literature review on business education

• University of La Verne
• Subject Guides

Literature Review Basics

• Tutorials & Samples
• Literature Review Introduction
• Writing Literature Reviews
• Primary & Secondary Sources

Literature Review Tutorials

• Literature Reviews: An Overview for Students What is a literature review? What purpose does it serve in research? What should you expect when writing one? Find out here in this guide from NCSU libraries.
• Write a Lit Review from Virginia Commonwealth University Follow this guide to learn how to write a literature review, beginning with a synthesis matrix.
• Literature Review: The What, Why and How-to Guide This guide will help you understand what is a Literature Review, why it is important and how it is done. Also includes information on Annotated Bibliographies.
• Writing a Literature Review from the University of Toledo Covers what a lit review is, lit review types, writing a lit review and further readings.
• The Literature Review Process A guide from the University of North Texas on selecting a topic, searching the literature, plan before reviewing, reviewing the literature and writing the review.
• The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Permission granted to use this guide.

Sample Literature Reviews

• Business Literature Review Example One Sharing economy: A comprehensive literature review
• Business Literature Review Example Two Internet marketing: a content analysis of the research
• Education Literature Review Sample One Teachers’ perception of STEM integration and education: a systematic literature review
• Education Literature Review Sample Two Issues and Challenges for Teaching Successful Online Courses in Higher Education: A Literature Review
• Gerontology Literature Review Sample One Attitudes towards caring for older people: literature review and methodology
• Gerontology Literature Review Sample Two Literature review: understanding nursing competence in dementia care
• Psychology Literature Review Sample One Psychological Correlates of University Students’ Academic Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
• Psychology Literature Review Sample Two Misuse of Prescription Stimulants Among College Students: A Review of the Literature and Implications for Morphological and Cognitive Effects on Brain Functioning
• Public Administration Literature Review Sample One Considering the Environment in Transportation Planning: Review of Emerging Paradigms and Practice in the United States
• Public Administration Literature Review Sample Two Assessing the impact of research on policy: a literature review
• Sociology Literature Review Sample One Employment Among Current and Former Welfare Recipients: A Literature Review
• Sociology Literature Review Sample Two Deployment and family functioning: A literature review of US operations in Afghanistan and Iraq
• Technology Literature Review Sample One Social media and innovation: A systematic literature review and future research directions
• Technology Literature Review Sample Two Blockchain as a disruptive technology for business: A systematic review
• << Previous: Primary & Secondary Sources
• Last Updated: Jun 28, 2023 9:19 AM
• URL: https://laverne.libguides.com/litreviews

An official website of the United States government

The .gov means it’s official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

• Publications
• Account settings

Preview improvements coming to the PMC website in October 2024. Learn More or Try it out now .

• Advanced Search
• Journal List
• Front Psychol

The impact of entrepreneurial education on the propensity of business students to support new ventures: A moderated mediation model

Associated data.

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.

This research aims to investigate the role of financial self-efficacy in mediating the relationship between entrepreneurial education and venture capital intention, as well as the moderating influence of government support on the relationship between financial self-efficacy and venture capital intention. The target population consists of Lahore students from public and private universities who have already studied entrepreneurship. Based on the 250 responses to the online survey the findings show the mediating role of financial self-efficacy between entrepreneurial education and intention toward venture capital. Moreover, it also indicates the moderated effect of government support on the relationship between financial self-efficacy and intention toward venture capital. This study will not only help the curriculum committees in business schools to design entrepreneurial education outlines that enable the students to explore the different financing modes by including financial knowledge to cope with financial challenges but also to the government officials in devising financing plans accompanied by their expertise in the development of a business.

Introduction

Entrepreneurship has gained popularity as a result of its positive impact on global economic and social growth. It is regarded as a creative and innovative process capable of raising yield, generating new opportunities, reinvigorating and expanding businesses, promoting welfare programs, and strengthening the economy of a nation ( Guerrero et al., 2008 ). Entrepreneurs contribute a crucial role in the progress and prosperity of a country’s economy and the well-being of its citizens ( Iakovleva et al., 2014 ), enhance employability, and bring innovation ( Kelley et al., 2011 ). Kelley (2017) claimed that there are more than 582 million entrepreneurs worldwide including 274 million female entrepreneurs. As more and more individuals are involved in entrepreneurial activities around the world the sizes of businesses are shrinking ( Gallagher, 2022 ). No doubt, a growing trend has been observed in entrepreneurial activities but developing countries like Pakistan are still facing the challenges of lower investment rates in new ventures. Although, many people maintain cultivating a fantastic business concept, but lack the confidence to implement it and give it birth due to the dangers associated with start-ups ( Junejo et al., 2022 ). This lack of confidence is mostly because of their inability to achieve their financial goals ( Klimas et al., 2021 ). Many researchers have focused on venture capital firms, which are among external startup investors, because of their essential role in the formation of new ventures ( Kaplan and Strömberg, 2003 ). In addition to financial contributions, venture capital firms give significant intangible assets in form of knowledge and connections ( Wang and Zhou, 2004 ). This aspect of venture capital investment is critical as new enterprises usually lack adequate financial and intangible capabilities, such as existing knowledge and experience, that need to thrive. However, only a tiny percentage of businesses have been successful in obtaining venture capital investment, and the time of obtaining investments ranges from early to late in a startup’s development ( Gompers and Lerner, 2001 ). While the majority of venture-funded companies fail, others, like the six largest United States companies by market capitalization [Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Facebook, and Tesla] obtain the majority of their early external funding from venture capitalists. These businesses were still unknown and speculative when they received their first venture capital financing ( Gornall and Strebulaev, 2021 ). Venture capital firms were the first to fund global success stories including Intel, Oracle, Skype, Federal Express, Cisco, AMD, and 3Com ( Kenney et al., 2002 ). Venture finance has piqued the curiosity of governments all around the world. This fascination arises in part from the pivotal role that venture capitalists have played in the expansion of some of the world’s most powerful businesses ( Brander et al., 2015 ).

With almost 229 million people, Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country in the world. 1 It is facing an issue of unemployment, which is about 4.4%. Pfeiffer and Reize (2000) suggested one possible solution to this problem is increasing the number of new startups. Credit is one of the most crucial aspects to think about when beginning a new business or enterprise, and easy credit is important not only in Pakistan but around the world ( Carney and Gedajlovic, 2002 ; Ahmad and Hoffmann, 2008 ). Furthermore, according to the global entrepreneurship monitor ( GEM, 2019 ), a group of regional country teams that conducts survey-based entrepreneurial research and is primarily connected to leading universities of higher education, although the choice of entrepreneurship as a good career opportunity is high (80.15%) in Pakistan, yet due to the higher probability of fear of failure (54.16%) the intention toward the entrepreneurship is very low (27.90%). Shinnar et al. (2018) claimed that university graduates who have obtained entrepreneurship education are more likely to pursue entrepreneurial careers. Realizing the need of the hour, few universities in Pakistan are entirely dedicated to the study of entrepreneurship ( Li et al., 2021 ).

Liñán and Fernandez-Serrano (2014) described “that entrepreneurial education can be found in the whole set of education and training activities that intend to perform entrepreneurial behaviors, or some of the elements that affect that intention, such as entrepreneurial knowledge, the desirability of the entrepreneurial activity, or its feasibility.” Through entrepreneurial knowledge, the students are taught the ways to prepare financial feasibility that enhances their financial handling capacity. Financial self-efficacy (FSE), or one’s belief in one’s competence to handle money, influences money-handling behavior. Lusardi et al. (2010) described financial education, as an education that enables people to make smarter financial decisions, understand their obligations and rights as the users of financial products, and better risk management. Brandon and Smith (2009) described FSE, as one’s belief in one’s competence to handle money with financial awareness. According to their results, the more their financial self-efficacy of knowledge, the more efficiently they can use money, resulting in improved behavior.

The government’s initiatives to boost entrepreneurial activities such as practical courses ( Rehman and Roomi, 2012 ) and monetary support to launch their start-up under a 10-year prospective development plan support new entrepreneurs to make them more beneficial to society at large. In addition, several initiatives have been formed, such as the National productivity organization, Pakistan poverty alleviation fund, Karandaaz, and Rural support programs. Furthermore, Pakistan’s public and private sectors are working together to encourage entrepreneurship ( Nasir et al., 2019 ). Such initiatives by the government, support new ventures to look for the financing choices such as venture capital.

The study’s major goal is to examine the influence of entrepreneurial education on financial self-efficacy as well as venture capital intention and to examine the mediating role of financial self-efficacy between entrepreneurial education and venture capital intention. Moreover, the study is also aimed to explore the moderation effect of government support between financial self-efficacy and intention toward venture capital. The study therefore will help the curriculum committees in business schools to design such entrepreneurial education outlines that enables the students to explore the different financing modes to establish or expand their businesses and to include such financial knowledge that may enable them to cope with financial challenges. Additionally, this study will assist government officials in creating financing strategies that might not only finance but also offer their knowledge in business growth.

The next section of the study will review, the literature related to entrepreneurial education, financial self-efficacy, intention toward venture capital, and government support that will be resulting in a model for testing. This will be followed by the methodology and data analysis. In the end, the theoretical and practical implications, limitations, and future directions will be written.

Literature review

Theory of planned behavior.

The theory of planned behavior (TPB), which is a continuation of the theory of reasoned action ( Ajzen and Fishbein, 1975 ), serves as the theoretical foundation for this study. According to TPB, people use the knowledge at their disposal to make informed decisions about engaging in particular behaviors. There have been several models proposed to study these intentions. However, among all the theories, Ajzen’s social psychology theory of planned behavior (TPB), is the one that is most frequently employed to evaluate intents ( Zaremohzzabieh et al., 2019 ). According to Entrialgo and Iglesias (2016) , the TPB has frequently been employed to explain the intentions of university students. Scholars from a variety of disciplines have thoroughly studied the TPB, and its fame increases the predictive and explanatory potential in education ( Maheshwari and Kha, 2022 ). It has established a sufficient theoretical foundation for past studies on entrepreneurship education and, to some extent, can be claimed to influence intention formation ( Su et al., 2021 ). Intention deviates over time ( Su et al., 2021 ) and universities may influence such changes in their students through education ( Maheshwari and Kha, 2022 ), potentially increasing students’ financial self-efficacy ( Bell and Bell, 2016 ). Moreover, the relationship between self-efficacy and intentions has been linked to the development of entrepreneurs ( Li et al., 2021 ). This study also used the TPB perspective in conjunction with government support to extend the TPB framework and explain the effect of such support on university students’ intentions toward venture capital ( Su et al., 2021 ).

Relationship between entrepreneurial education and intention toward venture capital

Entrepreneurial education is a source of equipping students with the desired abilities to deal with the issues that have to be faced during a normal course of business ( González-López et al., 2019 ). Entrepreneurial education consists of “any pedagogical [program] or process of education for entrepreneurial attitudes and skills” ( Fayolle et al., 2006 ). After passing through a long history, it has become a phenomenon now ( Katz, 2003 ; Kuratko, 2005 ). It has a different type that focuses on the different phases of progress ( Mcmullan and Long, 1987 ; Gorman et al., 1997 ; Bridge et al., 1998 ). Moreover, different modes of entrepreneurial education have been identified by academics, each of which is tailored to a unique audience ( Jamieson, 1984 ; Liñán, 2004 ). Education to manage finance and the modern source of finance will enable the entrepreneur to make smart financial decisions and hence achieve business goals ( Bruhn and Zia, 2013 ). Fatoki (2014) concludes that education on entrepreneurial finance is an important knowledge and key to the success of entrepreneurs. Bruhn and Zia (2013) and Dahmen and Rodríguez (2014) , have further highlighted the lack of knowledge of entrepreneurial finance among young entrepreneurs which usually causes financial issues in their new ventures. In recent years, the difficulties in getting finance for early-stage ventures have emerged new sources of funding that include; crowdfunding, accelerators, private and government venture capital, peer-to-peer business lending, etc. ( Bruton et al., 2015 ; Block et al., 2018 ). Sahlman (1990) described that the professional investment management activity of venture capital aims to raise money from wealthy people and institutional investors to invest in new enterprises with risky concepts but great growth potential. The average duration of the raised fund is 7–10 years. Venture capitalists choose portfolio companies, mentor, supervise, and give value-added services during this time ( Sapienza, 1992 ; Lerner, 1995 ), After being compensated by the investors, they eventually quit the companies, sharing the profits with the institutional investors. Venture capitalists are widely assumed as the perceived interceders who provide finance to the early-stage and hi-tech businesses that may otherwise struggle to get funding from traditional sources ( Gompers and Lerner, 2001 ). In light of the above-cited literature the study hypothesizes the following;

H1 : Entrepreneurial education has a significant impact on intention toward venture capital.

The mediating role of FSE

FSE describes the person’s confidence in his ability to get, consume, and make smart financial choices, to handle a situation where financial management became a challenge ( Amatucci and Crawley, 2011 ; Ghosh and Vinod, 2017 ). Financial self-efficacy is linked and associated with social cognitive theory, which claims that all aspects of an individual’s life are influenced by self-efficacy includes; motives, choices, devotion in compliance to a task, positive and negative thoughts, and the level of persistence with which they dealt with the problems. The higher the recognizability of one’s self-efficacy, the higher it will have an impact on one’s achievements, feeling, behavior, and self-motivation ( Bandura, 1991 , 2005 ). This variable was discovered to mediate the relationship between many variables and the execution of intentional behaviors in certain domains across time. Self-efficacy is not at all an invariable term ( Ng and Lucianetti, 2016 ), it is shaped by several factors that may be internal or external such as goals achievements ( Du et al., 2020 ), creativity education ( Mathisen and Bronnick, 2009 ), and societal assistance ( Mathisen, 2011 ). Students who acquire the necessary financial knowledge and expertise are also self-assured in their abilities to close deals successfully. Self-efficacy can be nourished with educational processes as it is developed on the information of the four sources that are; real performance, emotional stimulation, mediated learning, and social encouragement ( Wood and Bandura, 1989 ). The size of the association between self-efficacy and educational excellence is three times that of the relationship between present and former educational excellence ( Gore, 2006 ). In this study, the argument has been developed that entrepreneurial education enhances financial literacy and boosts the student’s financial self-efficacy. As a result, financial self-efficacy is linked to entrepreneurial education and these arguments develop the following hypothesis.

