) was found across FOPNL groups compared to the OWL on outcomes of purchase intentions and perception of healthfulness. Regarding the understanding of nutritional information, FUF performed the best, as participants were 1.76 times (p = 0.03) and 3.23 times (p = 0.00) more likely to correctly identify the products with the highest and lowest amount of sugar, respectively. Results were similar for products with the lowest sodium (odds ratio [OR] = 2.25, p = 0.00) and highest saturated fats (OR = 2.11, p = 0.00).

Some limitations of this study include the use of an online platform to conduct the experiment. Though this was the most cost-effective method of execution and presented many benefits, there were limitations to using this approach. Firstly, this approach may not entirely replicate the real world in store purchasing settings. Although online grocery shopping is becoming increasingly popular, in the Caribbean, most grocery purchases are made in stores. Furthermore, online surveys are more likely to lead to samples with higher educational and income levels than the average population (Bethlehem, 2010). The skewedness observed was not unique to this study and was common with similar published studies (Franco-Arellano et al., 2020; Packer et al., 2021; Talati et al., 2018). Nevertheless, all respondents were randomly assigned to groups, and it was confirmed that there were no systematic differences in the education and income levels of participants across the FOPNL groups.

Some CARICOM policy makers advocate for the use of “High In” warning labels to limit the intake of nutrients of concern (NOCs) and to encourage healthier eating habits among consumers. However, regional private sector stakeholders have expressed concern about the lack of sufficient research undertaken at a regional level, to inform the effectiveness of this model within CARICOM, and some have also expressed a preference for the use of other interpretative and reductive FOPNLs, already in use in the Region. The results of this study reveal that while interpretative FOPNLs like the Draft CARICOM Regional Standard, DCRS5 (OWL) can assist consumers in making healthier purchase decisions, it was outperformed by the MTL on perception of healthiness and by the FUF on the understanding of nutrient information. It was also noted that the DCRS5 (OWL) was more effective when choosing across products with distinct nutritional differences but performed poorly in assisting respondents with making healthy purchasing decisions when all the products contained NOCs above the relevant thresholds. This study’s findings highlight that the existing FOPNL schemes can be further enhanced for improved outcomes. This can be achieved by using a hybrid approach which includes both reductive and interpretative elements to allow for comparison across and within food products. The literature also suggests the use of colour and combining positive as well as negative elements to encourage ease of interpretation, improved understanding and healthier food choices.

A properly designed FOPNL can support consumers in making healthier food choices; however, it must be accompanied by measures to raise consumer awareness and increase the health literacy of the population to cause shifts in preferences and behavioural patterns over time. This must also be coupled with policies to make healthy food choices more affordable to the general population.

The results of this study revealed that FUF and MTL performed the best in assisting participants to correctly identify between products with the highest or lowest NOCs at the 5% significant level, and that the OWL performed poorly in assisting participants with making healthy purchasing decisions when all the products contained NOCs above the relevant thresholds.

As healthcare continues to become more expensive and complex, considering the voice of the patient in the design and operation of healthcare practices is important. Wound care and rural healthcare scenarios pose additional complexities for providers and patients. This study sought to identify key determinants of patient service quality in wound care.

Patients at the wound care/ostomy clinic (WOC) in a rural hospital were surveyed using the Kano model. The Kano model enables the categorization of quality attributes based on the attributes' contribution to the subject's overall satisfaction (and dissatisfaction). Chi-square goodness-of-fit testing, multinomial analysis and power analysis were then used to determine the Kano categories for each satisfaction-related attribute.

The analyses resulted in 14 one-dimensional attributes and 3 indeterminable attributes. For the one-dimensional attributes, customer satisfaction is directly proportional to the level of performance for that attribute. The one-dimensional attributes included providing correct care on the first, provision of necessary supplies for care, appropriately qualified medical staff and confidence in care provided by medical staff, among others. Understanding the attributes important to the patient drive patient-centered care, which improves positive patient outcomes and recovery. These attributes can then be used by healthcare professionals to design patient-centric processes and services. This research provides a framework for incorporating the voice of the patient into healthcare services.

While the research methodology can be used in other healthcare settings, the findings are not generalizable to other wound care clinics. This research was conducted in one small, rural hospital. In addition, the sample size was small due to the size of the wound clinic; therefore, an analysis of the differences between demographics could not be performed.

Considering the perspectives of rural wound care patients is important, as the patients are an under-served population with unique challenges related to patient care. The research findings detail rural patients' expectations during wound care treatments, which enable the clinic to focus on improving patient satisfaction. This research contributes to understanding the factors that are important to patient satisfaction in wound care. Further, the methodology presented can be applied to other healthcare settings.

While studies exist using the Kano model in healthcare and the literature is sparse in rural healthcare, this is the first case study using the Kano model in wound care to understand patient preferences.