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Publications (10 of 31) Show all publications
Saari, U. A., Ojasoo, M., Venesaar, U., Puhakka, I., Nokelainen, P. & Mäkinen, S. J. (2024). Assessing engineering students’ attitudes towards corporate social responsibility principles. European Journal of Engineering Education, 49(3), 492-513
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Assessing engineering students’ attitudes towards corporate social responsibility principles
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2024 (English)In: European Journal of Engineering Education, ISSN 0304-3797, E-ISSN 1469-5898, Vol. 49, no 3, p. 492-513Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Ethical and sustainable thinking is an important competence in the engineering education to support students’ abilities to act and perform in a responsible manner in corporate contexts, and consequently contribute to a sustainable future. This paper investigates engineering students’ attitudes towards ethical and sustainable thinking focusing on the corporate social responsibility (CSR) principles in the context of entrepreneurship courses as a part of larger research project. Engineering students from a Finnish and an Estonian university (N = 342) responded to a self-assessment survey. The students’ attitudes towards CSR principles were assessed both on the enterprise level and the individual level as expectations of potential future employees. The findings indicate that engineering students acknowledge the need to take into account responsible thinking and that it is important for enterprises to be both socially and environmentally responsible in their activities. The self-assessment tool of ethical and sustainable thinking associated with the entrepreneurship competence model and CSR principles can be helpful in practice when university teachers wish to support and assess their students’ attitudes towards CSR principles among other entrepreneurship competencies when creating new course content.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Taylor & Francis, 2024
Keywords
Corporate social responsibility principles, Engineering education, Responsible management education, Self-assessment tool, Sustainable entrepreneurship, Curricula, Education computing, Philosophical aspects, Social aspects, Corporate contexts, Corporate social responsibility, Corporate social responsibility principle, Finnish, Management education, Self-assessment tools, Student attitudes, Sustainable thinking, Students
National Category
Business Administration Didactics
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-63363 (URN)10.1080/03043797.2023.2299731 (DOI)001136821600001 ()2-s2.0-85181519959 (Scopus ID)HOA;intsam;928238 (Local ID)HOA;intsam;928238 (Archive number)HOA;intsam;928238 (OAI)
Funder
European Social Fund (ESF)
Available from: 2024-01-16 Created: 2024-01-16 Last updated: 2024-09-27Bibliographically approved
Saari, U. A., Tossavainen, A., Kaipainen, K. & Mäkinen, S. J. (2022). Exploring factors influencing the acceptance of social robots among early adopters and mass market representatives. Robotics and Autonomous Systems, 151, Article ID 104033.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Exploring factors influencing the acceptance of social robots among early adopters and mass market representatives
2022 (English)In: Robotics and Autonomous Systems, ISSN 0921-8890, E-ISSN 1872-793X, Vol. 151, article id 104033Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