H2a : Entrepreneurial education has a significant impact on FSE.

Campopiano et al. (2017) described FSE as a person’s trust in his ability to obtain financial objectives. If the person’s level of trust is higher, he or she will be highly motivated to do anything necessary for the achievement of the desired goals, also, when it is related to somebody’s conduct in handling their finances. The higher the level of FSE the better it will be in managing financial challenges. In addition to the abilities that individuals possessed, In the process of cognitive thought to attain the intended action motivated by willpower, self-efficacy had an indirect part ( Hejazi et al., 2009 ). McGee et al. (2009) stated that self-efficacy increased the likelihood of an individual’s intention being transformed into desired actions. Some other studies such as those ( Farashah, 2013 ; Setiawan, 2014 ; Miranda et al., 2017 ) also verified the significance of self-efficacy in the development of intention among individuals. Based on the reasoning presented above this study hypothesizes the following:

H2b : Financial self-efficacy has a significant impact on intention toward the capital venture.

From the previous discussion in the literature, it is obvious that entrepreneurial education has an important role in the enhancement of financial self-efficacy and intention toward venture capital. Also, financial self-efficacy can influence an individual intention toward venture capital. So conceptually, financial self-efficacy can provide a mechanism for entrepreneurial education to influence intention toward venture capital. Some studies conducted in China and United States by ( Zhao et al., 2005 ; Chen and He, 2011 ; Kassean et al., 2015 ) discovered that self-efficacy can mediate the relationship between entrepreneurial education and intention toward attitude. A related study conducted by Piperopoulos and Dimov (2015) involving students from British universities also revealed the mediating role of self-efficacy. Based on the arguments discussed in the literature so far, this study argues that there exists a mediating relationship of financial self-efficacy between entrepreneurial education and intention toward venture capital. Based on this argument the following hypothesis is developed.

H2 : FSE significantly mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial education and intention toward venture capital.

The moderating role of government support

Governments all over the world intervene in the private sector that is involved in financing early-stage ventures. Since the governments have always been active in controlling and financing state intervention in the private sector, and in controlling and financing transnational, it is not new. Verheul et al. (2002) proposed that governments should balance both the demand and supply aspects of entrepreneurship. The governments have acknowledged the importance of entrepreneurship and hence passed such laws to enhance the funding to early-stage businesses, for instance, United States Congress passed the small business innovation research (SBIR) in 1982, and the objective of this program was to boost the competitiveness among the Americans. The legislation made provisions for funding innovative small businesses ( Lerner and Kegler, 2000 ; Cooper, 2003 ). By cultivating a national entrepreneurial culture, government programs lend legitimacy to entrepreneurship in society. This culture encourages people to start their firms by instilling a positive attitude toward entrepreneurship ( Shinnar et al., 2012 ). Several European governments have set up venture capital funds for high-tech startups ( Cumming and Johan, 2013 ; Cumming et al., 2017 ). Government programs can help entrepreneurs in developing countries achieve their goals. The national investment trust limited (NITL), a subsidiary of the Pakistani government, has formed Rs. 1 billion venture capital funds to encourage Pakistani startups. However, such initiatives taken by the government to encourage entrepreneurship will remain ineffective if individuals remain unable to recognize such funding opportunities. The potential entrepreneur should be able to recognize the existing entrepreneurial opportunity and must possess skills to make the maximum out of it ( Shane and Venkataraman, 2000 ). Entrepreneurs’ self-perceived difficulty to launch their firms frustrates venture capitalists and economic development institutes ( Griffiths et al., 2009 ). Therefore, besides government support, a certain level of financial self-efficacy, and intention toward the venture. Based on these arguments, this study postulates that government support can strengthen the relationship between financial self-efficacy and the intention toward venture capital. Based on this argument the following hypothesis is developed.

H3 : Government support moderates significantly between financial self-efficacy and intention toward venture capital.

Research model

See Figure 1 .

Research model.

Materials and methods

Questionnaire and measures.

There were 29 questions in the questionnaire divided into five sections: (a) the demographic including, age, gender, qualification, and University/DAI., (b) entrepreneurial education, (c) financial self-efficacy, (d) the government support, and (e) intention toward venture capital. Based on the study of ( Nguyen et al., 2011 ), entrepreneurial education was measured by a 4 items scale. A six-item scale adapted from research ( Lown, 2011 ) on financial self-efficacy was used to assess it. The government support scale consisted of 11 questions taken from the study by ( Korosec and Berman, 2006 ). For venture capital intention a 3 items scale from the study ( Baber, 2020 ) was used. All the scales were adapted and measured on 5 Likert scales from strongly agree (5) to strongly disagree (1) except for financial self-efficacy which was measured on exactly true to not at all true scale ( Table 1 ).

Instruments.

Sample design and data collection

This study used an online survey questionnaire method and a deductive methodology. The study’s target audience was students of public and private universities who have already studied entrepreneurship. The selection of university students for this study was based on the fact that universities are regarded as the key cultural determinant ( Li et al., 2021 ). The city of Lahore was chosen for data collection as it is the center of Pakistan’s educational system because it is home to some of the nation’s most prominent, renowned, and prestigious universities ( Noor et al., 2020 ).

The list of universities offering business and management studies was obtained from the higher education commission website. These universities were separated into two clusters, i.e., the public and private sectors. For data gathering, a simple random sampling technique is employed in four universities from each cluster that were chosen based on the larger number of students enrolled in these universities. These selected universities also represent all other universities of Lahore as these were selected on enrolment criteria. The online questionnaire was shared with the targeted students through the HoDs and faculty members of the selected universities via WhatsApp groups. The students were communicated about the importance of this research through the introductory information in the online questionnaire. Moreover, they were also informed about the variables and their relationship to this study. 250 questionnaire responses in all were collected and analyzed using AMOS version 24.0. The questionnaire was completed between 28th March and 20th July 2022.

Demographics

According to the results of the online survey, which included 250 participants, 77.2% of male and 22.8% of female participants responded to this survey. The low percentage of female respondents is because of their low rate of enrollment in business studies as compared to male students. 78.4% of the respondents were in between 21 and 25 years of age. 83.2% of the respondents were undergraduates.

Data analysis

The hypothesized relationships were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) generated through AMOS version 24.0. SEM also includes measurement error, and it can show the most accurate estimates of interacting influences, like mediation ( Hair et al., 2014 ; Li et al., 2020 ; Cui et al., 2022 ).

Model fitness was accessed by performing confirmatory factor analysis ( Nadeem et al., 2020 ), and the findings are reflected in Figure 2 . Moreover, Table 2 below shows the criteria used to determine model fit. The measurement model fulfills the proposed threshold values ( Hu and Bentler, 1999 ; Li et al., 2021 ), hence, demonstrating a good model fit.

Model Fit. EE, entrepreneurial education; VF Intention toward venture capital; GS, government support; FE, financial self-efficacy.

Model fit criteria.

Descriptive statistics and correlations analyses

To study variables, means, standard deviations, and correlations were calculated. Results are shown in Table 3 . According to the results derived from the data collected from the students of business schools who have already studied entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial education was significantly and positively connected with the intention toward venture capital ( r  = 0.514, p  < 0.01) and financial self-efficacy ( r  = 0.346, p  < 0.01). The financial self-efficacy was positively connected with government support ( r  = 0.601, p  < 0.01) and intention toward venture capital ( r  = 0.546, p  < 0.01). In addition, was positively connected with entrepreneurial education ( r  = 0.346, p  < 0.01). As a result, the correlation analysis’ findings offered supportive evidence for the mediated-effects test that followed. In the current study, gender, age and qualification were also employed as control variables.

Descriptive statistics and correlations analyses.

N  = 250. EE, entrepreneurial education; IVC, intention toward venture capital; GS, government support; FSE, financial self-efficacy.

Convergent validity

Factor loading, Cronbach Alpha (CA), Composite reliability (CR), and Average variance extract (AVE) were used to assess Convergent Validity. The values in Table 4 represent convergent validity. The factor loading for the established structures should be greater than 0.60, according to Dash and Paul (2021) . The majority of the items are greater than the minimum allowed value. Cronbach’s alpha values of all the variables are above 0.7 and hence represent good internal reliability of the scales ( Cronbach, 1951 ). Additionally, Hair et al. (2021) showed that the values of CR and AVE were above the minimum acceptable thresholds of 0.70 and 0.50, respectively. The convergent validity was acceptable because all CA, CR, and AVE values fell within acceptable ranges.

Convergent validity.

Discriminant validity

Discriminant validity refers to the degree to which each latent variable in the study differs from other variables in the model ( Hair et al., 2014 ). The discriminant validity was measured using the Heterotrait-Monotrait ratio (HTMT) and the Fornell and Larcker criterion. Table 5 compares the square roots of each AVE in the diagonal with the correlation coefficients (off-diagonal) for each construct in the associated rows and columns to demonstrate the establishment of discriminant validity as proposed by Fornell and Larcker ( Hussain et al., 2021 ). Table 6 displays the HTMT ratios that are less than 0.85 ( Henseler et al., 2016 ). The discriminant validity of every variable investigated is established as a result.

Fornell and Larcker criteria.

Heterotrait-Monotrait ratio (HTMT).

Common method biased

There are various preventive, investigative, and corrective strategies available in the literature to be used to alleviate fears about the probability of common methods biases in the basic reported results. Harman’s single-factor test has been the most popular and largely used method to detect CMB ( Aguirre-Urreta and Hu, 2019 ; Yong et al., 2021 ). This bias develops when any particular factor explains more than half of the overall variance ( Podsakoff et al., 2012 ). To test CMB all the factors were combined to form a single factor and they collectively explain 31.733% of the variance. Which is within the acceptable threshold, i.e., <50%. Hence, there exists no CMB.

Hypothesis testing

Before testing the hypotheses, we used AMOS version 24.0 to check the structural model’s adaptability. The findings are shown in Figure 3 . According to the findings of the hypothesis testing displayed in Table 7 , all the variables found the required statistical support. To test our hypotheses, we anticipated that entrepreneurial education has a significant impact on venture capital intention (H1) and discovered that entrepreneurial education has a positive and significant impact on venture capital intention (β = 0.3355, p  = 0.000); hence, H1 is supported. We also anticipated that entrepreneurial education would significantly impact financial self-efficacy (H2a), and the results show that it did (β = 0.3480, p  = 0.000); hence, H2a is supported. Furthermore, we anticipated that financial self-efficacy has a significant impact on capital venture intention (H2b), and the study found that financial self-efficacy has a significant impact on capital venture intention. (β = 0.3823, p  = 0.000), indicating that H2b is also supported.

Structural model.

Moderated and mediation analyses.

Mediation analysis

For mediation analysis, we anticipated that financial self-efficacy significantly mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial education and venture capital intention. The mediation results shown in Table 7 confirmed that the relationship between entrepreneurial education and intention toward venture capital is significantly mediated by financial self-efficacy (β = 0.2927, LLCI = 0.1064, ULCI = 0.3996). Thus, the H2 is supported.

Moderation analysis

We also anticipated that government support significantly moderates the relationship between financial self-efficacy and intention toward venture capital. According to the findings in Figure 4 and Table 7 , government support has a moderating effect on the relationship between financial self-efficacy and intention toward venture capital (β = −0.0834, p  = 0.0206). As a result, H3 is also approved.

Moderation graph.

This study examines how entrepreneurial education impacts the intention toward venture capital while considering the mediation role of financial self-efficacy and the moderation effect of government support. The findings of the study verify that there exists a significant positive impact of entrepreneurial education on the intention toward venture capital. Moreover, these findings confirm that the students should be equipped with such entrepreneurial education that not only inculcate the ability to come up with some innovative ideas, but also provide information about those platforms that can provide them with financial and intellectual support. This confirms the literature cited above that describes the need for entrepreneurial education that provides students with the knowledge to explore funding sources such as venture capital ( Fatoki, 2014 ; Block et al., 2018 ). It also verifies that entrepreneurial education relating to financial knowledge enhances the abilities of the students to handle financial challenges and hence improves their financial self-efficacy ( Mathisen and Bronnick, 2009 ; Du et al., 2020 ; Alferaih, 2022 ). It is further verified that financial self-efficacy positively impacts intention toward venture capital ( McGee et al., 2009 ). The mediation effect of financial self-efficacy between entrepreneurial education and intention toward venture capital ( Zhao et al., 2005 ; Chen and He, 2011 ; Kassean et al., 2015 ) is also verified through the analysis conducted. The role of government in supporting early-stage entrepreneurial ideas to boost them has also been tested by the study and found a significant impact that strengthens the students’ intention to finance their venture through government or private venture capitalists. The initiatives taken by different governments of the world to finance early-stage businesses or the incentives provided by the governments to private venture capitalists for financing the early-stage ventures have given boosts to many of the businesses that by the passage of time have become big business tycoons.

Theoretical implications

Because the current study established a comprehensive framework, it has major implications for the literature which explains how students’ intention toward venture capital strengthens with government support. Theoretically, this is among the few studies that describe the venture capital intention of university students that is strengthened with government support programs. This study not only examined entrepreneurial education from the business students’ aspect but also enhanced the understanding of how it contributes to fostering the students’ financial self-efficacy rather than directly resulting in venture capital intention. There are numerous pieces of research in the literature that address students’ intention toward venture capital, however, this is the first study that considers government support as a moderator in arousing such intention.

Practical implications

This study, in particular, provides useful insight into business students’ venture capital ambitions and reaffirms the importance of entrepreneurial education in business courses in developing such intentions. The study will aid the curriculum committee in recognizing the need for education that teaches about entrepreneurship and alternate funding sources. The study will also aid government officials to understand how government support in this aspect can raise the business students’ intention toward venture capital which will ultimately create new business opportunities in the country and new job openings that will help mitigate the employment gap.

