Consumer Communities Research Articles

Role of social media influencers on marketing of sustainable hotels: gratification and the parasocial interaction perspective

ABSTRACT Based on the concepts of gratification and parasocial interaction (PSI), we explore the effect of social media influencers on consumer behaviors in the marketing of sustainable hotels on Instagram (IG). We derive insights from 792 valid responses of consumers residing in the U.S. and analyze their behaviors and perceptions as related to both sustainable hotels and the leveraging of Instagram as a marketing tool. Through structural equation modeling, the findings of this study show that gratification increases consumer community commitment to IG through PSI. Moreover, PSIs positively influence consumer behaviors, such as booking intention, word of mouth (WOM) and electronic word of mouth (eWOM), through IG community commitment. Finally, the expertise of social media influencers strengthens consumer commitment to the IG community. The trustworthiness of social media influencers also strengthens consumer booking intentions.

The positive plant diversity/consumer relationship is independent of grassland age

Plant diversity is an important driver of many ecosystem processes within and among trophic levels. There is growing evidence that the strength of plant diversity effects depends on the biotic and abiotic environmental conditions. Plant and soil history may be underlying mechanisms of an observed strengthening of biodiversity effects in aging biodiversity experiments. Temporal changes in biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) relationships have been observed primarily for plants, while dynamics of higher trophic levels are little studied. However, similar patterns can be expected for higher trophic levels because of the close links between producers and consumers. Here, we compare the effects of plant diversity on consumer communities (richness, abundance, diversity, and community composition) and consumer-mediated functions (herbivory and predation) in plant communities with different plant and soil histories. Across six study years, plant diversity had a positive effect on consumer richness, abundance, diversity, and herbivory, whereas the level of predation was not significantly affected by plant diversity. Furthermore, consumer community composition shifted significantly with increasing diversity of plant communities. In addition, consumer abundance, composition, and consumer functions (herbivory and predation) differed between plant communities of different histories. However, contrary to our expectations, plant and soil history caused no significant change in the effects of plant diversity on consumer communities and functions, indicating that these history effects do not provide a mechanistic explanation for plant diversity effects on aboveground invertebrate communities. Thus, our results suggest that plant diversity is a major driver of aboveground invertebrate communities and functions across grassland ages and should be maximized to protect and restore multitrophic biodiversity.

Add a seat for another actor in the business network! Consumer communities’ roles for fashion sustainable new ventures

PurposeThis paper aims to integrate the consumption perspective within the Industrial Marketing and Purchasing (IMP) debate. The study delves into how consumer communities can be conceived like other network business actors. The perspective of sustainable new ventures (SNVs) in the fashion industry is adopted, considering their specific connection with consumer communities.Design/methodology/approachAdopting a multiple case study methodology, this paper uses a qualitative approach. Data collection mainly relies on interviews conducted with 10 SNVs in the fashion industry; this sector is a fertile ground for studying sustainability and consumer communities. For data analysis, the abductive approach of systematic combining is applied.FindingsThe paper identifies four distinct types of consumer communities and four roles that they can assume as business actors in the business network. Owing to their engagement in these specific roles, consumer communities become part of the SNVs’ network, akin to other business-to-business players.Originality/valueThis study represents one of the initial endeavors to introduce consumption into the IMP theoretical framework. In this paper’s conceptualization, consumer communities are groups of consumers and collective actors in the business network. Additionally, this study advances the research on sustainability as a network concept by including consumer communities’ roles in business networks.

Home-Garden Production and Women Dietary Diversity: An Experience from Success of Micro-Intervention in Boru Meda Kebele, Ethiopia

