Service Economy Research Articles

Interdependency classification: A framework for infrastructure resilience

Abstract Critical Infrastructure Systems (CISs) provide essential services for nation-wide security, economy, and social well-being, and these systems are becoming increasingly interdependent to maintain those services. Recent and diverse disturbances worldwide have highlighted that interdependencies within CISs may increase the potential for cascading failures, amplifying the impacts of both large and small-scale disturbances into events of catastrophic proportions. The methodology involved conducting a literature search through scholarly databases and using a snowball approach to identify 12 relevant papers on infrastructure interdependencies. Thematic analysis was then applied to classify 50 interdependencies, which were synthesized into a unified classification system mapped to a foundational framework. The direct citation network visualization tool, Kumu, illustrated citation patterns and guided the analysis. Identifying and classifying various interdependencies, understanding their relationships, and assessing their role in CISs are crucial steps to prevent, mitigate, or manage unfavorable consequences and enhance system resilience. In this article, we compiled and identified classifications of infrastructure interdependencies and described a unified classification. To support the resilience of CISs in periods of stability and instability, infrastructure managers not only need consistent terminology but a shared understanding of interdependencies to ensure said interdependencies within and across CISs are appropriately accounted for throughout the life cycle of infrastructure, from early planning stages to management – reactive or proactive – for disturbances. These are critical steps toward understanding how CISs operate in concert so infrastructure managers may sense and anticipate potential disruptions, manage the impacts and consequences, and adapt to changing future conditions.

The Political Economy of Environmental Goods and Services: An Economic Nationalist Perspective

Since the launch of the Doha Development Round in 2001 and its subsequent Ministerial Declaration, the call has been made to member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to develop negotiations to reduce or eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers to environmental goods and services. However, multilateral consensus between countries has been very complex to achieve. Developing countries have interests that are cornerstones of their representations’ participation in the multilateral and plurilateral negotiations before the WTO. These countries justify their interests with arguments based on economic nationalism. Therefore, this research aims to answer the following research questions: Although countries are aware of the importance of liberalizing BSA trade in multi-level trade negotiations, states have been tempted to influence and intervene in their domestic economies and other nations’ economies on behalf of their interests. As a method, a comparative analysis will be conducted between developing countries’ commercial positions/interests vis-à-vis developed countries, supported by an exhaustive literary review of the various protectionist arguments used to justify their position of economic nationalism. The a priori expectation of the results developed in this research is that the various multilateral negotiations on trade in environmental goods and services have not considered the developing countries’ positions/interests. Therefore, proposals at the multilateral and plurilateral levels do not represent these countries’ interests to meet their Sustainable Development Goals, as well as their commitments to the Paris Agreement or other Multilateral Environmental Agreements.

Building a digital consulting architecture for small and medium-sized businesses in Russia

The paper deals with the integration of marketing consulting services in small and medium-sized businesses based on the resources of digital economy and digital products. The methodological apparatus of the research includes methods of analysis, classification, analogy and induction. The role and necessity of consulting services in the conditions of digitalization of economic processes are analyzed. The consulting market is analyzed and the importance of marketing consulting services for the modern digital economy is consid ered. The study described peculiarities of small and medium-sized business organizations’ management in the context of integration of digital technologies for the implementation of marketing consulting services. The key factors influencing the role of marketing consult ing services in the digital economy are identified. Popular digital products that consulting companies can use in their work are examined. As part of the research for the effective im plementation of digital consulting architecture as a basis for the development of marketing consulting services aimed at supporting small and medium-sized businesses, analyzed the market of digital products that meet the needs of the modern market and contribute to the development of companies.

Daewoo, Thomson, and Privatization in Late-Twentieth-Century France

The region of Lorraine in France witnessed the collapse of the steel industries in the late twentieth century, causing massive job losses and social devastation. Daewoo Electronics, a division of one of the great Korean conglomerates of the 1980s and 1990s, came to Lorraine in eastern France in 1987. It was lured there by generous French government subsidies and the chance to enter the European market. It opened three factories in consumer electronics and components, and also nearly acquired Thomson Multimédia, a state-owned consumer electronics factory, from the French government “for a single symbolic franc”. The resulting uproar, from political opponents and Thomson and Daewoo employees, ended the deal and soured its relationship with France. Daewoo employed just over a thousand people before it closed in 2003, a result of the collapse of the entire Daewoo Group. This article places this sequence of events, widely covered in the media, in the context of French anxiety about globalization, the loss of industrial substance, and France’s place in a changing world. It examines the process of privatization, and the ways in which it went so badly wrong in the Thomson case. This episode occurred at a critical juncture in the transformation of industrial capitalism into a service and digital economy.