Limitations and future directions

The current study adds significantly to the body of knowledge and practice, but it also has several limitations that could be used to guide future research. First, this study is confined to business students of public and private universities offering business education. Second, this study is limited to the city of Lahore, Pakistan. By expanding the current framework, future research should be conducted in other educational fields as well as in other cities or provinces across the country. Third, this study merely laid the foundation for future venture capital research; however, other financing modes are available to help new startups and are needed to be investigated using the same model. Fourth, the multi-group approach should be used for in-depth analysis. Fifth, the present study developed and tested a moderated mediation model based on financial self-efficacy and government support; in the future, other variables, such as social capital, role models, personality traits, entrepreneurial motivation and entrepreneurial spirit, etc., can be included using mediation and moderation mechanisms for measuring venture capital intention. Finally, rather than focusing on the actual behavior of venture capital financing, the current study concentrated on the development of intention ( Neneh, 2022 ). Future studies can take into account how EE, FSE, and government support influence actual behavior toward venture financing to undertake a more in-depth study since intentions alone might not always dictate actual behavior.

The current study adds value to the existing literature to get a greater level of intention toward venture capital in the Pakistani setting. The current study examined a moderated mediation model to test the relationship between entrepreneurial education and intention toward venture capital, and the role of financial self-efficacy as a mediator, Moreover, it also examined the moderating role of government support to strengthen the intention toward venture capital. The results indicated that entrepreneurial education positively impacted the intention toward venture capital whereas, Financial self-efficacy has mediated their relationship. Conclusively, students’ financial self-efficacy can be boosted by providing them with education about how to manage financial issues that will increase their intention to acquire finance for their ventures via such sources as venture capital. Furthermore, Government support moderated the relationship between financial self-efficacy and intention toward venture capital. This emphasizes the importance of the government’s attention to not only supporting new initiatives but also providing facilities to venture capitalists who assist in the growth of these businesses. As a result, the study has produced evidence from a process viewpoint of how entrepreneurial education leads to a greater desire to venture capital. Furthermore, the study added to the body of the existing knowledge by incorporating financial self-efficacy, which may lead to a desire to invest in venture capital rather than a reinforcement of specific actions. It is also recommended that universities should develop an entrepreneurial eco-system for developing entrepreneurial activities ( Feranita et al., 2022 ).

Data availability statement

Author contributions.

SK: conceptualization, writing—original draft, preparation, methodology, formal analysis, and visualization. HA: preparation, methodology, formal analysis, and visualization. SA: methodology, formal analysis, visualization, and supervision. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

1 https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/

Supplementary material

The Supplementary material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1046293/full#supplementary-material

• Aguirre-Urreta M. I., Hu J. (2019). Detecting common method bias: performance of the Harman’s single-factor test . ACM SIGMIS Database 50 , 45–70. doi: 10.1145/3330472.3330477 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Ahmad N., Hoffmann A. (2008). A framework for addressing and measuring entrepreneurship . OECD.
• Ajzen I., Fishbein M. (1975). A Bayesian analysis of attribution processes . Psychol. Bull. 82 , 261–277. doi: 10.1037/h0076477, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Alferaih A. (2022). Starting a new business? Assessing university students’ intentions towards digital entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia . Int. J. Inform. Manage. Data Insights 2 :100087. doi: 10.1016/j.jjimei.2022.100087 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Amatucci F. M., Crawley D. C. (2011). Financial self-efficacy among women entrepreneurs . Int. J. Gend. Entrep. 3 , 23–37. doi: 10.1108/17566261111114962 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Baber H. (2020). Determinants of students’ perceived learning outcome and satisfaction in online learning during the pandemic of COVID-19 . J. Educ. e-learn. Res. 7 , 285–292. doi: 10.20448/journal.509.2020.73.285.292 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Bandura A. (1991). Social cognitive theory of self-regulation . Organ. Behav. Hum. Decis. Process. 50 , 248–287. doi: 10.1016/0749-5978(91)90022-L, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Bandura A. (2005). The evolution of social cognitive theory . Great Minds manage . 9–35. [ Google Scholar ]
• Bell R., Bell H. (2016). An enterprise opportunity for entrepreneurial students: student enterprise development and experience assessed through the student voice . Educ. Train. 58 . doi: 10.1108/ET-12-2014-0150 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Block J. H., Colombo M. G., Cumming D. J., Vismara S. (2018). New players in entrepreneurial finance and why they are there . Small Bus. Econ. 50 , 239–250. doi: 10.1007/s11187-016-9826-6 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Brander J. A., Du Q., Hellmann T. (2015). The effects of government-sponsored venture capital: international evidence . Rev. Fin. 19 , 571–618. doi: 10.1093/rof/rfu009 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Brandon D. P., Smith C. M. (2009). Prospective teachers’ financial knowledge and teaching self-efficacy . J. Fam. Consum. Sci. Education 27 , 14–28. [ Google Scholar ]
• Bridge S., O’Neill K., Cromie S. (1998). Understanding Enterprise, British-Irish Agreement Act . Available at: http://www.irlgov.ie/bill28/acts .
• Bruhn M., Zia B. (2013). Stimulating managerial capital in emerging markets: the impact of business training for young entrepreneurs . J. Dev. Effective. 5 , 232–266. doi: 10.1080/19439342.2013.780090 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Bruton G., Khavul S., Siegel D., Wright M. (2015). New financial alternatives in seeding entrepreneurship: microfinance, crowdfunding, and peer–to–peer innovations . Entrep. Theory Pract. 39 , 9–26. doi: 10.1111/etap.12143 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Campopiano G., De Massis A., Rinaldi F. R., Sciascia S. (2017). Women’s involvement in family firms: progress and challenges for future research . J. Fam. Bus. Strategy 8 , 200–212. doi: 10.1016/j.jfbs.2017.09.001 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Carney M., Gedajlovic E. (2002). The co-evolution of institutional environments and organizational strategies: the rise of family business groups in the ASEAN region . Organ. Stud. 23 , 1–29. doi: 10.1177/0170840602231001 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Chen S., He H. (2011). Towards incremental learning of nonstationary imbalanced data stream: a multiple selectively recursive approach . Evol. Syst. 2 , 35–50. doi: 10.1007/s12530-010-9021-y [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Cooper R. S. (2003). Purpose and performance of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program . Small Bus. Econ. 20 , 137–151. doi: 10.1023/A:1022212015154 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Cronbach L. J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests . Psychometrika 16 , 297–334. doi: 10.1007/BF02310555, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Cui Y., Firdousi S. F., Afzal A., Awais M., Akram D. (2022). The influence of big data analytic capabilities building and education on business model innovation . Front. Psychol . 6097. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.999944 [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Cumming D. J., Grilli L., Murtinu S. (2017). Governmental and independent venture capital investments in Europe: a firm-level performance analysis . Finance 42 , 439–459. doi: 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2014.10.016 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Cumming D. J., Johan S. A. (2013). Venture capital and private equity contracting: An international perspective . Waltham, MA, USA: Academic Press, Elsevier. [ Google Scholar ]
• Dahmen P., Rodríguez E. (2014). Financial literacy and the success of small businesses: an observation from a small business development Center . Numeracy 7 , 1–12. doi: 10.5038/1936-4660.7.1.3 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Dash G., Paul J. (2021). CB-SEM vs PLS-SEM methods for research in social sciences and technology forecasting . Technol. Forecast. Soc. Chang. 173 :121092. doi: 10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121092 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Du K., Wang Y., Ma X., Luo Z., Wang L., Shi B. (2020). Achievement goals and creativity: the mediating role of creative self-efficacy . Educ. Psychol. 40 , 1249–1269. doi: 10.1080/01443410.2020.1806210 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Entrialgo M., Iglesias V. (2016). The moderating role of entrepreneurship education on the antecedents of entrepreneurial intention . Int. Entrep. Manag. J. 12 , 1209–1232. doi: 10.1007/s11365-016-0389-4 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Farashah A. D. (2013). The process of impact of entrepreneurship education and training on entrepreneurship perception and intention: Study of educational system of Iran . Educ. Train . 55 , 868–885. doi: 10.1108/et-04-2013-0053 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Fatoki O. (2014). The financial literacy of micro entrepreneurs in South Africa . J. Soc. Sci. 40 , 151–158. doi: 10.1080/09718923.2014.11893311 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Fayolle A., Gailly B., Lassas-Clerc N. (2006). Assessing the impact of entrepreneurship education programmes: a new methodology . J. Eur. Ind. Train. 30 , 701–720. doi: 10.1108/03090590610715022 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Feranita F., Mouawad R., Amin M., Leong L. W., Rathakrishnan T. (2022). “Unveiling the role of entrepreneurial education in preparing the next generation of entrepreneurs in Malaysia ,” in Strategic Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Business Model Innovation. Ed. V. Ratten (Bingley: Emerald Publishing Limited) , 17–30. [ Google Scholar ]
• Gallagher T. (2022). Council post: Entrepreneurship forecast for 2022: Stats, trends and analysis. [online] Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2022/01/12/entrepreneurship-forecast-for-2022-stats-trends-and-analysis/?sh=5d8f66a62e31 (Accessed 30 March 2022).
• GEM . (2019) Global entrepreneurship monitor 2019/2020 global report, gem global entrepreneurship monitor. Available at: https://www.gemconsortium.org/report (Accessed 20 October 2022).
• Ghosh S., Vinod D. (2017). What constrains financial inclusion for women? Evidence from Indian micro data . World Dev. 92 , 60–81. doi: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2016.11.011 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Gompers P., Lerner J. (2001). The venture capital revolution . J. Econ. Perspect. 15 , 145–168. doi: 10.1257/jep.15.2.145, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• González-López M. J., Pérez-López M. C., Rodríguez-Ariza L. (2019). Clearing the hurdles in the entrepreneurial race: the role of resilience in entrepreneurship education . Acad. Manag. Learn. Edu. 18 , 457–483. doi: 10.5465/amle.2016.0377 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Gore P. A., Jr. (2006). Academic self-efficacy as a predictor of college outcomes: two incremental validity studies . J. Career Assess. 14 , 92–115. doi: 10.1177/1069072705281367 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Gorman G., Hanlon D., King W. (1997). Some research perspectives on entrepreneurship education, enterprise education and education for small business management: a ten-year literature review . Int. Small Bus. J. 15 , 56–77. doi: 10.1177/0266242697153004 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Gornall W., Strebulaev I. A. (2021). The economic impact of venture capital: evidence from public companies . doi: 10.2139/ssrn.2681841 [ CrossRef ]
• Griffiths M. D., Kickul J., Carsrud A. L. (2009). Government bureaucracy, transactional impediments, and entrepreneurial intentions . Int. Small Bus. J. 27 , 626–645. doi: 10.1177/0266242609338752 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Guerrero M., Rialp J., Urbano D. (2008). The impact of desirability and feasibility on entrepreneurial intentions: a structural equation model . Int. Entrep. Manag. J. 4 , 35–50. doi: 10.1007/s11365-006-0032-x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Hair J. F., Hult G. T. M., Ringle C. M., Sarstedt M., Danks N. P., Ray S. (2021). Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using R: A workbook . Springer.
• Hair J. F., Sarstedt M., Hopkins L., Kuppelwieser V. G. (2014). Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM): an emerging tool in business research . Eur. Bus. Rev . 26 , 106–121. doi: 10.1108/ebr-10-2013-0128 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Hejazi E., Shahraray M., Farsinejad M., Asgary A. (2009). Identity styles and academic achievement: mediating role of academic self-efficacy . Soc. Psychol. Educ. 12 , 123–135. doi: 10.1007/s11218-008-9067-x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Henseler J., Hubona G., Ray P. A. (2016). Using PLS path modeling in new technology research: updated guidelines . Ind. Manag. Data Syst. 116 , 2–20. doi: 10.1108/IMDS-09-2015-0382 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Hu L. T., Bentler P. M. (1999). Structural equation modeling: a multidisciplinary journal cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives . Struct. Equ. Modeling 6 , 1–55. doi: 10.1080/10705519909540118 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Hussain I., Nazir M., Hashmi S. B., Shaheen I., Akram S., Waseem M. A., et al.. (2021). Linking green and sustainable entrepreneurial intentions and social networking sites; the mediating role of self-efficacy and risk propensity . Sustainability 13 :7050. doi: 10.3390/su13137050 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Iakovleva T. A., Kolvereid L., Gorgievski M. J., Sørhaug Ø. (2014). Comparison of perceived barriers to entrepreneurship in eastern and Western European countries . Int. J. Entrep. Innov. Manag. 18 , 115–133. doi: 10.1504/IJEIM.2014.062874 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Jamieson J. D. (1984). Attitudes of educators toward the handicapped. Report No Pun Date Contract Note Available From, 218.
• Junejo S., Pitafi A., Bhutto A. (2022). “ Economic development and growth perspectives in entrepreneurship ,” in Developing entrepreneurial ecosystems in academia (IGI Global; ), 171–185. [ Google Scholar ]
• Kaplan S. N., Strömberg P. (2003). Financial contracting theory meets the real world: an empirical analysis of venture capital contracts . Rev. Econ. Stud. 70 , 281–315. doi: 10.1111/1467-937X.00245 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Kassean H., Vanevenhoven J., Liguori E., Winkel D. E. (2015). Entrepreneurship education: a need for reflection, real-world experience and action . Int. J. Entrep. Behav. Res. 21 , 690–708. doi: 10.1108/IJEBR-07-2014-0123 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Katz J. A. (2003). The chronology and intellectual trajectory of American entrepreneurship education: 1876–1999 . J. Bus. Ventur. 18 , 283–300. doi: 10.1016/S0883-9026(02)00098-8 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Kelley D. (2017). The 582 million entrepreneurs in the world are not created equal . Hill . Available at: https://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/economy-budget/323586-the-worlds-582-million-entrepreneurs-are-not-created-equal/ . [ Google Scholar ]
• Kelley D. J., Bosma N., Amorós J. E. (2011). Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2010 Global Report Babson College. [ Google Scholar ]
• Kenney M., Han K., Tanaka S. (2002). Scattering geese: The venture capital industries of East Asia: A report to the World Bank .
• Klimas P., Czakon W., Kraus S., Kailer N., Maalaoui A. (2021). Entrepreneurial failure: a synthesis and conceptual framework of its effects . Eur. Manag. Rev. 18 , 167–182. doi: 10.1111/emre.12426 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Korosec R. L., Berman E. M. (2006). Municipal support for social entrepreneurship . Public Adm. Rev. 66 , 448–462. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-6210.2006.00601.x, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Kuratko D. F. (2005). The emergence of entrepreneurship education: development, trends, and challenges . Entrep. Theory Pract. 29 , 577–597. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-6520.2005.00099.x, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Lerner J. (1995). Venture capitalists and the oversight of private firms. The . J. Financ. 50 , 301–318. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1995.tb05175.x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Lerner J., Kegler C. (2000). “ Evaluating the small business innovation research program: A literature review ,” in The small business innovation research program: An assessment of the department of defense fast track initiative , 307–324.
• Li C., Murad M., Javed H., Firdousi S. F., Ashraf S. F. (2021). An empirical investigation on the relationship between individual traits and entrepreneurial business intentions: measuring a mediation effect of entrepreneurial self-efficacy through partial least squares structural equation modeling . J. Glob. Entrep. Res . 12 , 1–17. doi: 10.1007/s40497-021-00303-z [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Li C., Murad M., Shahzad F., Khan M. A. S., Ashraf S. F., Dogbe C. S. K. (2020). Entrepreneurial passion to entrepreneurial behavior: role of entrepreneurial alertness, entrepreneurial self-efficacy and proactive personality . Front. Psychol. 11 :1611. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01611 [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Li Z., Oljaca M., Firdousi S. F., Akram U. (2021). Managing diversity in the Chinese organizational context: the impact of workforce diversity management on employee job performance . Front. Psychol. 12 . doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.733429, PMID: [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Li G., Pervaiz S., He Q. (2021). Can universities be a gleam of hope during COVID-19? Entrepreneurial intentions approach for academia in Pakistan . Front. Educ. 6 :262. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2021.717532 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Liñán F. (2004). Intention-based models of entrepreneurship education . Piccolla Impresa/Small Bus. 3 , 11–35. doi: 10.1007/s11187-013-9520-x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Liñán F., Fernandez-Serrano J. (2014). National culture, entrepreneurship and economic development: different patterns across the European Union . Small Bus. Econ. 42 , 685–701. doi: 10.1007/s11187-013-9520-x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Lown J. M. (2011). Development and validation of a financial self-efficacy scale . J. Financ. Couns. Plan. 22 :54. doi: 10.1037/t69132-000 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Lusardi A., Mitchell O. S., Curto V. (2010). Financial literacy among the young . J. Consum. Aff. 44 , 358–380. doi: 10.1111/j.1745-6606.2010.01173.x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Maheshwari G., Kha K. L. (2022). Investigating the relationship between educational support and entrepreneurial intention in Vietnam: the mediating role of entrepreneurial self-efficacy in the theory of planned behavior . Int. J. Manage. Educ. 20 :100553. doi: 10.1016/j.ijme.2021.100553 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Mathisen G. E. (2011). Organizational antecedents of creative self-efficacy . Creat. Innov. Manag. 20 , 185–195. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8691.2011.00606.x, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Mathisen G. E., Bronnick K. S. (2009). Creative self-efficacy: an intervention study . Int. J. Educ. Res. 48 , 21–29. doi: 10.1016/j.ijer.2009.02.009, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• McGee J. E., Peterson M., Mueller S. L., Sequeira J. M. (2009). Entrepreneurial self–efficacy: refining the measure . Entrep. Theory Pract. 33 , 965–988. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-6520.2009.00304.x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Mcmullan W. E., Long W. A. (1987). Entrepreneurship education in the nineties . J. Bus. Ventur. 2 , 261–275. doi: 10.1016/0883-9026(87)90013-9 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Miranda F. J., Chamorro-Mera A., Rubio S. (2017). Academic entrepreneurship in Spanish universities: an analysis of the determinants of entrepreneurial intention . Eur. Res. Manag. Bus. Econ. 23 , 113–122. doi: 10.1016/j.iedeen.2017.01.001 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Nadeem M. A., Qamar M. A. J., Nazir M. S., Ahmad I., Timoshin A., Shehzad K. (2020). How investors attitudes shape stock market participation in the presence of Hair financial self-efficacy . Front. Psychol. 11 :553351. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.553351, PMID: [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Nasir M., Iqbal R., Akhtar C. (2019). Factors affecting growth of women entrepreneurs in Pakistan . Pak. Admin. Rev. 3 , 35–50. [ Google Scholar ]
• Neneh B. N. (2022). Entrepreneurial passion and entrepreneurial intention: the role of social support and entrepreneurial self-efficacy . Stud. High. Educ. 47 , 587–603. doi: 10.1080/03075079.2020.1770716 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Ng T. W., Lucianetti L. (2016). Within-individual increases in innovative behavior and creative, persuasion, and change self-efficacy over time: a social–cognitive theory perspective . J. Appl. Psychol. 101 , 14–34. doi: 10.1037/apl0000029, PMID: [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Nguyen V. P., Stroeven M., Sluys L. J. (2011). Multiscale continuous and discontinuous modeling of heterogeneous materials: a review on recent developments . J. Multiscale Model. 03 , 229–270. doi: 10.1142/S1756973711000509 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Noor S., Ali M. N., Husnine S. M. (2020). Performance of online classes in Lahore, Pakistan during Covid-19 . Perform. Improv. 59 , 33–42. doi: 10.1002/pfi.21938, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Pfeiffer F., Reize F. (2000). Business start-ups by the unemployed—an econometric analysis based on firm data . Labour Econ. 7 , 629–663. doi: 10.1016/S0927-5371(00)00016-6 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Piperopoulos P., Dimov D. (2015). Burst bubbles or build steam? Entrepreneurship education, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and entrepreneurial intentions . J. Small Bus. Manag. 53 , 970–985. doi: 10.1111/jsbm.12116, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Podsakoff P. M., MacKenzie S. B., Podsakoff N. P. (2012). Sources of method bias in social science research and recommendations on how to control it . Annu. Rev. Psychol. 63 , 539–569. doi: 10.1146/annurev-psych-120710-100452, PMID: [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Rehman S., Roomi M. A. (2012). Gender and work-life balance: a phenomenological study of women entrepreneurs in Pakistan . J. Small Bus. Enterp. Dev. 19 , 209–228. doi: 10.1108/14626001211223865 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Sahlman W. A. (1990). The structure and governance of venture-capital organizations . J. Financ. Econ. 27 , 473–521. doi: 10.1016/0304-405X(90)90065-8 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Sapienza H. J. (1992). When do venture capitalists add value? J. Bus. Ventur. 7 , 9–27. doi: 10.1016/0883-9026(92)90032-M, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Setiawan J. L. (2014). Examining entrepreneurial self-efficacy among students . Procedia Soc. Behav. Sci. 115 , 235–242. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.02.431, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Shane S., Venkataraman S. (2000). The promise of entrepreneurship as a field of research . Acad. Manage. Rev. 25 , 217–226. doi: 10.5465/amr.2000.2791611 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Shinnar R. S., Giacomin O., Janssen F. (2012). Entrepreneurial perceptions and intentions: the role of gender and culture . Entrep. Theory Pract. 36 , 465–493. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-6520.2012.00509.x [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Shinnar R. S., Hsu D. K., Powell B. C., Zhou H. (2018). Entrepreneurial intentions and start-ups: are women or men more likely to enact their intentions? Int. Small Bus. J. 36 , 60–80. doi: 10.1177/0266242617704277, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Su Y., Zhu Z., Chen J., Jin Y., Wang T., Lin C. L., et al.. (2021). Factors influencing entrepreneurial intention of university students in China: integrating the perceived university support and theory of planned behavior . Sustainability 13 :4519. doi: 10.3390/su13084519 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Verheul I., Wennekers S., Audretsch D., Thurik R. (2002). “ An eclectic theory of entrepreneurship: policies, institutions and culture ,” in Entrepreneurship: Determinants and policy in a European-US comparison (Boston, MA: Springer; ), 11–81. [ Google Scholar ]
• Wang S., Zhou H. (2004). Staged financing in venture capital: moral hazard and risks . Finance 10 , 131–155. doi: 10.1016/S0929-1199(02)00045-7 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Wood R., Bandura A. (1989). Social cognitive theory of organizational management . Acad. Manage. Rev. 14 , 361–384. doi: 10.2307/258173, PMID: [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Yong C., Firdousi D., Fazal S., Afzal A., Florjančič V., Awais M. (2021). The influence of internal and external stakeholder mechanisms on entrepreneurial success: the moderating role of digital technology adoption . Front. Psychol. 6627 . doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.821725 [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Zaremohzzabieh Z., Ahrari S., Krauss S. E., Samah A. A., Meng L. K., Ariffin Z. (2019). Predicting social entrepreneurial intention: a meta-analytic path analysis based on the theory of planned behavior . J. Bus. Res. 96 , 264–276. doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.11.030 [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Zhao H., Seibert S. E., Hills G. E. (2005). The mediating role of self-efficacy in the development of entrepreneurial intentions . J. Appl. Psychol. 90 , 1265–1272. doi: 10.1037/0021-9010.90.6.1265, PMID: [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]