When designing social robots, it is crucial to understand the diverse expectations of different kinds of innovation adopters. Different factors influence early adopters of innovations and mass market representatives’ perceptions of the usefulness of social robots. The first aim of the study was to test how applicable the technology acceptance model 3 (TAM3) is in the context of social robots. Participants’ acceptance of social robotics in a workplace environment in the fuzzy front-end (FFE) innovation phase of a robot development project was examined. Based on the findings for the model, we developed a reduced version of the TAM3 that is more applicable for social robots. The second objective was to analyze how early adopters’ and mass market representatives’ acceptance of social robots differs. Quantitative research methods were used. For early adopters, result demonstrability has a significant influence on perceived usefulness of social robots, while for mass market representatives, perceived enjoyment has a more significant influence on perceived usefulness. The findings indicate that users’ innovation adoption style influences the factors that users consider important in the usefulness of social robots. Robot developers should take these into account during the FFE innovation phase.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2022
Keywords
Diffusion of innovations, Early adopter, Mass market representative, Robots, Technology acceptance model, Workplace, Acceptance tests, Commerce, Robotics, Fuzzy front end, Perceived usefulness, Social robotics, Social robots, Workplace environments
National Category
Business Administration Robotics and automation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-55895 (URN)10.1016/j.robot.2022.104033 (DOI)000820361300006 ()2-s2.0-85123936921 (Scopus ID)HOA;;796256 (Local ID)HOA;;796256 (Archive number)HOA;;796256 (OAI)
Available from: 2022-02-15 Created: 2022-02-15 Last updated: 2025-02-05Bibliographically approved
Leal Filho, W., Salvia, A. L., Bonoli, A., Saari, U. A., Voronova, V., Klõga, M., . . . Barbir, J. (2021). An assessment of attitudes towards plastics and bioplastics in Europe. Science of the Total Environment, 755(1), Article ID 142732.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>An assessment of attitudes towards plastics and bioplastics in Europe
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2021 (English)In: Science of the Total Environment, ISSN 0048-9697, E-ISSN 1879-1026, Vol. 755, no 1, article id 142732Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Over the last 50 years, conventional fossil-based plastics have become an integral part of our everyday lives. Apart from their low production costs, this is due to a number of their unique properties, including durability, strength, lightness, electrical and thermal insulation, resistance to chemicals and corrosion. The production of plastics has increased from 1.5 million metric tons in 1950 to 359 million metric tons in 2018. Of this total, 61.8 million metric tons were produced in Europe. There are various problems associated with plastic use and disposal that pose a serious threat to both the physical environment and human health. Since public behaviour plays a key role when it comes to the use of plastic, this paper reports on a study that focused on an assessment of attitudes towards plastics and bioplastics in Europe. The results showed that packaging is the most frequent modality of plastic used among participants. In addition, majority of participants are aware that plastic waste can affect environment and human health and therefore segregate and properly dispose plastics. Also, even though most respondents were aware of the environmental problems related to plastic use and showed a positive inclination towards using bioplastic materials, their limited availability and lack of relevant information about bioplastics pose a problem for wider use. Departing from the assumption that the public attitude is a determining factor in the consumption of plastics as a whole and bioplastics in particular, this paper also sheds some light on the current situation, identifying some trends and information gaps which should be addressed in order to encourage a more rational use of plastics in Europe.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2021
Keywords
Plastics, Bioplastics, Assessment, Europe, Environment
National Category
Business Administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-50794 (URN)10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142732 (DOI)000600537400073 ()33092843 (PubMedID)2-s2.0-85092777277 (Scopus ID)HOA;intsam;1474235 (Local ID)HOA;intsam;1474235 (Archive number)HOA;intsam;1474235 (OAI)
Funder
EU, Horizon 2020, 860407
Available from: 2020-10-08 Created: 2020-10-08 Last updated: 2021-02-24Bibliographically approved
Kotilainen, K., Valta, J., Saari, U. A., Kojo, M. & Ruostetsaari, I. (2021). From energy consumers to prosumers-how do policies influence the transition?. In: P. Aalto (Ed.), Electrification: Accelerating the Energy Transition (pp. 197-215). Elsevier
Open this publication in new window or tab >>From energy consumers to prosumers-how do policies influence the transition?
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2021 (English)In: Electrification: Accelerating the Energy Transition / [ed] P. Aalto, Elsevier , 2021, p. 197-215Chapter in book (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

Active producer-consumers (prosumers) still number relatively few in most countries, excluding frontrunner countries such as Germany and the USA, where small-scale solar power generation by property-owners has made strong inroads. To unleash their potential for a transition to a more climate-neutral electric energy system, identifying the potential enablers and constraints for the proliferation of prosumption is crucial. Policy mixes have been identified as important enablers for industry transitions. We report a case comparing the similarities and differences among prosumer-related policies in five European countries: Finland, France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. We also introduce an empirical case study on how policies in these countries may influence consumer attitudes in favor of small-scale renewable energy production. We conclude the chapter by discussing the best practices and the mix of more precise policy instruments deployable for involving citizens in order to accelerate the electrification of the energy system.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2021
Keywords
Consumer engagement, Energy consumer, Energy policy, Prosumer, Residential solar production
National Category
Business Administration Energy Systems
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-56275 (URN)10.1016/B978-0-12-822143-3.00010-X (DOI)2-s2.0-85128032144 (Scopus ID)9780128221433 (ISBN)9780128221761 (ISBN)
Available from: 2022-04-25 Created: 2022-04-25 Last updated: 2022-04-25Bibliographically approved
Aagaard, A., Saari, U. A. & Mäkinen, S. J. (2021). Mapping the types of business experimentation in creating sustainable value: A case study of cleantech start-ups. Journal of Cleaner Production, 279, Article ID 123182.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Mapping the types of business experimentation in creating sustainable value: A case study of cleantech start-ups
2021 (English)In: Journal of Cleaner Production, ISSN 0959-6526, E-ISSN 1879-1786, Vol. 279, article id 123182Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

