Sustainability marketing. The need for a realistic whole systems approach

Thomas, Nicola

doi:10.1080/0267257x.2018.1547782

Cited by 32 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 143 publications

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“…It is clear that from economics and psychology we have taken an implicit assumption that the individual is the most relevant unit of analysis, with consumers playing a central role in marketing theory and practice, resulting in a micro level dominant perspective (Thomas, 2018).…”

Section: Conceptual Constraintsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These governmental, regulatory, economic and social institutions, which constitute the culture of a society (Kilbourne et al, 2018), affect the ways in which different social agents interpret, prioritize and act on sustainable matters; for example, they both reflect and legitimate the "almost universal emphasis" of companies "upon economic returns, with consumption as the root towards profit maximisation" Prothero, 2014, p.1198). Furthermore, embracing a macro perspective leaves room to contemplate the systemic nature of sustainability issues, by allowing consideration of the interdependent nature of economic, social and ecological realities (Thomas, 2018;Varey, 2010).…”

Section: Building Towards Institutionalised Sustainable Marketplacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite recurrent calls for a whole systems approach to address market-related concerns (Thomas, 2018;Kilbourne and Mittelstaedt, 2012;Fisk, 1967), in order for marketing to seek ways to engage meaningfully with sustainability issues, it remains unclear how effective transformation can happen in light of institutional constraints. As scholars and researchers of sustainability, this is partly due to recognizing ourselves as being embedded within the DSP and hence myopic when envisioning "transformation".…”

Section: Building Towards Institutionalised Sustainable Marketplacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Seeking sustainable futures in marketing and consumer research

Davies

Oates

Tynan

et al. 2020

EJM

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Purpose Seeking ways towards a sustainable future is the most dominant socio-political challenge of our time. Marketing should have a crucial role to play in leading research and impact in sustainability, yet it is limited by relying on cognitive behavioural theories rooted in the 1970s, which have proved to have little bearing on actual behaviour. This paper aims to interrogate why marketing is failing to address the challenge of sustainability and identify alternative approaches. Design/methodology/approach The constraint in theoretical development contextualises the problem, followed by a focus on four key themes to promote theory development: developing sustainable people; models of alternative consumption; building towards sustainable marketplaces; and theoretical domains for the future. These themes were developed and refined during the 2018 Academy of Marketing workshop on seeking sustainable futures. MacInnis’s (2011) framework for conceptual contributions in marketing provides the narrative thread and structure. Findings The current state of play is explicated, combining the four themes and MacInnis’s framework to identify the failures and gaps in extant approaches to the field. Research limitations/implications This paper sets a new research agenda for the marketing discipline in quest for sustainable futures in marketing and consumer research. Practical implications Approaches are proposed which will allow the transformation of the dominant socio-economic systems towards a model capable of promoting a sustainable future. Originality/value The paper provides thought leadership in marketing and sustainability as befits the special issue, by moving beyond the description of the problem to making a conceptual contribution and setting a research agenda for the future.

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Section: Conceptual Constraintsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Building Towards Institutionalised Sustainable Marketplacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Building Towards Institutionalised Sustainable Marketplacesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Seeking sustainable futures in marketing and consumer research

Davies

Oates

Tynan

et al. 2020

EJM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…The meaning and characteristics of the last 3Ps of the 7Ps (Providing information, Processes, and Policies) are neither well developed, nor is there academic agreement on them (Dangelico and Vocalelli 2017). Thomas (2018) highlights that sustainable marketing should consider not only a product's internal relations such as price, consumer messages, and quality, but also its external relations with consumers such as brand loyalty.…”

Section: Ecologically Embedded Productsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Transformational Change Framework for Developing Ecologically Embedded Manufacturing

Trollman

Colwill

2020

Glob J Flex Syst Manag

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Unless strategies are adopted to ensure materials remain in circulation within the economy, the manufacturing sector may be unable to support increasing demand from a growing global population. The purpose of this research is to present a framework for manufacturers to aid in the formulation of ecologically embedded strategy. The framework proposes five steps which integrate corporate, business, operations and sustainability strategy in a holistic manner with operations strategy informing business strategy. Qualitative comparative analysis is implemented to identify the causal characteristics of ecologically embedded products which are then used to select two cases for the application of process tracing (PT). Product case studies indicate a failure to communicate provenance, quality and lifecycle information to consumers, and hence, the slowing or closing of loops as part of a circular economy is not being effectively realised. PT confirms the feasibility of the framework for ecocentric strategy formulation in manufacturing. Manufacturers, policymakers and investors may use this framework to leverage the benefits of ecological embeddedness to enable continued growth and future-proofing.

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“…Although it has been the research topic for last two decades, there is still need for research to be conducted on sustainability marketing to unveil its all aspects. In addressing sustainability issue, past scholars have attempted to conceptualize and suggested the framework for sustainability marketing (Kemper and Ballantine 2019;Rakic and Rakic 2015;Thomas 2018). However, little has been discussed about sustainability marketing to its depth and breath.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%