• Library databases
• Library website

Education Literature Review: Education Literature Review

What does this guide cover.

Writing the literature review is a long, complex process that requires you to use many different tools, resources, and skills.

This page provides links to the guides, tutorials, and webinars that can help you with all aspects of completing your literature review.

The Basic Process

These resources provide overviews of the entire literature review process. Start here if you are new to the literature review process.

• Literature Reviews Overview : Writing Center
• How to do a Literature Review : Library
• Video: Common Errors Made When Conducting a Lit Review (YouTube)  

The Role of the Literature Review

Your literature review gives your readers an understanding of the evolution of scholarly research on your topic.

In your literature review you will:

• survey the scholarly landscape
• provide a synthesis of the issues, trends, and concepts
• possibly provide some historical background

Review the literature in two ways:

• Section 1: reviews the literature for the Problem
• Section 3: reviews the literature for the Project

The literature review is NOT an annotated bibliography. Nor should it simply summarize the articles you've read. Literature reviews are organized thematically and demonstrate synthesis of the literature.

For more information, view the Library's short video on searching by themes:

Short Video: Research for the Literature Review

(4 min 10 sec) Recorded August 2019 Transcript 

Search for Literature

The iterative process of research:

• Find an article.
• Read the article and build new searches using keywords and names from the article.
• Mine the bibliography for other works.
• Use “cited by” searches to find more recent works that reference the article.
• Repeat steps 2-4 with the new articles you find.

These are the main skills and resources you will need in order to effectively search for literature on your topic:

• Subject Research: Education by Jon Allinder Last Updated Aug 7, 2023 2786 views this year
• Keyword Searching: Finding Articles on Your Topic by Lynn VanLeer Last Updated Sep 12, 2023 14466 views this year
• Google Scholar by Jon Allinder Last Updated Aug 16, 2023 9116 views this year
• Quick Answer: How do I find books and articles that cite an article I already have?
• Quick Answer: How do I find a measurement, test, survey or instrument?

Video: Education Databases and Doctoral Research Resources

(6 min 04 sec) Recorded April 2019 Transcript 

Staying Organized

The literature review requires organizing a variety of information. The following resources will help you develop the organizational systems you'll need to be successful.

• Organize your research
• Citation Management Software

You can make your search log as simple or complex as you would like.  It can be a table in a word document or an excel spread sheet.  Here are two examples.  The word document is a basic table where you can keep track of databases, search terms, limiters, results and comments.  The Excel sheet is more complex and has additional sheets for notes, Google Scholar log; Journal Log, and Questions to ask the Librarian.  

• Search Log Example Sample search log in Excel
• Search Log Example Sample search log set up as a table in a word document.
• Literature Review Matrix with color coding Sample template for organizing and synthesizing your research

Writing the Literature Review

The following resources created by the Writing Center and the Academic Skills Center support the writing process for the dissertation/project study. 

• Critical Reading
• What is Synthesis 
• Walden Templates
• Quick Answer: How do I find Walden EdD (Doctor of Education) studies?
• Quick Answer: How do I find Walden PhD dissertations?

Beyond the Literature Review

The literature review isn't the only portion of a dissertation/project study that requires searching. The following resources can help you identify and utilize a theory, methodology, measurement instruments, or statistics.

• Education Theory by Jon Allinder Last Updated May 1, 2022 312 views this year
• Tests & Measures in Education by Kimberly Burton Last Updated Nov 18, 2021 17 views this year
• Education Statistics by Jon Allinder Last Updated Feb 22, 2022 20 views this year
• Office of Research and Doctoral Services

Books and Articles about the Lit Review

The following articles and books outline the purpose of the literature review and offer advice for successfully completing one.

• Chen, D. T. V., Wang, Y. M., & Lee, W. C. (2016). Challenges confronting beginning researchers in conducting literature reviews. Studies in Continuing Education, 38(1), 47-60. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2015.1030335 Proposes a framework to conceptualize four types of challenges students face: linguistic, methodological, conceptual, and ontological.
• Randolph, J.J. (2009). A guide to writing the dissertation literature review. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation 14(13), 1-13. Provides advice for writing a quantitative or qualitative literature review, by a Walden faculty member.
• Torraco, R. J. (2016). Writing integrative literature reviews: Using the past and present to explore the future. Human Resource Development Review, 15(4), 404–428. https://doi.org/10.1177/1534484316671606 This article presents the integrative review of literature as a distinctive form of research that uses existing literature to create new knowledge.
• Wee, B. V., & Banister, D. (2016). How to write a literature review paper?. Transport Reviews, 36(2), 278-288. http://doi.org/10.1080/01441647.2015.1065456 Discusses how to write a literature review with a focus on adding value rather and suggests structural and contextual aspects found in outstanding literature reviews.
• Winchester, C. L., & Salji, M. (2016). Writing a literature review. Journal of Clinical Urology, 9(5), 308-312. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051415816650133 Reviews the use of different document types to add structure and enrich your literature review and the skill sets needed in writing the literature review.
• Xiao, Y., & Watson, M. (2017). Guidance on conducting a systematic literature review. Journal of Planning Education and Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/0739456X17723971 Examines different types of literature reviews and the steps necessary to produce a systematic review in educational research.

• Office of Student Disability Services

Walden Resources

Departments.

• Academic Residencies
• Academic Skills
• Career Planning and Development
• Customer Care Team
• Field Experience
• Military Services
• Student Success Advising
• Writing Skills

Centers and Offices

• Center for Social Change
• Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services
• Office of Degree Acceleration
• Office of Student Affairs

Student Resources

• Doctoral Writing Assessment
• Form & Style Review
• Quick Answers
• ScholarWorks
• SKIL Courses and Workshops
• Walden Bookstore
• Walden Catalog & Student Handbook
• Student Safety/Title IX
• Legal & Consumer Information
• Website Terms and Conditions
• Cookie Policy
• Accessibility
• Accreditation
• State Authorization
• Net Price Calculator
• Contact Walden

Walden University is a member of Adtalem Global Education, Inc. www.adtalem.com Walden University is certified to operate by SCHEV © 2024 Walden University LLC. All rights reserved.