Background: In order to combat malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies, Nutrition Sensitive Agriculture (NSA) gives nutrient-dense foods, dietary diversity, and food fortification the highest priority. This micro-intervention project's goal is to increase home-gardening system's contribution to raising women's dietary diversity score (WDDS) by diversifying family farming practices. Methods: In Ethiopia's Boru-Meda Kebele, The authors applied the intervention to 40 specifically chosen female beneficiaries between the ages of 15 and 49. FAO's standardized questionnaire was used as a tool to conduct an initial and end-line dietary diversity survey by giving careful consideration to cultural and religious elements. The qualitative information was also gathered using case studies, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions. Results: The local population's diet was dominated by staple cereal crops, and women were less knowledgeable about home gardening and diverse diets. Before intervention, the average number of food groups produced and consumed was 2.63±1.00 and 3.68±1.16 respectively. The intervention enhanced the WDDS to 6.13±0.76, and the production diversity to 5.63±0.90. The intervention changed the community's consumption and production patterns, especially among women. Conclusion: Home-garden agriculture helps to increase WDDS. As a result, development partners must concentrate on farming system diversification by increasing the accessibility of vegetable seeds and educating local farmers about the contribution of diversified vegetable production and consumption. Strengthening the cooperation among stakeholders and maintaining monitoring of activities should also be given due emphasis.

Predator mass mortality events restructure food webs through trophic decoupling.

Predators have a key role in structuring ecosystems1-4. However, predator loss is accelerating globally4-6, and predator mass-mortality events7 (MMEs)-rapid large-scale die-offs-are now emblematic of the Anthropocene epoch6. Owing to their rare and unpredictable nature7, we lack an understanding of how MMEs immediately impact ecosystems. Past predator-removal studies2,3 may be insufficient to understand the ecological consequences of MMEs because, in nature, dead predators decompose in situ and generate a resource pulse8, which could alter ensuing ecosystem dynamics by temporarily enhancing productivity. Here we experimentally induce MMEs in tritrophic, freshwater lake food webs and report ecological dynamics that are distinct from predator losses2,3 or resource pulses9 alone, but that can be predicted from theory8. MMEs led to the proliferation of diverse consumer and producer communities resulting from weakened top-down predator control1-3 and stronger bottom-up effects through predator decomposition8. In contrast to predator removals alone, enhanced primary production after MMEs dampened the consumer community response. As a consequence, MMEs generated biomass dynamics that were most similar tothose of undisturbed systems, indicating that they may be cryptic disturbances in nature. These biomass dynamics led to trophic decoupling, whereby the indirect beneficial effects of predators on primary producers are lost and later materialize as direct bottom-up effects that stimulate primary production amid intensified herbivory. These results reveal ecological signatures of MMEs and demonstrate the feasibility of forecasting novel ecological dynamics arising with intensifying global change.

Vegan grade medium component screening and concentration optimization for the fermentation of the probiotic strain Lactobacillus paracasei IMC 502® using Design of Experiments.

Lactobacillus paracasei IMC502® is a commercially successful probiotic strain. However, there are no reports that investigate growth medium composition in relation to improved biomass production for this strain. The major outcome of the present study is the design and optimization of a growth medium based on vegan components to be used in the cultivation of Lactobacillus paracasei IMC502®, by using Design of Experiments. Besides comparing different carbon sources, the use of plant-based peptones as nitrogen sources was considered. In particular, the use of guar peptone as the main nitrogen source, in the optimization of fermentation media for the production of probiotics, could replace other plant peptones (e.g. potato, rice, wheat, and soy) which are part of the human diet, thereby avoiding an increase in product and process prices. A model with R2 and adjusted R2 values higher than 95% was obtained. Model accuracy was equal to 94.11%. The vegan-optimized culture medium described in this study increased biomass production by about 65% compared to growth on De Man-Rogosa-Sharpe (MRS) medium. Moreover, this approach showed that most of the salts and trace elements generally present in MRS are not affecting biomass production, thus a simplified medium preparation can be proposed with higher probiotic biomass yield and titer. The possibility to obtain viable lactic acid bacteria at high density from vegetable derived nutrients will be of great interest to specific consumer communities, opening the way to follow this approach with other probiotics of impact for human health.