In this study, business experimentation for sustainable value creation is explored through seven cleantech start-ups by applying the systemic combining approach. The findings reveal novel descriptions of six different business experimentation types. The study also advances our theoretical understanding of how the specific roles of learning, signaling, and convincing dominate each of the experimentation types differently and how each type of business experimentation has a distinct purpose. Furthermore, our findings propose how business experimentation types can be applied as a continuum as part of the cleantech start-ups’ sustainable value creation process. Hence, our study contributes theoretically to our understanding of business experimentation for sustainable value creation and how the different types are applied in cleantech start-ups. We conclude our treatise with managerial implications and outline fruitful future research avenues.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2021
Keywords
business experimentation, sustainable value creation, sustainable entrepreneurship, start-up, cleantech
National Category
Business Administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-50195 (URN)10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123182 (DOI)000613139700005 ()2-s2.0-85089808603 (Scopus ID);intsam;1457699 (Local ID);intsam;1457699 (Archive number);intsam;1457699 (OAI)
Available from: 2020-08-12 Created: 2020-08-12 Last updated: 2021-03-11Bibliographically approved
Saari, U. A., Damberg, S., Frömbling, L. & Ringle, C. M. (2021). Sustainable consumption behavior of Europeans: The influence of environmental knowledge and risk perception on environmental concern and behavioral intention. Ecological Economics, 189, Article ID 107155.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Sustainable consumption behavior of Europeans: The influence of environmental knowledge and risk perception on environmental concern and behavioral intention
2021 (English)In: Ecological Economics, ISSN 0921-8009, E-ISSN 1873-6106, Vol. 189, article id 107155Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

This study explores how environmental knowledge and risk perception influence individuals' sustainable consumption behavior through the mediation of environmental concern and behavioral intention. The study combines constructs from earlier studies to form a novel theoretical model, which is tested and validated with an open data set from the Environment III 2010 module, which was collected by the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP). Our sample consists of respondents from nine countries (N = 11,675) in the European Union (EU) and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). The model indicates that environmental risk perception and environmental knowledge impact environmental concern significantly. Furthermore, environmental concern strongly influences behavioral intention, and these constructs, in turn, act as mediators of sustainable consumption behavior. The findings indicate that in Europe, sustainable consumption behavior can be associated with environmental concern, which is influenced by increased levels of environmental knowledge and environmental risk perception. The results provide a basis for future analyses once the Environment IV module is released. This will be of particular importance for tracking possible changes in the sustainable consumption behavior of Europeans when transitioning to a green and circular economy that is driven by the European Green Deal and EU Circular Economy Action Plan.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2021
Keywords
Behavioral intention, Environmental concern, Environmental knowledge, Environmental risk perception, PLS-SEM, Sustainable consumption behavior, consumption behavior, data set, environmental risk, European Union, risk perception, sustainability, Europe
National Category
Business Administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-54304 (URN)10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107155 (DOI)000698641300003 ()2-s2.0-85112488222 (Scopus ID)HOA;intsam;759183 (Local ID)HOA;intsam;759183 (Archive number)HOA;intsam;759183 (OAI)
Available from: 2021-08-23 Created: 2021-08-23 Last updated: 2021-10-01Bibliographically approved
Saari, U. A., Herstatt, C., Tiwari, R., Dedehayir, O. & Mäkinen, S. J. (2021). The vegan trend and the microfoundations of institutional change: A commentary on food producers’ sustainable innovation journeys in Europe. Trends in Food Science & Technology, 107, 161-167
Open this publication in new window or tab >>The vegan trend and the microfoundations of institutional change: A commentary on food producers’ sustainable innovation journeys in Europe
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2021 (English)In: Trends in Food Science & Technology, ISSN 0924-2244, E-ISSN 1879-3053, Vol. 107, p. 161-167Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Background

Today's meat and dairy industry has a vast environmental footprint. To reach the UN sustainable development goals (SDGs) of ending hunger globally (SDG #2) and achieving sustainable consumption and production (SDG #12), this food production system needs to change. Recent years have seen the rise in popularity of the vegan or plant-based diet among consumers, which can go some way to reducing the environmental burden. This trend has motivated pioneering food producers to develop innovative vegan food products for niche markets, thus driving the sustainability transition of the food sector.