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

• Knowledge Base

Methodology

• How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates

How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates

Published on January 2, 2023 by Shona McCombes . Revised on September 11, 2023.

What is a literature review? A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic. It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research that you can later apply to your paper, thesis, or dissertation topic .

There are five key steps to writing a literature review:

• Search for relevant literature
• Evaluate sources
• Identify themes, debates, and gaps
• Outline the structure
• Write your literature review

A good literature review doesn’t just summarize sources—it analyzes, synthesizes , and critically evaluates to give a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject.

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text

Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes

Table of contents

What is the purpose of a literature review, examples of literature reviews, step 1 – search for relevant literature, step 2 – evaluate and select sources, step 3 – identify themes, debates, and gaps, step 4 – outline your literature review’s structure, step 5 – write your literature review, free lecture slides, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions, introduction.

• Quick Run-through
• Step 1 & 2

When you write a thesis , dissertation , or research paper , you will likely have to conduct a literature review to situate your research within existing knowledge. The literature review gives you a chance to:

• Demonstrate your familiarity with the topic and its scholarly context
• Develop a theoretical framework and methodology for your research
• Position your work in relation to other researchers and theorists
• Show how your research addresses a gap or contributes to a debate
• Evaluate the current state of research and demonstrate your knowledge of the scholarly debates around your topic.

Writing literature reviews is a particularly important skill if you want to apply for graduate school or pursue a career in research. We’ve written a step-by-step guide that you can follow below.

Receive feedback on language, structure, and formatting

Professional editors proofread and edit your paper by focusing on:

• Academic style
• Vague sentences
• Style consistency

See an example

Writing literature reviews can be quite challenging! A good starting point could be to look at some examples, depending on what kind of literature review you’d like to write.

• Example literature review #1: “Why Do People Migrate? A Review of the Theoretical Literature” ( Theoretical literature review about the development of economic migration theory from the 1950s to today.)
• Example literature review #2: “Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines” ( Methodological literature review about interdisciplinary knowledge acquisition and production.)
• Example literature review #3: “The Use of Technology in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Thematic literature review about the effects of technology on language acquisition.)
• Example literature review #4: “Learners’ Listening Comprehension Difficulties in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Chronological literature review about how the concept of listening skills has changed over time.)

You can also check out our templates with literature review examples and sample outlines at the links below.

Download Word doc Download Google doc

Before you begin searching for literature, you need a clearly defined topic .

If you are writing the literature review section of a dissertation or research paper, you will search for literature related to your research problem and questions .

Make a list of keywords

Start by creating a list of keywords related to your research question. Include each of the key concepts or variables you’re interested in, and list any synonyms and related terms. You can add to this list as you discover new keywords in the process of your literature search.

• Social media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok
• Body image, self-perception, self-esteem, mental health
• Generation Z, teenagers, adolescents, youth

Search for relevant sources

Use your keywords to begin searching for sources. Some useful databases to search for journals and articles include:

• Your university’s library catalogue
• Google Scholar
• Project Muse (humanities and social sciences)
• Medline (life sciences and biomedicine)
• EconLit (economics)
• Inspec (physics, engineering and computer science)

You can also use boolean operators to help narrow down your search.

Make sure to read the abstract to find out whether an article is relevant to your question. When you find a useful book or article, you can check the bibliography to find other relevant sources.

You likely won’t be able to read absolutely everything that has been written on your topic, so it will be necessary to evaluate which sources are most relevant to your research question.

For each publication, ask yourself:

• What question or problem is the author addressing?
• What are the key concepts and how are they defined?
• What are the key theories, models, and methods?
• Does the research use established frameworks or take an innovative approach?
• What are the results and conclusions of the study?
• How does the publication relate to other literature in the field? Does it confirm, add to, or challenge established knowledge?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research?

Make sure the sources you use are credible , and make sure you read any landmark studies and major theories in your field of research.

You can use our template to summarize and evaluate sources you’re thinking about using. Click on either button below to download.

Take notes and cite your sources

As you read, you should also begin the writing process. Take notes that you can later incorporate into the text of your literature review.

It is important to keep track of your sources with citations to avoid plagiarism . It can be helpful to make an annotated bibliography , where you compile full citation information and write a paragraph of summary and analysis for each source. This helps you remember what you read and saves time later in the process.

The only proofreading tool specialized in correcting academic writing - try for free!

The academic proofreading tool has been trained on 1000s of academic texts and by native English editors. Making it the most accurate and reliable proofreading tool for students.

Try for free

To begin organizing your literature review’s argument and structure, be sure you understand the connections and relationships between the sources you’ve read. Based on your reading and notes, you can look for:

• Trends and patterns (in theory, method or results): do certain approaches become more or less popular over time?
• Themes: what questions or concepts recur across the literature?
• Debates, conflicts and contradictions: where do sources disagree?
• Pivotal publications: are there any influential theories or studies that changed the direction of the field?
• Gaps: what is missing from the literature? Are there weaknesses that need to be addressed?

This step will help you work out the structure of your literature review and (if applicable) show how your own research will contribute to existing knowledge.

• Most research has focused on young women.
• There is an increasing interest in the visual aspects of social media.
• But there is still a lack of robust research on highly visual platforms like Instagram and Snapchat—this is a gap that you could address in your own research.

There are various approaches to organizing the body of a literature review. Depending on the length of your literature review, you can combine several of these strategies (for example, your overall structure might be thematic, but each theme is discussed chronologically).

Chronological

The simplest approach is to trace the development of the topic over time. However, if you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarizing sources in order.

Try to analyze patterns, turning points and key debates that have shaped the direction of the field. Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred.

If you have found some recurring central themes, you can organize your literature review into subsections that address different aspects of the topic.

For example, if you are reviewing literature about inequalities in migrant health outcomes, key themes might include healthcare policy, language barriers, cultural attitudes, legal status, and economic access.

Methodological

If you draw your sources from different disciplines or fields that use a variety of research methods , you might want to compare the results and conclusions that emerge from different approaches. For example:

• Look at what results have emerged in qualitative versus quantitative research
• Discuss how the topic has been approached by empirical versus theoretical scholarship
• Divide the literature into sociological, historical, and cultural sources

Theoretical

A literature review is often the foundation for a theoretical framework . You can use it to discuss various theories, models, and definitions of key concepts.

You might argue for the relevance of a specific theoretical approach, or combine various theoretical concepts to create a framework for your research.

Like any other academic text , your literature review should have an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion . What you include in each depends on the objective of your literature review.

The introduction should clearly establish the focus and purpose of the literature review.

Depending on the length of your literature review, you might want to divide the body into subsections. You can use a subheading for each theme, time period, or methodological approach.

As you write, you can follow these tips:

• Summarize and synthesize: give an overview of the main points of each source and combine them into a coherent whole
• Analyze and interpret: don’t just paraphrase other researchers — add your own interpretations where possible, discussing the significance of findings in relation to the literature as a whole
• Critically evaluate: mention the strengths and weaknesses of your sources
• Write in well-structured paragraphs: use transition words and topic sentences to draw connections, comparisons and contrasts

In the conclusion, you should summarize the key findings you have taken from the literature and emphasize their significance.

When you’ve finished writing and revising your literature review, don’t forget to proofread thoroughly before submitting. Not a language expert? Check out Scribbr’s professional proofreading services !

This article has been adapted into lecture slides that you can use to teach your students about writing a literature review.

Scribbr slides are free to use, customize, and distribute for educational purposes.

Open Google Slides Download PowerPoint

If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• Sampling methods
• Simple random sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Likert scales
• Reproducibility

 Statistics

• Null hypothesis
• Statistical power
• Probability distribution
• Effect size
• Poisson distribution

Research bias

• Optimism bias
• Cognitive bias
• Implicit bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Anchoring bias
• Explicit bias

A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources (such as books, journal articles, and theses) related to a specific topic or research question .

It is often written as part of a thesis, dissertation , or research paper , in order to situate your work in relation to existing knowledge.

There are several reasons to conduct a literature review at the beginning of a research project:

• To familiarize yourself with the current state of knowledge on your topic
• To ensure that you’re not just repeating what others have already done
• To identify gaps in knowledge and unresolved problems that your research can address
• To develop your theoretical framework and methodology
• To provide an overview of the key findings and debates on the topic

Writing the literature review shows your reader how your work relates to existing research and what new insights it will contribute.

The literature review usually comes near the beginning of your thesis or dissertation . After the introduction , it grounds your research in a scholarly field and leads directly to your theoretical framework or methodology .

A literature review is a survey of credible sources on a topic, often used in dissertations , theses, and research papers . Literature reviews give an overview of knowledge on a subject, helping you identify relevant theories and methods, as well as gaps in existing research. Literature reviews are set up similarly to other  academic texts , with an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion .

An  annotated bibliography is a list of  source references that has a short description (called an annotation ) for each of the sources. It is often assigned as part of the research process for a  paper .  

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

McCombes, S. (2023, September 11). How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates. Scribbr. Retrieved April 15, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/dissertation/literature-review/

Is this article helpful?

Shona McCombes

Other students also liked, what is a theoretical framework | guide to organizing, what is a research methodology | steps & tips, how to write a research proposal | examples & templates, what is your plagiarism score.

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

Chapter 1: Introduction

Learning objectives.

At the conclusion of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Identify the purpose of the literature review in  the research process
• Distinguish between different types of literature reviews

1.1 What is a Literature Review?

Pick up nearly any book on research methods and you will find a description of a literature review.  At a basic level, the term implies a survey of factual or nonfiction books, articles, and other documents published on a particular subject.  Definitions may be similar across the disciplines, with new types and definitions continuing to emerge.  Generally speaking, a literature review is a:

• “comprehensive background of the literature within the interested topic area…” ( O’Gorman & MacIntosh, 2015, p. 31 ).
• “critical component of the research process that provides an in-depth analysis of recently published research findings in specifically identified areas of interest.” ( House, 2018, p. 109 ).
• “written document that presents a logically argued case founded on a comprehensive understanding of the current state of knowledge about a topic of study” ( Machi & McEvoy,  2012, p. 4 ).

As a foundation for knowledge advancement in every discipline, it is an important element of any research project.  At the graduate or doctoral level, the literature review is an essential feature of thesis and dissertation, as well as grant proposal writing.  That is to say, “A substantive, thorough, sophisticated literature review is a precondition for doing substantive, thorough, sophisticated research…A researcher cannot perform significant research without first understanding the literature in the field.” ( Boote & Beile, 2005, p. 3 ).  It is by this means, that a researcher demonstrates familiarity with a body of knowledge and thereby establishes credibility with a reader.  An advanced-level literature review shows how prior research is linked to a new project, summarizing and synthesizing what is known while identifying gaps in the knowledge base, facilitating theory development, closing areas where enough research already exists, and uncovering areas where more research is needed. ( Webster & Watson, 2002, p. xiii )

A graduate-level literature review is a compilation of the most significant previously published research on your topic. Unlike an annotated bibliography or a research paper you may have written as an undergraduate, your literature review will outline, evaluate and synthesize relevant research and relate those sources to your own thesis or research question. It is much more than a summary of all the related literature.

It is a type of writing that demonstrate the importance of your research by defining the main ideas and the relationship between them. A good literature review lays the foundation for the importance of your stated problem and research question.

Literature reviews:

• define a concept
• map the research terrain or scope
• systemize relationships between concepts
• identify gaps in the literature ( Rocco & Plathotnik, 2009, p. 128 )

The purpose of a literature review is to demonstrate that your research question  is meaningful. Additionally, you may review the literature of different disciplines to find deeper meaning and understanding of your topic. It is especially important to consider other disciplines when you do not find much on your topic in one discipline. You will need to search the cognate literature before claiming there is “little previous research” on your topic.

Well developed literature reviews involve numerous steps and activities. The literature review is an iterative process because you will do at least two of them: a preliminary search to learn what has been published in your area and whether there is sufficient support in the literature for moving ahead with your subject. After this first exploration, you will conduct a deeper dive into the literature to learn everything you can about the topic and its related issues.

Literature Review Tutorial

1.2 Literature Review Basics

An effective literature review must:

• Methodologically analyze and synthesize quality literature on a topic
• Provide a firm foundation to a topic or research area
• Provide a firm foundation for the selection of a research methodology
• Demonstrate that the proposed research contributes something new to the overall body of knowledge of advances the research field’s knowledge base. ( Levy & Ellis, 2006 ).

All literature reviews, whether they are qualitative, quantitative or both, will at some point:

• Introduce the topic and define its key terms
• Establish the importance of the topic
• Provide an overview of the amount of available literature and its types (for example: theoretical, statistical, speculative)
• Identify gaps in the literature
• Point out consistent finding across studies
• Arrive at a synthesis that organizes what is known about a topic
• Discusses possible implications and directions for future research

1.3 Types of Literature Reviews

There are many different types of literature reviews, however there are some shared characteristics or features.  Remember a comprehensive literature review is, at its most fundamental level, an original work based on an extensive critical examination and synthesis of the relevant literature on a topic. As a study of the research on a particular topic, it is arranged by key themes or findings, which may lead up to or link to the  research question.  In some cases, the research question will drive the type of literature review that is undertaken.

The following section includes brief descriptions of the terms used to describe different literature review types with examples of each.   The included citations are open access, Creative Commons licensed or copyright-restricted.

1.3.1 Types of Review

1.3.1.1 conceptual.

Guided by an understanding of basic issues rather than a research methodology. You are looking for key factors, concepts or variables and the presumed relationship between them. The goal of the conceptual literature review is to categorize and describe concepts relevant to your study or topic and outline a relationship between them. You will include relevant theory and empirical research.

Examples of a Conceptual Review:

• Education : The formality of learning science in everyday life: A conceptual literature review. ( Dohn, 2010 ).
• Education : Are we asking the right questions? A conceptual review of the educational development literature in higher education. ( Amundsen & Wilson, 2012 ).