Impacts of climate warming and atmospheric deposition on recent shifts in chironomid communities in two alpine lakes, eastern China

Climate warming and atmospheric deposition are altering alpine lake ecosystems at unprecedented rates, whereas their direct and indirect effects on primary consumer communities are unclear. This study presents sedimentary multi-proxy records including chironomids, diatoms, elements and stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen in 210Pb-dated cores from two alpine lakes located above the timberline in the Taibai Mountain, eastern China. Before ∼2000 CE, chironomid communities were co-dominated by Heterotrissocladius marcidus-type and Micropsectra atrofasciata-type in the two lakes. Thereafter, Tanytarsus glabrescens-type increased rapidly to be a dominant species. Redundancy analyses (RDAs) revealed that chironomid fauna shifts were significantly correlated with rising diatom concentrations in both lakes, declining Ti content in the upstream lake and δ13C depletion in the downstream lake. Although temperature, precipitation and δ15N were not significant explanatory variables in RDAs, climate warming and atmospheric deposition likely promoted terrestrial and aquatic primary production, indicated by synchronous increases in organic matter contents and diatom concentrations in the two sediment cores. Since diatoms contain essential polyunsaturated fatty acids that are essential for chironomids, rising diatom concentrations can promote food quantity and quality. In addition, increased primary production would create organic substrates for chironomid larvae. Recent shifts in chironomid fauna driven by indirect effects of global warming and atmospheric deposition might be a widespread phenomenon in alpine lakes, probably triggering regime shifts in headwater lake ecosystems.

Effect of Retinoic Acid on HaCaT and NIH-3T3 cells in an in vitro 3D Collagen Cell Culture Skin Model

Human skin aging is characterized by epidermal and dermal thinning, loss of elasticity, and wrinkles. Keratinocytes, the most common type of skin cell and fibroblasts, present in the cellular stroma beneath the skin’s surface, each play a role in aging. Using these cell types in in vitro research can reveal a deeper understanding of the dermatological function and cellular changes in aged skin. 3D cell culture techniques provide an opportunity to use these cell types in a model that can more accurately mimic human skin. Treatment of aging skin is of interest to both medical and consumer communities. Retinoic acid (RA) is a metabolite of vitamin A and retinol that assists in cell proliferation, differentiation, and immune functions. Over the counter (OTC) and prescription retinoids are common topical products used for anti-aging and acne treatments. This study seeks to determine the impact of topical retinoid creams on keratinocyte proliferation and morphology in 3D cell culture models of aged and unaged human skin. NIH-3T3 fibroblasts were embedded in a 3D collagen matrix of varying thickness, and HaCaT keratinocytes were seeded on top of the matrix at varying seeding densities to mimic aging and youthful skin. 0.1 µM 0.025% tretinoin and 0.1 µM 0.1% adapalene topical creams were prepared in culture medium and used to treat cells daily, on alternate days, or just once during a week-long period. Alamar Blue assays and microscopy showed that tretinoin treatment was cytotoxic at this concentration, with a single treatment reducing cell viability by ~43% compared to the untreated control. Adapalene treatment, while showing significantly greater cell proliferation than tretinoin, did not exceed the proliferation of the untreated control. It is understood that retinol increases cell turnover by killing cells rapidly, so it is proposed that in our model, the rate of proliferation does not overcome the rate of cell death. Cell viability trends remain similar between young and old skin model treatments. Future studies should focus on creating a 3D model more accurately representing the aging in vivo skin environment where keratinocytes can be readily differentiated from epidermal stem cells. KEYWORDS: HaCaTs; NIH-3T3; Retinoids; Retinoic Acid; Tretinoin; Adapalene; 3D Collagen Gel; Proliferation

LEGAL PROTECTION FOR CONSUMERS DUE TO EXPIRED FOOD PRODUCTS BASED ON LAW NO. 8 OF 1999 CONCERNING CONSUMER PROTECTION

This research is aimed at answering questions about the government's role in protecting consumers. to food products, and the responsibility of producers to consumers in handling consumer complaints related to food products that are not suitable. This is a qualitative research with a normative legal research approach, namely library law research. The procedure in this study was carried out by selecting themes, exploring information, determining research directions, collecting data sources, presenting data, and compiling research reports. Meanwhile, this study used qualitative data analysis techniques based on literature data about research variables. The results of this study indicate that the government's role in protecting consumers against food and beverage products that have expired is to develop consumer protection in Indonesia and to implement law enforcement on applicable laws and regulations.A form of consumer protection provided by the government as a protector of the consumer community and also as a coach for business actors. While the handling of consumer complaints related to the circulation of expired food products is carried out by the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) by opening a service unit that accommodates all consumer complaints.

