Revealing performance factors for supply chain sustainability: A systematic literature review from a social capital perspective

Abstract

Goal:The supply chain sustainability (SCS) literature is missing studies that specifically analyse factors that impact sustainability performance in supply chains, according to specific theoretical backgrounds. Within this context, this paper aims to understand how and why social capital theory (SCT) can inspire SCS studies and practice. In doing so, two research questions are addressed: (1) How has the SCS literature evolved in its application of the social capital theory?, and (2) What are the main sustainability performance factors studied in SCS?.Design / Methodology / Approach: A systematic literature review was developed. Data were collected from 12 years (2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015)(2016)(2017)(2018)(2019) in two databases (i.e. EBSCO and Web of Science) and a total of 56 articles were selected and analysed through deductive and inductive content analysis. Results:The analysis revealed 24 performance factors that influence SCS research throughout the three sustainability dimensions (i.e. economic, environmental and social). We found that social capital makes a significant conceptual contribution to understanding how the supply chain practices (i.e. cooperation, coordination, collaboration, resource exchanges and information sharing) explain how relationships are formed and interrelated to improve SCS performance. Limitations of the investigation:The use of two databases may present limited results, which may have resulted in missing publications.Practical implications: By recognising the performance factor for SCS, managers can identify their supply chain practices and increase their strategies within the relationship.

The role of social capital, resilience, and network complexity in attaining supply chain sustainability

“…Similarly, extant literature suggests that socially embedded relationship among SC partners is essential for SCS (e.g., Alghababsheh & Gallear, 2021; Chowdhury et al, 2023; Lee, 2015; Talay et al, 2020; Touboulic et al, 2014) in the long run. However, existing research in examining the relationships between SCSC and its outcome—specifically SCS—remains deficient in using all three dimensions of social capital in a single model (see Daghar et al, 2021; Dias & Silva, 2022). According to Hughes and Perrons (2011, p. 170), “social capital does not develop linearly as portrayed in prior investigations in this area, but is instead formed through a series of complex interactions among the three dimensions of social capital.” Therefore, examination of individual instead of combined impact of all dimensions of SCSC affects the understanding of the outcome of SCSC and needs further research focusing on the combined effect of all dimensions of SCSC (Dias & Silva, 2022).…”

“…However, existing research in examining the relationships between SCSC and its outcome—specifically SCS—remains deficient in using all three dimensions of social capital in a single model (see Daghar et al, 2021; Dias & Silva, 2022). According to Hughes and Perrons (2011, p. 170), “social capital does not develop linearly as portrayed in prior investigations in this area, but is instead formed through a series of complex interactions among the three dimensions of social capital.” Therefore, examination of individual instead of combined impact of all dimensions of SCSC affects the understanding of the outcome of SCSC and needs further research focusing on the combined effect of all dimensions of SCSC (Dias & Silva, 2022). The review of the existing literature also reveals that in analyzing the impact of SCSC on SCS, using all the dimensions of SCSC has rarely been integrated in a single model (Dias & Silva, 2022), and therefore, needs further research integrating all three dimensions in a single study.…”

Driving sustainability in supply chain management for a more inclusive and responsible future

“…Industrial performance measurements today are evolving from economic-centric indicators toward comprehensive sustainability criteria (El-Garaihy, 2021; Novitasari and Agustia, 2021; Dias and Silva, 2022). However, there is still a paucity of studies analysing the impact of industry-wide sustainable practices on three sustainability performance dimensions: environmental (EVP), economic (ECP) and social (SCP).…”

Evaluation of IoT-Enabled Interactive UI Design Effect Based on the Discrete Mathematical Model

“…Based on Discrete Hopfield Neural Network. A Hopfield network is a sort of spin glass network popularised by John [13]. e input of the network is represented by I 1 , I 2 , ..., I n and can be used as a threshold; on the contrary, the output is represented by V 1 , V 2 , ..., V n , and the relationship between input and output can be obtained as per equations ( 4) and ( 5):…”