1.3.1.2 Empirical

An empirical literature review collects, creates, arranges, and analyzes numeric data reflecting the frequency of themes, topics, authors and/or methods found in existing literature. Empirical literature reviews present their summaries in quantifiable terms using descriptive and inferential statistics.

Examples of an Empirical Review:

• Nursing : False-positive findings in Cochrane meta-analyses with and without application of trial sequential analysis: An empirical review. ( Imberger, Thorlund, Gluud, & Wettersley, 2016 ).
• Education : Impediments of e-learning adoption in higher learning institutions of Tanzania: An empirical review ( Mwakyusa & Mwalyagile, 2016 ).

1.3.1.3 Exploratory

Unlike a synoptic literature review, the purpose here is to provide a broad approach to the topic area. The aim is breadth rather than depth and to get a general feel for the size of the topic area. A graduate student might do an exploratory review of the literature before beginning a synoptic, or more comprehensive one.

Examples of an Exploratory Review:

• Education : University research management: An exploratory literature review. ( Schuetzenmeister, 2010 ).
• Education : An exploratory review of design principles in constructivist gaming learning environments. ( Rosario & Widmeyer, 2009 ).

1.3.1.4 Focused

A type of literature review limited to a single aspect of previous research, such as methodology. A focused literature review generally will describe the implications of choosing a particular element of past research, such as methodology in terms of data collection, analysis and interpretation.

Examples of a Focused Review:

• Nursing : Clinical inertia in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus: A focused literature review. ( Khunti, Davies, & Khunti, 2015 ).
• Education : Language awareness: Genre awareness-a focused review of the literature. ( Stainton, 1992 ).

1.3.1.5 Integrative

Critiques past research and draws overall conclusions from the body of literature at a specified point in time. Reviews, critiques, and synthesizes representative literature on a topic in an integrated way. Most integrative reviews are intended to address mature topics or  emerging topics. May require the author to adopt a guiding theory, a set of competing models, or a point of view about a topic.  For more description of integrative reviews, see Whittemore & Knafl (2005).

Examples of an Integrative Review:

• Nursing : Interprofessional teamwork and collaboration between community health workers and healthcare teams: An integrative review. ( Franklin,  Bernhardt, Lopez, Long-Middleton, & Davis, 2015 ).
• Education : Exploring the gap between teacher certification and permanent employment in Ontario: An integrative literature review. ( Brock & Ryan, 2016 ).

1.3.1.6 Meta-analysis

A subset of a  systematic review, that takes findings from several studies on the same subject and analyzes them using standardized statistical procedures to pool together data. Integrates findings from a large body of quantitative findings to enhance understanding, draw conclusions, and detect patterns and relationships. Gather data from many different, independent studies that look at the same research question and assess similar outcome measures. Data is combined and re-analyzed, providing a greater statistical power than any single study alone. It’s important to note that not every systematic review includes a meta-analysis but a meta-analysis can’t exist without a systematic review of the literature.

Examples of a Meta-Analysis:

• Education : Efficacy of the cooperative learning method on mathematics achievement and attitude: A meta-analysis research. ( Capar & Tarim, 2015 ).
• Nursing : A meta-analysis of the effects of non-traditional teaching methods on the critical thinking abilities of nursing students. ( Lee, Lee, Gong, Bae, & Choi, 2016 ).
• Education : Gender differences in student attitudes toward science: A meta-analysis of the literature from 1970 to 1991. ( Weinburgh, 1995 ).

1.3.1.7 Narrative/Traditional

An overview of research on a particular topic that critiques and summarizes a body of literature. Typically broad in focus. Relevant past research is selected and synthesized into a coherent discussion. Methodologies, findings and limits of the existing body of knowledge are discussed in narrative form. Sometimes also referred to as a traditional literature review. Requires a sufficiently focused research question. The process may be subject to bias that supports the researcher’s own work.

Examples of a Narrative/Traditional Review:

• Nursing : Family carers providing support to a person dying in the home setting: A narrative literature review. ( Morris, King, Turner, & Payne, 2015 ).
• Education : Adventure education and Outward Bound: Out-of-class experiences that make a lasting difference. ( Hattie, Marsh, Neill, & Richards, 1997 ).
• Education : Good quality discussion is necessary but not sufficient in asynchronous tuition: A brief narrative review of the literature. ( Fear & Erikson-Brown, 2014 ).
• Nursing : Outcomes of physician job satisfaction: A narrative review, implications, and directions for future research. ( Williams & Skinner, 2003 ).

1.3.1.8 Realist

Aspecific type of literature review that is theory-driven and interpretative and is intended to explain the outcomes of a complex intervention program(s).

Examples of a Realist Review:

• Nursing : Lean thinking in healthcare: A realist review of the literature. ( Mazzacato, Savage, Brommels, 2010 ).
• Education : Unravelling quality culture in higher education: A realist review. ( Bendermacher, Egbrink, Wolfhagen, & Dolmans, 2017 ).

1.3.1.9 Scoping

Tend to be non-systematic and focus on breadth of coverage conducted on a topic rather than depth. Utilize a wide range of materials; may not evaluate the quality of the studies as much as count the number. One means of understanding existing literature. Aims to identify nature and extent of research; preliminary assessment of size and scope of available research on topic. May include research in progress.

Examples of a Scoping Review:

• Nursing : Organizational interventions improving access to community-based primary health care for vulnerable populations: A scoping review. ( Khanassov, Pluye, Descoteaux, Haggerty,  Russell, Gunn, & Levesque, 2016 ).
• Education : Interdisciplinary doctoral research supervision: A scoping review. ( Vanstone, Hibbert, Kinsella, McKenzie, Pitman, & Lingard, 2013 ).
• Nursing : A scoping review of the literature on the abolition of user fees in health care services in Africa. ( Ridde, & Morestin, 2011 ).

1.3.1.10 Synoptic

Unlike an exploratory review, the purpose is to provide a concise but accurate overview of all material that appears to be relevant to a chosen topic. Both content and methodological material is included. The review should aim to be both descriptive and evaluative. Summarizes previous studies while also showing how the body of literature could be extended and improved in terms of content and method by identifying gaps.

Examples of a Synoptic Review:

• Education : Theoretical framework for educational assessment: A synoptic review. ( Ghaicha, 2016 ).
• Education : School effects research: A synoptic review of past efforts and some suggestions for the future. ( Cuttance, 1981 ).

1.3.1.11 Systematic Review

A rigorous review that follows a strict methodology designed with a presupposed selection of literature reviewed.  Undertaken to clarify the state of existing research, the evidence, and possible implications that can be drawn from that.  Using comprehensive and exhaustive searching of the published and unpublished literature, searching various databases, reports, and grey literature.  Transparent and reproducible in reporting details of time frame, search and methods to minimize bias.  Must include a team of at least 2-3 and includes the critical appraisal of the literature.  For more description of systematic reviews, including links to protocols, checklists, workflow processes, and structure see “ A Young Researcher’s Guide to a Systematic Review “.

Examples of a Systematic Review:

• Education : The potentials of using cloud computing in schools: A systematic literature review ( Hartmann, Braae, Pedersen, & Khalid, 2017 )
• Nursing : Is butter back? A systematic review and meta-analysis of butter consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and total mortality. ( Pimpin, Wu, Haskelberg, Del Gobbo, & Mozaffarian, 2016 ).
• Education : The use of research to improve professional practice: a systematic review of the literature. ( Hemsley-Brown & Sharp, 2003 ).
• Nursing : Using computers to self-manage type 2 diabetes. ( Pal, Eastwood, Michie, Farmer, Barnard, Peacock, Wood, Inniss, & Murray, 2013 ).

1.3.1.12 Umbrella/Overview of Reviews

Compiles evidence from multiple systematic reviews into one document. Focuses on broad condition or problem for which there are competing interventions and highlights reviews that address those interventions and their effects. Often used in recommendations for practice.

Examples of an Umbrella/Overview Review:

• Education : Reflective practice in healthcare education: An umbrella review. ( Fragknos, 2016 ).
• Nursing : Systematic reviews of psychosocial interventions for autism: an umbrella review. ( Seida, Ospina, Karkhaneh, Hartling, Smith, & Clark, 2009 ).

For a brief discussion see “ Not all literature reviews are the same ” (Thomson, 2013).

1.4 Why do a Literature Review?

The purpose of the literature review is the same regardless of the topic or research method. It tests your own research question against what is already known about the subject.

1.4.1 First – It’s part of the whole. Omission of a literature review chapter or section in a graduate-level project represents a serious void or absence of critical element in the research process.

The outcome of your review is expected to demonstrate that you:

• can systematically explore the research in your topic area
• can read and critically analyze the literature in your discipline and then use it appropriately to advance your own work
• have sufficient knowledge in the topic to undertake further investigation

1.4.2 Second – It’s good for you!

• You improve your skills as a researcher
• You become familiar with the discourse of your discipline and learn how to be a scholar in your field
• You learn through writing your ideas and finding your voice in your subject area
• You define, redefine and clarify your research question for yourself in the process

1.4.3 Third – It’s good for your reader. Your reader expects you to have done the hard work of gathering, evaluating and synthesizes the literature.  When you do a literature review you:

• Set the context for the topic and present its significance
• Identify what’s important to know about your topic – including individual material, prior research, publications, organizations and authors.
• Demonstrate relationships among prior research
• Establish limitations of existing knowledge
• Analyze trends in the topic’s treatment and gaps in the literature

1.4.4 Why do a literature review?

• To locate gaps in the literature of your discipline
• To avoid reinventing the wheel
• To carry on where others have already been
• To identify other people working in the same field
• To increase your breadth of knowledge in your subject area
• To find the seminal works in your field
• To provide intellectual context for your own work
• To acknowledge opposing viewpoints
• To put your work in perspective
• To demonstrate you can discover and retrieve previous work in the area

1.5 Common Literature Review Errors

Graduate-level literature reviews are more than a summary of the publications you find on a topic.  As you have seen in this brief introduction, literature reviews are a very specific type of research, analysis, and writing.  We will explore these topics more in the next chapters.  Some things to keep in mind as you begin your own research and writing are ways to avoid the most common errors seen in the first attempt at a literature review.  For a quick review of some of the pitfalls and challenges a new researcher faces when he/she begins work, see “ Get Ready: Academic Writing, General Pitfalls and (oh yes) Getting Started! ”.

As you begin your own graduate-level literature review, try to avoid these common mistakes:

• Accepts another researcher’s finding as valid without evaluating methodology and data
• Contrary findings and alternative interpretations are not considered or mentioned
• Findings are not clearly related to one’s own study, or findings are too general
• Insufficient time allowed to define best search strategies and writing
• Isolated statistical results are simply reported rather than synthesizing the results
• Problems with selecting and using most relevant keywords, subject headings and descriptors
• Relies too heavily on secondary sources
• Search methods are not recorded or reported for transparency
• Summarizes rather than synthesizes articles

In conclusion, the purpose of a literature review is three-fold:

• to survey the current state of knowledge or evidence in the area of inquiry,
• to identify key authors, articles, theories, and findings in that area, and
• to identify gaps in knowledge in that research area.

A literature review is commonly done today using computerized keyword searches in online databases, often working with a trained librarian or information expert. Keywords can be combined using the Boolean operators, “and”, “or” and sometimes “not”  to narrow down or expand the search results. Once a list of articles is generated from the keyword and subject heading search, the researcher must then manually browse through each title and abstract, to determine the suitability of that article before a full-text article is obtained for the research question.

Literature reviews should be reasonably complete, and not restricted to a few journals, a few years, or a specific methodology or research design. Reviewed articles may be summarized in the form of tables, and can be further structured using organizing frameworks such as a concept matrix.

A well-conducted literature review should indicate whether the initial research questions have already been addressed in the literature, whether there are newer or more interesting research questions available, and whether the original research questions should be modified or changed in light of findings of the literature review.

The review can also provide some intuitions or potential answers to the questions of interest and/or help identify theories that have previously been used to address similar questions and may provide evidence to inform policy or decision-making. ( Bhattacherjee, 2012 ).

Read Abstract 1.  Refer to Types of Literature Reviews.  What type of literature review do you think this study is and why?  See the Answer Key for the correct response.

Nursing : To describe evidence of international literature on the safe care of the hospitalised child after the World Alliance for Patient Safety and list contributions of the general theoretical framework of patient safety for paediatric nursing.

An integrative literature review between 2004 and 2015 using the databases PubMed, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Scopus, Web of Science and Wiley Online Library, and the descriptors Safety or Patient safety, Hospitalised child, Paediatric nursing, and Nursing care.

Thirty-two articles were analysed, most of which were from North American, with a descriptive approach. The quality of the recorded information in the medical records, the use of checklists, and the training of health workers contribute to safe care in paediatric nursing and improve the medication process and partnerships with parents.

General information available on patient safety should be incorporated in paediatric nursing care. ( Wegner, Silva, Peres, Bandeira, Frantz, Botene, & Predebon, 2017 ).

Read Abstract 2.  Refer to Types of Literature Reviews.  What type of lit review do you think this study is and why?  See the Answer Key for the correct response.

Education : The focus of this paper centers around timing associated with early childhood education programs and interventions using meta-analytic methods. At any given assessment age, a child’s current age equals starting age, plus duration of program, plus years since program ended. Variability in assessment ages across the studies should enable everyone to identify the separate effects of all three time-related components. The project is a meta-analysis of evaluation studies of early childhood education programs conducted in the United States and its territories between 1960 and 2007. The population of interest is children enrolled in early childhood education programs between the ages of 0 and 5 and their control-group counterparts. Since the data come from a meta-analysis, the population for this study is drawn from many different studies with diverse samples. Given the preliminary nature of their analysis, the authors cannot offer conclusions at this point. ( Duncan, Leak, Li, Magnuson, Schindler, & Yoshikawa, 2011 ).

Test Yourself

See Answer Key for the correct responses.

The purpose of a graduate-level literature review is to summarize in as many words as possible everything that is known about my topic.

A literature review is significant because in the process of doing one, the researcher learns to read and critically assess the literature of a discipline and then uses it appropriately to advance his/her own research.

Read the following abstract and choose the correct type of literature review it represents.