Scope and approach

This commentary tracks how three pioneering food companies have responded to the vegan trend in Europe. From the analysis of the sustainable innovation journeys of these innovative food producers, we propose a framework that presents a multi-level perspective on the socio-technical transition of the food production and consumption system.

Key findings and conclusions

The findings show how food producers, incumbents, and new entrants progress through an early phase of planning a direction and establishing a goal, followed by pivoting and experimenting in response to changes in the business environment. This innovation journey concludes as the company moves from experimentation and learning activities onto innovation implementation. The paper postulates a model that describes how regime level changes arise from the microfoundations of the food production and consumption system, as the innovation journeys of companies drive institutional change towards sustainability. The paper identifies future research avenues to explore the sustainable development of vegan food production in more depth.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2021
Keywords
Sustainable innovation journey, Sustainability transition, Veganism, Vegan food producer, Plant-based food industry
National Category
Business Administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-50829 (URN)10.1016/j.tifs.2020.10.003 (DOI)000603429800015 ()2-s2.0-85092510031 (Scopus ID);intsam;1475723 (Local ID);intsam;1475723 (Archive number);intsam;1475723 (OAI)
Available from: 2020-10-13 Created: 2020-10-13 Last updated: 2021-02-24Bibliographically approved
Ranta, V. & Saari, U. A. (2020). Circular economy: Enabling the transition towards sustainable consumption and production. In: W. Leal Filho, A. M. Azul, L. Brandli, P. G. Özuyar & T. Wall (Ed.), Responsible consumption and production: . Cham: Springer
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Circular economy: Enabling the transition towards sustainable consumption and production
2020 (English)In: Responsible consumption and production / [ed] W. Leal Filho, A. M. Azul, L. Brandli, P. G. Özuyar & T. Wall, Cham: Springer, 2020Chapter in book (Refereed)
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Cham: Springer, 2020
Series
Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, ISSN 2523-7403
National Category
Business Administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-47380 (URN)978-3-319-95725-8 (ISBN)978-3-319-95727-2 (ISBN)
Available from: 2020-01-13 Created: 2020-01-13 Last updated: 2020-01-13Bibliographically approved
Saari, U. A., Herstatt, C. & Dlugoborskyte, V. (2020). Cradle-to-cradle front-end innovation: Management of the design process. In: W. Leal Filho, A. M. Azul, L. Brandli, A. Lange Salvia, & T. Wall (Ed.), Industry, innovation and infrastructure: . Cham: Springer
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Cradle-to-cradle front-end innovation: Management of the design process
2020 (English)In: Industry, innovation and infrastructure / [ed] W. Leal Filho, A. M. Azul, L. Brandli, A. Lange Salvia, & T. Wall, Cham: Springer, 2020Chapter in book (Other academic)
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Cham: Springer, 2020
Series
Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, ISSN 2523-7403, E-ISSN 2523-7411
National Category
Business Administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-51001 (URN)10.1007/978-3-319-71059-4_143-1 (DOI)978-3-319-71059-4 (ISBN)
Available from: 2020-11-17 Created: 2020-11-17 Last updated: 2020-11-17Bibliographically approved
Saari, U. A. & Joensuu-Salo, S. (2020). Green entrepreneurship. In: W. Leal Filho, A. M. Azul, L. Brandli, P. G. Özuyar & T. Wall (Ed.), Responsible consumption and production: . Cham: Springer
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Green entrepreneurship
2020 (English)In: Responsible consumption and production / [ed] W. Leal Filho, A. M. Azul, L. Brandli, P. G. Özuyar & T. Wall, Cham: Springer, 2020Chapter in book (Refereed)
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Cham: Springer, 2020
Series
Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, ISSN 2523-7403
National Category
Business Administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-47381 (URN)978-3-319-95725-8 (ISBN)978-3-319-95727-2 (ISBN)
Available from: 2020-01-13 Created: 2020-01-13 Last updated: 2020-01-13Bibliographically approved
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Identifiers
ORCID iD: ORCID iD iconorcid.org/0000-0003-4007-5341

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