How to Keep Doing What You Like Doing: A Qualitative Study of Active Older Adults’ Insights on the Facilitators and Barriers to Maintenance of Physical Activity (From the MOVEAGE-Act Project)

While the facilitators/barriers for the initiation of physical activity (PA) are well documented, there is less known about these facilitators/barriers for maintenance of PA in the older population in general and not following an intervention. This study aimed to explore older adults’ perspectives on the facilitators/barriers to maintaining PA. The study used a descriptive qualitative design, with three focus groups, one in Ireland and two in France. Participants were community-dwelling older adults (≥60 years) 66% were female, recruited through older adult websites. Findings were analyzed thematically using a Socio-Ecological Model as a framework. Thirty-three older adults participated, and 88% met the international physical activity guidelines of 150 minutes of moderate activity per week. From intrapersonal and interpersonal perspectives, enjoyment, social engagement, adapting physical activity for their age, establishing routines/habits, and combining PA with other activities and interests were all key facilitators in PA maintenance. From the policy, environmental and organizational perspectives, limited policies or their implementation, activity-related factors (insufficient information on activities, age appropriateness and availability of suitable activities, accessibility, inadequate support), and social connectedness were identified. Multiple interrelationships across the different social-ecological perspectives emerged. It was evident for PA maintenance that a balance is needed between having activities that are enjoyable and yet challenging and being able to adapt them to age-related changes such as loss of function and confidence. In addition, it was apparent that older adults were more likely to engage in PA if it had a social element and if they had access to relevant information and safe, age-appropriate activities and support. These factors should be further incorporated into PA promotion, activities, and policies to maximize PA maintenance. Barriers may lead to non-maintenance of healthy aging targets, with implications for health service economies and older adults’ health.

Structural Transformation and Inequality in India: A Decomposition Analysis of Trends in Regional Inequality in Post-reform Period

India has undergone a rapid sectoral shift from an agrarian to a predominantly service economy in the post-reform period. The objective of this article is to understand and assess the impact of this shift on the inter-state income distribution during the period from 1993–94 to 2019–20. We have shown how inequality decomposition by income source can be used to disaggregate the inequality trend into its various contributory influences. Our results assist in understanding the role of sectors and sub-sectors in terms of their contribution to inter-state inequality. Our results show that the tertiary and secondary sectors are largely responsible for the growth in inequality, which was partially offset by the primary sector. The evidence at the sub-sectoral level is along the same lines, with manufacturing and an overwhelming number of tertiary sub-sectors contributing to the growth in inequality, while agriculture and allied activities playing a role in keeping a check on it.

By-Products of Wine Production in the Service of the Circular Economy

By-Products of Wine Production in the Service of the Circular Economy

Digitalization of the information society economy and cybersecurity of social services

In the work, taking into account previous studies of the stages and tasks of the development of the global information and digital economy of the information society, strategic and program documents for the development of the digital economy of the information society, the systematization of tasks and consistent disclosure of the content of the tasks of digital transformation of public and municipal administration, economics and the social sphere as one of the target areas for the development of the digital economy in the Russian Federation is carried out. Based on the study of statistical data on security incidents when citizens use the financial services of the Bank of Russia, data on the types of attacks on the Portal of public services and statistical data of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia on the growth of cybercrime, a conclusion is drawn about the relationship and mutual influence of the processes of digitalization of public administration in the social sphere and information security of the exploited digitized processes of interaction of citizens with public services and financial services. This fact allows us to conclude that the processes of providing public and financial services are not sufficiently mature in terms of their cybersecurity level. To increase the level of cybersecurity of digital solutions, the author proposes to introduce in Russia the National Cybersecurity Index as a state mechanism for evaluating and controlling the necessary level of security of digital solutions accepted for operation and implemented within the framework of the national goal “Digital transformation of public and municipal administration, economy and social sphere”. The conducted research contributes to understanding the place and role of the information security system in digital public administration and digitalization of the social services sector.

The Effect of the Perception of Rental Service for Fashion Products on Consumers’ Intention to Use the Rental Service Platform: Focuse on the Customers Who Have Used Sharing Economy Platforms

This study attempted to determine the service perception and intention to use the fashion rental platform. An online survey was conducted on 300 female consumers who had experience using the sharing economy service platform, The survey period was from January 20 to January 31, 2024. For the valid response data provided by all 300 participants, factor analysis, reliability analysis, and regression analysis were performed using SPSS 28.0. The were four service perception factors for the fashion rental service platform: expressiveness, sustainability, economy, and sociability. For casual wear, expressiveness, economy, and social factors had a significant positive effect on the intention to use the fashion rental service platform, but for work clothes, expressiveness, sustainability, and economic factors were found to have the largest effect. Depending on the product group, expressiveness and sociality had a significant positive effect on the intention to use the fashion rental service platform for sports and leisure products, While there was a significant negative effect on sustainability. Expression, economy, and sociality were found to have a significant positive effect on the intention to use the fashion rental service platform for accessories and miscellaneous goods such as jewelry and bags.