Multiple stable isotopes (C, N & S) provide evidence for fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) trophic ecology and movements in the Humboldt Current System of northern Chile

Reflecting the intense coastal upwelling and high primary productivity characteristic of the Humboldt Current System (HCS), the northern coast of Chile supports a diverse and productive community of marine consumers, including worldwide important pelagic fisheries resources. Although marine mammals are relatively understudied in the region, recent studies have demonstrated that fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) is the most frequently encountered whale species, and forages in these waters year-round. However, a current lack of information limits our understanding of whether fin whales actively feed and/or remain resident in these waters or whether whales are observed feeding as they migrate along this part of the Pacific. Here, we use stable isotope ratios of carbon, nitrogen and sulphur of fin whale skin samples collected in early summer 2020 (n = 18) and in late winter 2021 (n = 22) to examine evidence of temporal isotopic shifts that could provide information on potential migratory movements and to estimate likely consumption patterns of putative prey (i.e. zooplankton, krill, pelagic fishes and Pleuroncodes sp.). We also analysed prey items in fin whale faecal plumes (n = 8) collected during the study period. Stable isotope data showed significant differences in the isotopic values of fin whales from summer and winter. On average, summer individuals were depleted in 15N and 34S relative to those sampled during winter. Whales sampled in summer showed greater isotopic variance than winter individuals, with several showing values that were atypical for consumers from the HCS. During winter, fin whales showed far less inter-individual variation in stable isotope values, and all individuals had values indicative of prey consumption in the region. Analysis of both stable isotopes and faeces indicated that fin whales sighted off the Mejillones Peninsula fed primarily on krill (SIA median contribution = 32%; IRI = 65%) and, to a lesser extent, zooplankton (SIA zooplankton = 29%; IRI copepod = 33%). These are the first isotopic-based data regarding the trophic ecology of fin whales in the north of Chile. They provide evidence that fin whales are seasonally resident in the area, including individuals with values that likely originated outside the study area. The information presented here serves as a baseline for future work. It highlights that many aspects of the ecology of fin whales in the Humboldt Current and wider SE Pacific still need to be clarified.

Banal gastronationalism and anti‐EU populism

AbstractThe common market of the EU imposes standards on food products and minimum requirements for their quality. Products that do not meet these requirements have to be renamed. This article analyses the media coverage of a prominent political controversy surrounding four food products, produced in the Czech Republic: Inland Rum, Fruit Marmalade, Spread Butter and Almond Brandy. The renaming of these products has triggered a wave of nationalist sentiments and anti‐EU backlash. To explain these developments, the article follows the strong programme in cultural sociology, and it introduces the concept ‘banal gastronationalism’. It argues that the anti‐EU backlash is culturally rooted in two deeply rooted binary distinctions: the split between the centre (of the EU) and the periphery and the tension between the inner and the external. Together, these distinctions co‐create an imagined community of consumers and readers, which gets mobilised through a perceived threat to its food products.

Organizational Models of Alternative Food Networks within the Rural–Urban Interface

Alternative food networks (AFNs) represent local food systems and short supply chain networks alternative to global food systems. These networks are often developed within rural–urban interfaces and take various forms, due to the high propensity towards the innovative organization of the network. The aim of our study is to map the currently applied, distinctive innovative organizational models of alternative food networks by identifying the organizational innovations of these networks in available case studies. Adopting the lens of organizational sociology and using space-filling visualization, the study compares various forms of localized and spatially extended AFNs. The results of our comparative analysis suggest that main aspects of AFNs’ differentiation are the models of network organization, applied coordination models, competences structures of the involved actors, nature of the intermediaries and their roles within the AFNs, and the level of customer engagement. Innovation processes within short food networks can be driven by the producer, intermediaries, and communities of consumers. We identified three types of AFNs defined with regard to the predominant direction of flows in the urban–rural interface: (1) AFNs localized within the borders of the city, (2) AFNs based on interconnecting the rural farmers located within rural settlements adjacent to the city and to the consumers in cities, and also (3) AFNs localized in peri-urban interfaces with distant customers.