Nursing: E-cigarette use has become increasingly popular, especially among the young. Its long-term influence upon health is unknown. Aim of this review has been to present the current state of knowledge about the impact of e-cigarette use on health, with an emphasis on Central and Eastern Europe. During the preparation of this narrative review, the literature on e-cigarettes available within the network PubMed was retrieved and examined. In the final review, 64 research papers were included. We specifically assessed the construction and operation of the e-cigarette as well as the chemical composition of the e-liquid; the impact that vapor arising from the use of e-cigarette explored in experimental models in vitro; and short-term effects of use of e-cigarettes on users’ health. Among the substances inhaled by the e-smoker, there are several harmful products, such as: formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acroleine, propanal, nicotine, acetone, o-methyl-benzaldehyde, carcinogenic nitrosamines. Results from experimental animal studies indicate the negative impact of e-cigarette exposure on test models, such as ascytotoxicity, oxidative stress, inflammation, airway hyper reactivity, airway remodeling, mucin production, apoptosis, and emphysematous changes. The short-term impact of e-cigarettes on human health has been studied mostly in experimental setting. Available evidence shows that the use of e-cigarettes may result in acute lung function responses (e.g., increase in impedance, peripheral airway flow resistance) and induce oxidative stress. Based on the current available evidence, e-cigarette use is associated with harmful biologic responses, although it may be less harmful than traditional cigarettes. (J ankowski, Brożek, Lawson, Skoczyński, & Zejda, 2017 ).

• Meta-analysis
• Exploratory

Education: In this review, Mary Vorsino writes that she is interested in keeping the potential influences of women pragmatists of Dewey’s day in mind while presenting modern feminist re readings of Dewey. She wishes to construct a narrowly-focused and succinct literature review of thinkers who have donned a feminist lens to analyze Dewey’s approaches to education, learning, and democracy and to employ Dewey’s works in theorizing on gender and education and on gender in society. This article first explores Dewey as both an ally and a problematic figure in feminist literature and then investigates the broader sphere of feminist pragmatism and two central themes within it: (1) valuing diversity, and diverse experiences; and (2) problematizing fixed truths. ( Vorsino, 2015 ).

Image Attributions

Literature Reviews for Education and Nursing Graduate Students Copyright © by Linda Frederiksen is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

• Open access
• Published: 15 April 2024

Correction: Role of AI chatbots in education: systematic literature review

• Lasha Labadze 1 ,
• Maya Grigolia 2 &
• Lela Machaidze 3  

International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education volume  21 , Article number:  28 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

Metrics details

The Original Article was published on 31 October 2023

Correction: Int J Educ Technol High Educ 20, 56 (2023)

https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00426-1

After publication of the original article (Labadze et al., 2023 ), the authors became aware that the use of a Large Language Model (LLM) has not been sufficiently documented in accordance with our editorial policy.

In view of this, the authors would like to add the following sentence to the Methodology section of the article:

“To improve the clarity of the discussion section, we employed Large Language Model (LLM) for stylistic suggestions.”

The original article has been updated.

Labadze, L., Grigolia, M., & Machaidze, L. (2023). Role of AI chatbots in education: Systematic literature review. Int J Educ Technol High Educ , 20 , 56. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00426-1 .

Article   Google Scholar  

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Finance Department, American University of the Middle East, Block 6, Building 1, Egaila, Kuwait

Lasha Labadze

Statistics Department, American University of the Middle East, Block 6, Building 1, Egaila, Kuwait

Maya Grigolia

Caucasus School of Business, Caucasus University, 1 Paata Saakadze St, Tbilisi, 0102, Georgia

Lela Machaidze

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lasha Labadze .

Additional information

Publisher’s note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

The online version of the original article can be found at https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00426-1 .

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Labadze, L., Grigolia, M. & Machaidze, L. Correction: Role of AI chatbots in education: systematic literature review. Int J Educ Technol High Educ 21 , 28 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-024-00461-6

Download citation

Published : 15 April 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-024-00461-6

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

Life’s Work: An Interview with Hernan Diaz

• Alison Beard

The Pulitzer Prize–winning author reflects on how literature shapes us and more.

In his novel Trust, which won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize, Diaz offered four contrasting perspectives on early-20th-century U.S. capitalism—a treatment that modern-day readers found deeply resonant. The author, who was born in Argentina, raised in Sweden, and now lives in the United States, says he likes to experiment with different voices and “mess with” American mythology. A longtime professor and academic editor, he published his first novel, In the Distance , a Pulitzer finalist, at age 44. Trust was his second.

• Alison Beard is an executive editor at Harvard Business Review and previously worked as a reporter and editor at the Financial Times. A mom of two, she tries—and sometimes succeeds—to apply management best practices to her household. alisonwbeard

Partner Center

Advertisement

Toward a framework for selecting indicators of measuring sustainability and circular economy in the agri-food sector: a systematic literature review

• LIFE CYCLE SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT
• Published: 02 March 2022

Cite this article

• Cecilia Silvestri   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2528-601X 1 ,
• Luca Silvestri   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-6754-899X 2 ,
• Michela Piccarozzi   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-9717-9462 1 &
• Alessandro Ruggieri 1  

2865 Accesses

11 Citations

9 Altmetric

Explore all metrics

A Correction to this article was published on 24 March 2022

This article has been updated

The implementation of sustainability and circular economy (CE) models in agri-food production can promote resource efficiency, reduce environmental burdens, and ensure improved and socially responsible systems. In this context, indicators for the measurement of sustainability play a crucial role. Indicators can measure CE strategies aimed to preserve functions, products, components, materials, or embodied energy. Although there is broad literature describing sustainability and CE indicators, no study offers such a comprehensive framework of indicators for measuring sustainability and CE in the agri-food sector.

Starting from this central research gap, a systematic literature review has been developed to measure the sustainability in the agri-food sector and, based on these findings, to understand how indicators are used and for which specific purposes.

The analysis of the results allowed us to classify the sample of articles in three main clusters (“Assessment-LCA,” “Best practice,” and “Decision-making”) and has shown increasing attention to the three pillars of sustainability (triple bottom line). In this context, an integrated approach of indicators (environmental, social, and economic) offers the best solution to ensure an easier transition to sustainability.

Conclusions

The sample analysis facilitated the identification of new categories of impact that deserve attention, such as the cooperation among stakeholders in the supply chain and eco-innovation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price includes VAT (Russian Federation)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Rent this article via DeepDyve

Institutional subscriptions

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the temporal distribution of the articles under analysis

Source: Authors’ elaborations. Notes: The graph shows the time distribution of articles from the three major journals

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the composition of the sample according to the three clusters identified by the analysis

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the distribution of articles over time by cluster

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the network visualization

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the overlay visualization

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the classification of articles by scientific field

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: Article classification based on their cluster to which they belong and scientific field

Source: Authors’ elaboration

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the distribution of items over time based on TBL

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the Pareto diagram highlighting the most used indicators in literature for measuring sustainability in the agri-food sector

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the distribution over time of articles divided into conceptual and empirical

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the classification of articles, divided into conceptual and empirical, in-depth analysis

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the geographical distribution of the authors

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the distribution of authors according to the continent from which they originate

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: The graph shows the time distribution of publication of authors according to the continent from which they originate

Source: Authors’ elaboration. Notes: Sustainability measurement indicators and impact categories of LCA, S-LCA, and LCC tools should be integrated in order to provide stakeholders with best practices as guidelines and tools to support both decision-making and measurement, according to the circular economy approach

Similar content being viewed by others

Common Methods and Sustainability Indicators

Transition heuristic frameworks in research on agro-food sustainability transitions

Hamid El Bilali

Research on agro-food sustainability transitions: where are food security and nutrition?

Change history, 24 march 2022.

A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-022-02038-9

Acero AP, Rodriguez C, Ciroth A (2017) LCIA methods: impact assessment methods in life cycle assessment and their impact categories. Version 1.5.6. Green Delta 1–23

Accorsi R, Versari L, Manzini R (2015) Glass vs. plastic: Life cycle assessment of extra-virgin olive oil bottles across global supply chains. Sustain 7:2818–2840. https://doi.org/10.3390/su7032818

Adjei-Bamfo P, Maloreh-Nyamekye T, Ahenkan A (2019) The role of e-government in sustainable public procurement in developing countries: a systematic literature review. Resour Conserv Recycl 142:189–203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2018.12.001

Article   Google Scholar  

Aivazidou E, Tsolakis N, Vlachos D, Iakovou E (2015) Water footprint management policies for agrifood supply chains: a critical taxonomy and a system dynamics modelling approach. Chem Eng Trans 43:115–120. https://doi.org/10.3303/CET1543020

Alhaddi H (2015) Triple bottom line and sustainability: a literature review. Bus Manag Stud 1:6–10

Allaoui H, Guo Y, Sarkis J (2019) Decision support for collaboration planning in sustainable supply chains. J Clean Prod 229:761–774. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.04.367

Alshqaqeeq F, Amin Esmaeili M, Overcash M, Twomey J (2020) Quantifying hospital services by carbon footprint: a systematic literature review of patient care alternatives. Resour Conserv Recycl 154:104560. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.104560

Anwar F, Chaudhry FN, Nazeer S et al (2016) Causes of ozone layer depletion and its effects on human: review. Atmos Clim Sci 06:129–134. https://doi.org/10.4236/acs.2016.61011

Aquilani B, Silvestri C, Ruggieri A (2016). A Systematic Literature Review on Total Quality Management Critical Success Factors and the Identification of New Avenues of Research. https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-01-2016-0003

Aramyan L, Hoste R, Van Den Broek W et al (2011) Towards sustainable food production: a scenario study of the European pork sector. J Chain Netw Sci 11:177–189. https://doi.org/10.3920/JCNS2011.Qpork8

Arfini F, Antonioli F, Cozzi E et al (2019) Sustainability, innovation and rural development: the case of Parmigiano-Reggiano PDO. Sustain 11:1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11184978

Assembly UG (2005) Resolution adopted by the general assembly. New York, NY

Avilés-Palacios C, Rodríguez-Olalla A (2021) The sustainability of waste management models in circular economies. Sustain 13:1–19. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13137105

Azevedo SG, Silva ME, Matias JCO, Dias GP (2018) The influence of collaboration initiatives on the sustainability of the cashew supply chain. Sustain 10:1–29. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10062075

Bajaj S, Garg R, Sethi M (2016) Total quality management: a critical literature review using Pareto analysis. Int J Product Perform Manag 67:128–154

Banasik A, Kanellopoulos A, Bloemhof-Ruwaard JM, Claassen GDH (2019) Accounting for uncertainty in eco-efficient agri-food supply chains: a case study for mushroom production planning. J Clean Prod 216:249–256. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.01.153

Barth H, Ulvenblad PO, Ulvenblad P (2017) Towards a conceptual framework of sustainable business model innovation in the agri-food sector: a systematic literature review. Sustain 9. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9091620

Bastas A, Liyanage K (2018) Sustainable supply chain quality management: a systematic review

Beckerman W (1992) Economic growth and the environment: whose growth? Whose environment? World Dev 20:481–496. https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-750X(92)90038-W

Belaud JP, Prioux N, Vialle C, Sablayrolles C (2019) Big data for agri-food 4.0: application to sustainability management for by-products supply chain. Comput Ind 111:41–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compind.2019.06.006

Bele B, Norderhaug A, Sickel H (2018) Localized agri-food systems and biodiversity. Agric 8. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture8020022

Bilali H El, Calabrese G, Iannetta M et al (2020) Environmental sustainability of typical agro-food products: a scientifically sound and user friendly approach. New Medit 19:69–83. https://doi.org/10.30682/nm2002e

Blanc S, Massaglia S, Brun F et al (2019) Use of bio-based plastics in the fruit supply chain: an integrated approach to assess environmental, economic, and social sustainability. Sustain 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11092475

Bloemhof JM, van der Vorst JGAJ, Bastl M, Allaoui H (2015) Sustainability assessment of food chain logistics. Int J Logist Res Appl 18:101–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/13675567.2015.1015508

Bonisoli L, Galdeano-Gómez E, Piedra-Muñoz L (2018) Deconstructing criteria and assessment tools to build agri-sustainability indicators and support farmers’ decision-making process. J Clean Prod 182:1080–1094. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.02.055

Bonisoli L, Galdeano-Gómez E, Piedra-Muñoz L, Pérez-Mesa JC (2019) Benchmarking agri-food sustainability certifications: evidences from applying SAFA in the Ecuadorian banana agri-system. J Clean Prod 236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.07.054

Bornmann L, Haunschild R, Hug SE (2018) Visualizing the context of citations referencing papers published by Eugene Garfield: a new type of keyword co-occurrence analysis. Scientometrics 114:427–437. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-017-2591-8

Boulding KE (1966) The economics of the coming spaceship earth. New York, 1-17

Bracquené E, Dewulf W, Duflou JR (2020) Measuring the performance of more circular complex product supply chains. Resour Conserv Recycl 154:104608. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.104608

Burck J, Hagen U, Bals C et al (2021) Climate Change Performance Index

Calisto Friant M, Vermeulen WJV, Salomone R (2020) A typology of circular economy discourses: navigating the diverse visions of a contested paradigm. Resour Conserv Recycl 161:104917. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.104917

Campbell BM, Beare DJ, Bennett EM et al (2017) Agriculture production as a major driver of the earth system exceeding planetary boundaries. Ecol Soc 22. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-09595-220408

Capitanio F, Coppola A, Pascucci S (2010) Product and process innovation in the Italian food industry. Agribusiness 26:503–518. https://doi.org/10.1002/agr.20239

Caputo P, Zagarella F, Cusenza MA et al (2020) Energy-environmental assessment of the UIA-OpenAgri case study as urban regeneration project through agriculture. Sci Total Environ 729:138819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.138819

Article   CAS   Google Scholar  

Chabowski BR, Mena JA, Gonzalez-Padron TL (2011) The structure of sustainability research in marketing, 1958–2008: a basis for future research opportunities. J Acad Mark Sci 39:55–70. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-010-0212-7

Chadegani AA, Salehi H, Yunus M et al (2017) A comparison between two main academic literature collections : Web of Science and Scopus databases. Asian Soc Sci 9:18–26. https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v9n5p18

Chams N, Guesmi B, Gil JM (2020) Beyond scientific contribution: assessment of the societal impact of research and innovation to build a sustainable agri-food sector. J Environ Manage 264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110455

Chandrakumar C, McLaren SJ, Jayamaha NP, Ramilan T (2019) Absolute sustainability-based life cycle assessment (ASLCA): a benchmarking approach to operate agri-food systems within the 2°C global carbon budget. J Ind Ecol 23:906–917. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12830