Digital economy and its effect on total factor productivity in services: evidence from China

ABSTRACT The emergence of the digital economy has provided a new development model and driving force for social and productive activities. The quest to accelerate the transformation and upgrading of the service economy through the digital economy has garnered significant attention in society and academia. In light of this context, this study employs data envelopment analysis (DEA) to measure total factor productivity (TFP) in the service sector, utilizing provincial panel data from China for the period 2007–2019. The empirical results indicate that the digital economy significantly contributes to the growth of TFP in the service sector, and specifically, the channels of its impact include alleviating resource mismatch and promoting industrial structure upgrading. Furthermore, the impact of the digital economy on services TFP varies by region and stage of development of the digital economy. Moreover, based on the informational characteristics of the digital economy, the digital economy not only affects the local service TFP, but also generates a spatial spillover effect on the service TFP of neighbouring regions. This study provides a new empirical evidence to examine the productivity improvement of the digital economy in the service sector and provides important policy implications for achieving high-quality development of the service sector.

The Motivation Factors for Chinese Female Tourists to Participate in ‘Pin’ Themed Afternoon Tea at Luxury Hotels in Macau from the Sharing Economy Perspective and Self-Determination Theory

ABSTRACT The sharing economy has changed the consumption pattern of hospitality services. This study explored a new situation under the sharing economy service – the “Pin” afternoon tea (a form of group purchases) – and determined consumers’ motivations for participation. Qualitative research was conducted in the context of the sharing economy theory and self-determination theory. The results of interviews with 11 Chinese female tourists revealed nine motivation factors in five main dimensions (financial benefits, social benefits, sustainability, enjoyment, and novelty) of “Pin” afternoon teas: cost saving, product scarcity, expanding the circle of friends, social status, environmental consciousness, enjoying the processes, enjoying the foods, enjoying the environment, and experiencing new things. This study contributes to hospitality research by indicating how a niche market (Chinese female tourists) is motivated by a new sharing economy model (the “Pin” afternoon tea). Knowing these motivations may help the hospitality industry formulate appropriate strategies to speed tourism recovery.

Research on Customer Sharing Economy Service Development Pattern and Countermeasures

Research on Customer Sharing Economy Service Development Pattern and Countermeasures

ECONOMY OF THE SERVICES OF COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS

This paper surveyed ecosystem services in coastal regions, seeking to build the concept of the economy of coastal ecosystem services in Brazil, especially the contribution of the function of the sea to the regional economy. The interest in the economic dynamics of coastal regions has attracted worldwide attention. In Brazil, the coastal zone covers 8,500 km in 17 federative units, counting more than 400 municipalities distributed from the North (Oiapoque/AP) to the extreme South (Santa Vitória do Palmar/RS). Such regions have abundant natural resources and biodiversity with a great capacity to generate economic gains. In this sense, coastal services were divided into six economic dimensions: energy; ports and logistics; fisheries and aquaculture; sociocultural dimension; Sports; and tourism. Finally, it is suggested the need for studies that quantify the relationship between the economic dynamics of coastal regions and environmental sustainability.

Optimisation of retailer take-back of low and medium-value products for a circular economy

Used product take-back plays a significant role in the transition to a Circular Economy. Many businesses are introducing retailer-level take-back schemes for low and medium-value products by deploying collection bins for customers to drop off used products. However, the literature has not given much attention to these schemes compared to those with high recovery value products. The viability of such schemes depends on several factors, including the volume of returns and the contamination in the collection bins. We consider a two-echelon reverse supply chain consisting of a retailer taking back low and medium-value used products and delivering them to a recycler for value recovery. We mathematically model the optimal retailer decisions, including the return incentive paid to customers, investment in contamination reduction, the number and capacity of bins, their product assignment, and time between shipments from the retailer to the recycler, and apply the optimisation model to a case study. In addition, our numerical experiments with globally representative parameter value combinations provide generalisable insights for theory and practice. For example, recycling low-value products like plastic containers is economically infeasible for retailers under all conditions. However, including at least one medium-value product, such as apparel, in a take-back programme aids in offsetting its costs. Investing in reducing contamination for any product type is financially unwarranted unless the costs of separation and disposal exceed that of contamination reduction investment. Furthermore, combining multiple product streams into fewer bins could improve financial results, but keeping bins separate may offer psychological benefits to users.

