Eco-design packaging: An epistemological analysis and transformative research agenda

Eco-design packaging is viewed as a packaging innovation strategy for greater eco-efficiency through incorporating environmental and/or social concerns into its life cycle. However, the societal impact of eco-design packaging remains limited due to a lack of summary work focusing on knowledge creation, evaluation, and application. This knowledge construction issue calls for systematic review through an epistemological perspective. Drawing on the systematic reviews of 261 articles, this research aims to assess the literature that focuses on eco-design, packaging, and eco-design packaging through three perspectives (i.e., positivism, interpretivism, and transformative consumer research (TCR)) to delineate the state of the art of previous research, and then, to propose a transformative research agenda for greater social awareness, research use, and social benefit. This research provides an in-depth understanding of the role of eco-design packaging for social wellbeing through the lens of positivism, interpretivism, and TCR. The findings reveal that TCR is deemed as a more suitable way to conduct research in terms of improving the societal impact of eco-design packaging. The authors highlight three avenues for maximizing the social benefits of eco-design packaging by investigating its role in three social challenges: (1) The relationship between new technology and consumers' vulnerability; (2) sustainability; and (3) public health. This research offers several actionable insights for key stakeholders (i.e., consumers, marketing managers, packaging producers, and policymakers). (C) 2020 Published by Elsevier Ltd.