Disturbance alters phytoplankton functional traits and consequently drives changes in zooplankton life-history traits and lipid composition

In the light of the current biodiversity crisis that affects in particular freshwater ecosystems, it is crucial to understand the effects of functional diversity loss on phytoplankton-zooplankton interactions in freshwater food webs. Here, we simulated the loss of phytoplankton trait diversity by applying different intensities of mechanical disturbance to a natural phytoplankton community in a laboratory experiment. Different disturbance regimes clearly affected the trait distribution and functional diversity of these phytoplankton communities. In the experiment’s second phase, these altered communities were provided as a food source to the zooplankton grazers Daphnia longispina and Eudiaptomus graciloides and their life-history traits and lipid compositions were investigated. Both zooplankton fitness and reproductive success were affected differently, depending on the grazers’ feeding modes. Phytoplankton fatty acid composition was generally reflected in the consumers’ tissue. Nevertheless, some selective PUFAs accumulation occurred and mismatches in some fatty acids suggested a possible enzymatic modification of dietary fatty acids adopted to face biochemical deficiencies of the diets. Overall, this study highlights how a loss of specific traits in resource communities could impact consumer communities, and shows how these altered community traits may affect food web dynamics.

Simple Ceramics? Design, Decorative Materiality and Anabaptist Pottery in Early Modern Central Europe

Abstract This article traces the manufacture and consumption of faience ceramics made by Hutterite communities in central Europe from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries. The production, use and survival of Anabaptist Haban ware offers insights into the nature of Anabaptist material regimes and communities and into overlapping but distinct communities of consumption and collecting. Hutterite craftsmen were instructed to produce objects ‘in the same way as was always done’, with regulations about uncomplicated designs and colours. Yet faience Haban ware was highly sought after, and decorative items were made for powerful patrons from materials drawn from all over Europe. Such objects have now become associated with specific national ‘folk’ cultures. These distinctive remnants of Hutterite communities in Germany and central Europe problematize the material dimensions of survival, conformity and separatism in Anabaptist communities and give access to the complicated affective properties of the white faience ware that Hutterites produced.

Barriers with Valve Mechanisms Are Predicted to Protect Crops from Slug Carriers of Rat Lungworm Disease.

Angiostrongyliasis (Rat Lungworm disease) is an emerging parasitic disease caused by the ingestion of gastropods infected with the neurotropic nematode Angiostrongylus cantonensis. The reduction of crop infestation with infected slug carriers may vary widely by protection method. We explored the application of barriers with valve mechanisms, whereby selective directional forces caused a greater number of slugs to exit than enter the protected plot, leading to decreased slug population densities at a steady state. Using field data, we constructed predictive models to estimate slug population densities at a steady state in protected plots with (1) no valve effect, (2) a valve effect, (3) no valve effect with a single breach of the barrier, (4) a valve effect with a single breach of the barrier, (5) a valve effect with a constant breach of the barrier, and (6) a repelling effect. For all scenarios, plots protected using a barrier with a valve effect had consistently lower slug densities at a steady state. Our findings support the use of barriers with valve mechanisms under different conditions, and potentially in combination with other interventions to reduce the contamination of crops by slug carriers of A. cantonensis. Improving barriers extends beyond disease mitigation to economic and cultural impacts on the local farmer and consumer communities.

Peraturan Daerah Tentang Penataan Pasar di Kabupaten Enrekang

Market dynamics, both traditional markets and modern markets, are essentially a link in the chain that connects producers and consumers, sellers and buyers, and between business actors and the consumer community. The market plays an important role in the economy, because prices are formed in the market. The traditional market segment has a threat when the modern market dominates and the traditional market cannot compete, namely turning off traditional stalls because it changes consumer habits. Adjacent position between supermarkets, hypermarkets or minimarkets through the advantages they have compared to traditional markets. Along with this, it is necessary to issue a regional regulation for market management. The team from Muhammadiyah Enrekang University then followed up on this in community service activities. This community service activity was carried out as an effort to support the Regional Government of Enrekang Regency in producing Regional Regulations. The activity was carried out offline for seven (7) months, from March to October 2022. The result of this activity was the birth of the Enrekang Regency Regional Regulation Concerning Market Management.