THE FIRST CENTURY OF KIROV TRACTORS

In 2024, it will be one hundred years since the start of serial production of the Fordson-Putilovets tractor at the Krasny Putilovets plant in Leningrad. This event marks the formation of the tractor industry in the domestic engineering industry. The history of tractor production at the plant is rich in events that are significant for our country. In 1934, for the first time in the USSR, serial production of Universal row crop tractors was established here. In the late 1930s, tracked row crop tractors K-8, K-9, K-10 were created. In 1945, the Kirov Plant, located during the war in Chelyabinsk at ChTZ, created and mastered the serial production of the first industrial caterpillar tractor in our country "Stalinets-80". In 1947, the Kirov plant began to produce KT-12 skidders, which had no analogues in the world tractor industry. In 1964, the plant mastered the production of the Kirovets tractor with all drive wheels and an articulated frame with a capacity of 200 hp. Over the past sixty years (1964-2024), 52 models of Kirovets agricultural tractors have been developed and put into production. In the "Soviet" period from 1964 to 1991, 4 models of new Kirovets tractors were put into production, and in the "Russian" period from 1992 to the present - 48. The intensity of implementation has increased approximately tenfold, which indicates the increased activity of design and technological services in a market economy. Analysis of the energy saturation of tractors shows its increase by 1.5 times from 12.3 to 18.6 W/kg. Starting from 2000, Kirovets began to develop within the framework of the "traction-energy" concept, when ballast weights, double wheels, wide-profile tires, rubber-cord tracks, etc. are used to realize their potential traction capabilities. With the further growth of energy saturation, and this is an integral part of technical progress, it is necessary to search for new solutions in terms of realizing the power of the tractor in agricultural operations. From 1964 to 2024, specific fuel consumption decreased by 1.2 times (from 258 to 214 g/kWh), which indicates the improvement of diesel engines. The new Kirovets K 525T (250 hp) and K-530T (300 hp) produced in 2024 absorbed all the achievements of the domestic tractor industry. The K-525T is equipped with a new gearbox that provides speeds of up to 50 km/h. A modern tractor of the Kirovets brand manufactured by PTZ carries in its design all the achievements of scientific and technical progress, effectively performs technological operations in agricultural production and provides comfortable working conditions for the tractor driver.

A bottom-up nationwide analysis of sectoral land use reveals spatial heterogeneity across the United States

The high degree of urbanization and economic development in the United States has intensified competition for land resources, leading to land use conflicts and environmental challenges. Addressing these issues first requires an exploration of high-resolution, sector-specific land use patterns. However, existing land classification studies rarely provide spatially explicit data on urban land use across all sectors at a national level. This study aims to fill this gap by analyzing land use areas across various economic sectors in the United States, particularly focusing on urban impervious surfaces. Using a bottom-up approach, we created a full-sector land use inventory, integrating Points of Interest (POI) data, road networks, building characteristics, and geographic information processing techniques. Our primary innovation lies in the development of a spatially explicit database that details sector-specific land use areas nationwide. On this robust foundation, we further explored the heterogeneity of sectoral land use eco-efficiency (SLUEE) among different sectors and states, providing supplementary insights into spatial disparities in urban land use. Our findings reveal significant spatial heterogeneity, with service sectors dominating land use and exhibiting higher SLUEE compared to goods-producing industries. Key sectors such as Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (441064.58 ha), and Administrative and Support Services (420148.34 ha) are prominent across states according to land use area, reflecting the country's service-oriented economy. Additionally, regional disparities in SLUEE are evident, with jurisdictions like Washington D.C., New York, and California demonstrating more efficient land use. Compared with traditional land use evaluations, our model effectively offers higher spatial resolution, down to the census block level, to sectoral land use evaluation. Building on this robust database, our SLUEE analysis has uncovered notable heterogeneity between sectors and states, offering new insights into cross-sectoral and inter-state land use dynamics that can inform and promote sustainable urban planning.

