| Title |
Locked in unsustainability: Understanding lock-ins and their interactions using the case of food packaging |
| ID_Doc |
24036 |
| Authors |
Simoens, MC; Leipold, S; Fuenfschilling, L |
| Title |
Locked in unsustainability: Understanding lock-ins and their interactions using the case of food packaging |
| Year |
2022 |
| Published |
|
| DOI |
10.1016/j.eist.2022.08.005 |
| Abstract |
Lock-in mechanisms are major hurdles to sustainability transitions. Scholars identified various types of lock-ins; however, their dynamics and interactions remain underexplored. Using the case of food packaging, this study enhances the conceptual understanding and empirical analysis of lock-ins and their interactions from a socio-technical perspective. We analyze the material, institutional, behavioral, and discursive configuration and the shallow and deep lock-ins reinforcing the persistent dominance of single-use over reusable food packaging in Germany. Additionally, we explore the lock-in interactions both within and between the socio-technical elements. Hence, we introduce archetypical interlock-ins and lock-in clusters pointing to core trends of resistance towards reusable packaging alternatives. This study advances the lock-in concept for future socio-technical analyses while guiding the illumination of the complex dynamics of stability, the assessment of current sustainability transition interventions, and the search for potential unlocking strategies to enable change. |
| Author Keywords |
Socio-technical change; Transition; Circular economy; Reuse; Resistance |
| Index Keywords |
Index Keywords |
| Document Type |
Other |
| Open Access |
Open Access |
| Source |
Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED); Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) |
| EID |
WOS:000863276300002 |
| WoS Category |
Environmental Sciences; Environmental Studies |
| Research Area |
Environmental Sciences & Ecology |
| PDF |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2022.08.005
|