Water level fluctuations associated with hydrological connectivity consolidate the food web stability of the largest Chinese freshwater lake via mediating trophodynamics and trophic structure

Variation in hydrological connectivity (HC) between rivers and lakes gives rise to periodic large water level fluctuation (WLF) in river-connected lakes (RCL). However, how WLF shapes the material cycling and concomitant trophodynamics of RCL remain unclear. Here we evaluated the resource availability, relative contributions of autochthonous and allochthonous carbon sources (by Bayesian mixing models) and trophic structure (using δ13C and δ15N) of Lake Poyang, the largest freshwater lake in China, during different hydrological periods. Terrestrial C3 plants in the aquatic/terrestrial transition zones (ATTZ) were the main supporter of aquatic consumers all year round. Compared with historical data, the contributions of autochthonous production to aquatic food webs were low. This is primarily ascribed to the influences of hydrological regimes in that the operation of Three Gorges Dam and HC changed the rhythm of WLF in Lake Poyang, restricting the production of aquatic vegetation and epiphytic algae. Most common fish species indicated higher trophic positions (TPs) during the dry than wet season, but only eleven of thirty-six common species showed a statistically significant increase (p < 0.05). Our study reveals a relatively consistent trophic diversity of consumer communities (fish and aquatic invertebrates) during dry and wet seasons, but each trophic guild showed specific trophic response to WLF, as they flexibly adjusted feeding strategies and the degree of trophic niche differentiation. Although WLF triggered fluctuations in the resource availability and species composition of lake food webs, and the TPs and trophic niches of aquatic consumers during different hydrological periods, the resource diversity and habitat complexity driven by HC and WLF reduced the strength of trophic interactions, and thus resulted in overall stability of food web trophodynamics and trophic structure of Lake Poyang. Our findings highlighted the importance of HC and natural WLFs in maintaining the ecosystem stability of large floodplain lakes, and that seasonal WLF patterns should be maintained in future floodplain lake management to conserve biodiversity and the resilience of ecological functions.

Reasons influencing consumers’ choice of baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) products: Evidence from four countries in sub-Saharan Africa

This study considers the views of consumers on household and commercial uses of baobab products. The study examines demographic factors that could influence consumers to buy different baobab products using cross-sectional data from four African countries. The study found that leaves, fruits powder, seeds and flowers of baobab were used by the households and were also commercialised in the communities of consumers. We also found that consumers often buy leaves, fruit powder and seed products of the tree for some reasons. These reasons included medicinal, good taste, food and nutritional values of the products. Furthermore, the proportions of consumers who have reasons for buying the baobab products varied by sex, rural-urban divide, age and income categories within and between the target countries. These findings suggest that the medicinal values, good taste, food and nutritional properties of the products are good reasons for policy formulation and direction that promote propagation of baobab tree and consumption of its products. The baobab tree and its products could be used for food and nutritional security as well as for enhancing livelihoods and rural income generation in Africa. Policy makers and other stakeholders should therefore include baobab products in food and nutrition support strategies in Africa.

The impact of social media adoption on innovative SMEs’ performance

ABSTRACT This paper empirically investigates Social Media adoption as a driver of firms’ performance. Specifically, we focus on the relationship between the embracing of Twitter and Italian Innovative Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) profitability over 2011–19. Although Twitter is perceived as a low-cost and effective communication channel, the main results show that Innovative SMEs adopting Social Media appear to have lower profitability than those without social network implementation. An interpretation of this evidence can rely on the difficulty of innovative SMEs in overcoming barriers to Twitter adoption related to the human capital required to maintain relationships with the online community of consumers in the Italian context.

Social-relational capabilities: strategic transformation of brand resources to increase brand equity

ABSTRACT As consumers are increasingly online and social, they also increasingly value brands that interact with them and create personalized relationships with them. We propose social-relational capability in marketing as an ability to build and maintain relationships, which generate value for consumer communities on social media and enhance the customer-based brand equity. Prior research has been fragmented and more research focusing on the development of social-relational capability is needed to develop a better understanding of the social networks of brands and consumers. By examining the effects of consumer-level, brand-level, and consumer-brand dyadic level antecedents on the development of the social-relational capability of a brand we advance existing literature on marketing using perspectives from social network theory, resource-based view, and dynamic capabilities theory. The findings have implications for both consumers and managers in maintaining long-lasting beneficial relationships. The results revealed that social-relational capability enables a brand to strengthen brand equity. The integration of different social media and relational resources allows brands to develop three distinct dimensions of social-relational capability, which enhance brand equity.