Slamsex as slow edgework: Sexualized drug use and harm reduction in post-AIDS Taiwan

BackgroundSince the mid-2010s, slamsex—sexualized drug use involving intravenously injecting meth—has rapidly emerged in metropolitan gay communities as a sociosexual practice necessitating harm reduction interventions. However, its impact on gay men's sociosexual lives and HIV technologies is not well understood. This paper addresses this gap by investigating two intertwined temporal dimensions of slamsex, viewing it as a form of slow edgework in post-AIDS Taiwan. MethodsEthnographic research was conducted in Taiwan between 2022 and 2024, involving 30 interviews with gay men who practice slamsex and 7 HIV/AIDS NGO representatives. Semi-structured interviews focused on slamming events, covering their edge, transition, and healthcare network. ResultsFindings reveal paradoxes within edgework, demonstrating that slamsex can be both extreme and risky, as well as slow and mundane. Participants navigated state surveillance and the materiality of syringes through meticulous risk calculations and digital-savvy strategies for acquiring clean syringes. The practice involved risk and a networked economy of care services provided by other injectors. In response to HIV technologies (PrEP and viral load disclosure), gay men in this study normalized HIV/AIDS while developing a sense of vulnerability to their own infection. ConclusionIn the era of HIV/AIDS normalization, slamsex as slow edgework underscores the need for temporally and spatially nuanced discussions on drug policy. This study highlights the importance of culturally tailored interventions that consider slow, networked interactions to provide harm reduction for men on the chemsex scene, as well as the needs for more evidence-based, non-discriminatory research on queer sexual health and drug studies.

Business services in regional economies: exploring the co-evolution of supply, demand, and sectoral interactions

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how economic growth stimulates business-service providers to develop new service varieties, which, in turn, enhance the productivity of business-service buyers. This creates a coevolutionary process where service suppliers and customers interact, leading to an increase in the number of differentiated service offerings. We introduce a framework for local economies, wherein business-service sectors evolve in response to local demand potential, while non-business-service sectors grow based on each economy’s supply potential. Business service growth is more rapid in local economies with higher demand potential, while non-business-service sectors expand faster in areas where the business-service supply potential is greater. A key assumption is that business service firms operate in a monopolistic competition environment, where an increase in business-service capacity leads to an expansion in the variety of services offered. This, in turn, enhances the diversity of service offerings in municipalities with strong demand potential. Additionally, service providers not only deliver innovation-related information to client firms but also unintentionally disseminate knowledge within the region, fostering knowledge spillovers among firms.

Spatiotemporal Evolution and Influencing Factors of Coupling and Coordination between the Ecosystem Service Value and Economy in the Pearl River Delta Urban Agglomeration of China

In the context of pursuing high-quality development, the coupling and coordination of the ecosystem and economy has become the fundamental goal and inevitable choice for achieving the sustainable development of urban agglomerations. Based on remote sensing and statistical data for the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region from 2005 to 2020, in this paper, we construct an index system of the ecological and economic levels to assess the ecosystem service value (ESV). We use the equivalent factor method, entropy method, coupling coordination model, and relative development model to systematically grasp the spatial pattern of the levels of the two variables, analyse and evaluate their spatial and temporal coupling and coordination characteristics, and test the factors influencing their coupling and coordination using the geographical and temporal weighted regression (GTWR) model. The results show that ① the ESV in the PRD exhibited a fluctuating decreasing trend, while the level of the economy exhibited a fluctuating increasing trend; ② the coordination degree of the ESV and economy in the PRD exhibited a fluctuating increasing trend, and the region began to enter the basic coordination period in 2007; ③ in terms of the spatial distribution of the coordination degree, there was generally a circular pattern, with the Pearl River Estuary cities as the core and a decrease in the value towards the periphery; ④ the coordinated development model is divided into balanced development, economic guidance, and ESV guidance, among which balanced development is the major type; ⑤ the results of the GTWR reveal that the influencing factors exhibited significant spatial–temporal heterogeneity. Government intervention and openness were the dominant factors affecting the coordination, and the normalised difference vegetation index was the main negative influencing factor.

A Hierarchical Blockchain System for Social Economy Services

Social economy actors have assisted the recovery from crises by providing innovative solutions that are aimed at strengthening public services to complement government action. Currently, the widespread use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) by both citizens and organizations has changed society’s routine behavior, giving rise to the so-called information society. One of the major burdens of using big data for social problems is the lack of adequate data governance standards. Challenging and critical issues about big data include privacy and security for most of the social economy field of activities. Blockchain technology has attracted the attention of academic researchers and industries, which combines technologies like cryptography, end-to-end communication, and algorithms. Moreover, blockchain technology provides user anonymity to protect the privacy of users. We propose a hierarchical blockchain system for social economy services that can effectively protect the security and privacy of users and transmitted data. The proposed scheme was proven to ensure the legitimacy of all parties in the system and security of data and transactions, and blockchain technology and signcryption mechanisms were applied to achieve integrity, non-repudiation, and traceability. Security and performance analyses are also provided to prove that the proposed scheme achieved the above security concerns with efficiency.