Chaparro-Africano AM (2019) Toward generating sustainability indicators for agroecological markets. Agroecol Sustain Food Syst 43:40–66. https://doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2019.1566192

Colicchia C, Strozzi F (2012) Supply chain risk management: a new methodology for a systematic literature review

Conca L, Manta F, Morrone D, Toma P (2021) The impact of direct environmental, social, and governance reporting: empirical evidence in European-listed companies in the agri-food sector. Bus Strateg Environ 30:1080–1093. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2672

Coppola A, Ianuario S, Romano S, Viccaro M (2020) Corporate social responsibility in agri-food firms: the relationship between CSR actions and firm’s performance. AIMS Environ Sci 7:542–558. https://doi.org/10.3934/environsci.2020034

Corona B, Shen L, Reike D et al (2019) Towards sustainable development through the circular economy—a review and critical assessment on current circularity metrics. Resour Conserv Recycl 151:104498. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.104498

Correia MS (2019) Sustainability: An overview of the triple bottom line and sustainability implementation. Int J Strateg Eng 2:29–38.  https://doi.org/10.4018/IJoSE.2019010103

Coteur I, Marchand F, Debruyne L, Lauwers L (2019) Structuring the myriad of sustainability assessments in agri-food systems: a case in Flanders. J Clean Prod 209:472–480. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.10.066

CREA (2020) L’agricoltura italiana conta 2019

Crenna E, Sala S, Polce C, Collina E (2017) Pollinators in life cycle assessment: towards a framework for impact assessment. J Clean Prod 140:525–536. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.02.058

D’Eusanio M, Serreli M, Zamagni A, Petti L (2018) Assessment of social dimension of a jar of honey: a methodological outline. J Clean Prod 199:503–517. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.07.157

Dania WAP, Xing K, Amer Y (2018) Collaboration behavioural factors for sustainable agri-food supply chains: a systematic review. J Clean Prod 186:851–864

De Pascale A, Arbolino R, Szopik-Depczyńska K et al (2021) A systematic review for measuring circular economy: the 61 indicators. J Clean Prod 281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.124942

De Schoenmakere M, Gillabel J (2017) Circular by design: products in the circular economy

Del Borghi A, Gallo M, Strazza C, Del Borghi M (2014) An evaluation of environmental sustainability in the food industry through life cycle assessment: the case study of tomato products supply chain. J Clean Prod 78:121–130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.04.083

Del Borghi A, Strazza C, Magrassi F et al (2018) Life cycle assessment for eco-design of product–package systems in the food industry—the case of legumes. Sustain Prod Consum 13:24–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2017.11.001

Denyer D, Tranfield D (2009) Producing a systematic review. In: Buchanan B (ed) The sage handbook of organization research methods. Sage Publications Ltd, Cornwall, pp 671–689

Google Scholar  

Dietz T, Grabs J, Chong AE (2019) Mainstreamed voluntary sustainability standards and their effectiveness: evidence from the Honduran coffee sector. Regul Gov. https://doi.org/10.1111/rego.12239

Dixon-Woods M (2011) Using framework-based synthesis for conducting reviews of qualitative studies. BMC Med 9:9–10. https://doi.org/10.1186/1741-7015-9-39

do Canto NR, Bossle MB, Marques L, Dutra M, (2020) Supply chain collaboration for sustainability: a qualitative investigation of food supply chains in Brazil. Manag Environ Qual an Int J. https://doi.org/10.1108/MEQ-12-2019-0275

dos Santos RR, Guarnieri P (2020) Social gains for artisanal agroindustrial producers induced by cooperation and collaboration in agri-food supply chain. Soc Responsib J. https://doi.org/10.1108/SRJ-09-2019-0323

Doukidis GI, Matopoulos A, Vlachopoulou M, Manthou V, Manos B (2007) A conceptual framework for supply chain collaboration: empirical evidence from the agri‐food industry. Supply Chain Manag an Int Journal 12:177–186. https://doi.org/10.1108/13598540710742491

Durach CF, Kembro J, Wieland A (2017) A new paradigm for systematic literature reviews in supply chain management. J Supply Chain Manag 53:67–85. https://doi.org/10.1111/jscm.12145

Durán-Sánchez A, Álvarez-García J, Río-Rama D, De la Cruz M (2018) Sustainable water resources management: a bibliometric overview. Water 10:1–19. https://doi.org/10.3390/w10091191

Duru M, Therond O (2015) Livestock system sustainability and resilience in intensive production zones: which form of ecological modernization? Reg Environ Chang 15:1651–1665. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-014-0722-9

Edison Fondazione (2019) Le eccellenze agricole italiane. I primati europei e mondiali dell’Italia nei prodotti vegetali. Milan (IT)

Ehrenfeld JR (2005) The roots of sustainability. MIT Sloan Manag Rev 46(2)46:23–25

Elia V, Gnoni MG, Tornese F (2017) Measuring circular economy strategies through index methods: a critical analysis. J Clean Prod 142:2741–2751. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.10.196

Elkington J (1997) Cannibals with forks : the triple bottom line of 21st century business. Capstone, Oxford

Esposito B, Sessa MR, Sica D, Malandrino O (2020) Towards circular economy in the agri-food sector. A systematic literature review. Sustain 12. https://doi.org/10.3390/SU12187401

European Commission (2018) Agri-food trade in 2018

European Commission (2019) Monitoring EU agri-food trade: development until September 2019

Eurostat (2018) Small and large farms in the EU - statistics from the farm structure survey

FAO (2011) Biodiversity for food and agriculture. Italy, Rome

FAO (2012) Energy-smart food at FAO: an overview. Italy, Rome

FAO (2014) Food wastage footprint: fool cost-accounting

FAO (2016) The state of food and agriculture climate change, agriculture and food security. Italy, Rome

FAO (2017) The future of food and agriculture: trends and challenges. Italy, Rome

FAO (2020) The state of food security and nutrition in the world. Transforming Food Systems for Affordable Healthy Diets. Rome, Italy

Fassio F, Tecco N (2019) Circular economy for food: a systemic interpretation of 40 case histories in the food system in their relationships with SDGs. Systems 7:43. https://doi.org/10.3390/systems7030043

Fathollahi A, Coupe SJ (2021) Life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC) of road drainage systems for sustainability evaluation: quantifying the contribution of different life cycle phases. Sci Total Environ 776:145937. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145937

Ferreira VJ, Arnal ÁJ, Royo P et al (2019) Energy and resource efficiency of electroporation-assisted extraction as an emerging technology towards a sustainable bio-economy in the agri-food sector. J Clean Prod 233:1123–1132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.06.030

Fiksel J (2006) A framework for sustainable remediation. JOM 8:15–22. https://doi.org/10.1021/es202595w

Flick U (2014) An introduction to qualitative research

Franciosi C, Voisin A, Miranda S et al (2020) Measuring maintenance impacts on sustainability of manufacturing industries : from a systematic literature review to a framework proposal. J Clean Prod 260:1–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.121065

Gaitán-Cremaschi D, Meuwissen MPM, Oude AGJML (2017) Total factor productivity: a framework for measuring agri-food supply chain performance towards sustainability. Appl Econ Perspect Policy 39:259–285. https://doi.org/10.1093/aepp/ppw008

Galdeano-Gómez E, Zepeda-Zepeda JA, Piedra-Muñoz L, Vega-López LL (2017) Family farm’s features influencing socio-economic sustainability: an analysis of the agri-food sector in southeast Spain. New Medit 16:50–61

Gallopín G, Herrero LMJ, Rocuts A (2014) Conceptual frameworks and visual interpretations of sustainability. Int J Sustain Dev 17:298–326. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJSD.2014.064183

Gallopín GC (2003) Sostenibilidad y desarrollo sostenible: un enfoque sistémico. Cepal, LATIN AMERICA

Garnett T (2013) Food sustainability: problems, perspectives and solutions. Proc Nutr Soc 72:29–39. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0029665112002947

Garofalo P, D’Andrea L, Tomaiuolo M et al (2017) Environmental sustainability of agri-food supply chains in Italy: the case of the whole-peeled tomato production under life cycle assessment methodology. J Food Eng 200:1–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfoodeng.2016.12.007

Gava O, Bartolini F, Venturi F et al (2018) A reflection of the use of the life cycle assessment tool for agri-food sustainability. Sustain 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11010071

Gazzola P, Querci E (2017) The connection between the quality of life and sustainable ecological development. Eur Sci J 7881:1857–7431

Geissdoerfer M, Savaget P, Bocken N, Hultink EJ (2017) The circular economy – a new sustainability paradigm ? The circular economy – a new sustainability paradigm ? J Clean Prod 143:757–768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048

Georgescu-Roegen N (1971) The entropy low and the economic process. Harward University Press, Cambridge Mass

Book   Google Scholar  

Gerbens-Leenes PW, Moll HC, Schoot Uiterkamp AJM (2003) Design and development of a measuring method for environmental sustainability in food production systems. Ecol Econ 46:231–248. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0921-8009(03)00140-X

Gésan-Guiziou G, Alaphilippe A, Aubin J et al (2020) Diversity and potentiality of multi-criteria decision analysis methods for agri-food research. Agron Sustain Dev 40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-020-00650-3

Ghisellini P, Cialani C, Ulgiati S (2016) A review on circular economy: the expected transition to a balanced interplay of environmental and economic systems. J Clean Prod 114:11–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.09.007

Godoy-Durán Á, Galdeano- Gómez E, Pérez-Mesa JC, Piedra-Muñoz L (2017) Assessing eco-efficiency and the determinants of horticultural family-farming in southeast Spain. J Environ Manage 204:594–604. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.09.037

Gold S, Kunz N, Reiner G (2017) Sustainable global agrifood supply chains: exploring the barriers. J Ind Ecol 21:249–260. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12440

Goucher L, Bruce R, Cameron DD et al (2017) The environmental impact of fertilizer embodied in a wheat-to-bread supply chain. Nat Plants 3:1–5. https://doi.org/10.1038/nplants.2017.12

Green A, Nemecek T, Chaudhary A, Mathys A (2020) Assessing nutritional, health, and environmental sustainability dimensions of agri-food production. Glob Food Sec 26:100406. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2020.100406

Guinée JB, Heijungs R, Huppes G et al (2011) Life cycle assessment: past, present, and future †. Environ Sci Technol 45:90–96. https://doi.org/10.1021/es101316v

Guiomar N, Godinho S, Pinto-Correia T et al (2018) Typology and distribution of small farms in Europe: towards a better picture. Land Use Policy 75:784–798. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.04.012

Gunasekaran A, Patel C, McGaughey RE (2004) A framework for supply chain performance measurement. Int J Prod Econ 87:333–347. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpe.2003.08.003

Gunasekaran A, Patel C, Tirtiroglu E (2001) Performance measures and metrics in a supply chain environment. Int J Oper Prod Manag 21:71–87. https://doi.org/10.1108/01443570110358468

Hamam M, Chinnici G, Di Vita G et al (2021) Circular economy models in agro-food systems: a review. Sustain 13

Harun SN, Hanafiah MM, Aziz NIHA (2021) An LCA-based environmental performance of rice production for developing a sustainable agri-food system in Malaysia. Environ Manage 67:146–161. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-020-01365-7

Harvey M, Pilgrim S (2011) The new competition for land: food, energy, and climate change. Food Policy 36:S40–S51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodpol.2010.11.009

Hawkes C, Ruel MT (2006) Understanding the links between agriculture and health. DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. Washington, USA

Hellweg S, Milà i Canals L (2014) Emerging approaches, challenges and opportunities in life cycle assessment. Science (80)344:1109LP–1113. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1248361

Higgins V, Dibden J, Cocklin C (2015) Private agri-food governance and greenhouse gas abatement: constructing a corporate carbon economy. Geoforum 66:75–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2015.09.012

Hill T (1995) Manufacturing strategy: text and cases., Macmillan

Hjeresen DD, Gonzales R (2020) Green chemistry promote sustainable agriculture?The rewards are higher yields and less environmental contamination. Environemental Sci Techonology 103–107

Horne R, Grant T, Verghese K (2009) Life cycle assessment: principles, practice, and prospects. Csiro Publishing, Collingwood, Australia

Horton P, Koh L, Guang VS (2016) An integrated theoretical framework to enhance resource efficiency, sustainability and human health in agri-food systems. J Clean Prod 120:164–169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.08.092

Hospido A, Davis J, Berlin J, Sonesson U (2010) A review of methodological issues affecting LCA of novel food products. Int J Life Cycle Assess 15:44–52. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-009-0130-4

Huffman T, Liu J, Green M et al (2015) Improving and evaluating the soil cover indicator for agricultural land in Canada. Ecol Indic 48:272–281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.07.008

Ilbery B, Maye D (2005) Food supply chains and sustainability: evidence from specialist food producers in the Scottish/English borders. Land Use Policy 22:331–344. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2004.06.002

Ingrao C, Faccilongo N, Valenti F et al (2019) Tomato puree in the Mediterranean region: an environmental life cycle assessment, based upon data surveyed at the supply chain level. J Clean Prod 233:292–313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.06.056

Iocola I, Angevin F, Bockstaller C et al (2020) An actor-oriented multi-criteria assessment framework to support a transition towards sustainable agricultural systems based on crop diversification. Sustain 12. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12135434

Irabien A, Darton RC (2016) Energy–water–food nexus in the Spanish greenhouse tomato production. Clean Technol Environ Policy 18:1307–1316. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10098-015-1076-9

ISO 14040:2006 (2006) Environmental management — life cycle assessment — principles and framework

ISO 14044:2006 (2006) Environmental management — life cycle assessment — requirements and guidelines

ISO 15392:2008 (2008) Sustainability in building construction–general principles

Istat (2019) Andamento dell’economia agricola

Jaakkola E (2020) Designing conceptual articles : four approaches. AMS Rev 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13162-020-00161-0

Jin R, Yuan H, Chen Q (2019) Science mapping approach to assisting the review of construction and demolition waste management research published between 2009 and 2018. Resour Conserv Recycl 140:175–188. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2018.09.029

Johnston P, Everard M, Santillo D, Robèrt KH (2007) Reclaiming the definition of sustainability. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int 14:60–66. https://doi.org/10.1065/espr2007.01.375

Jorgensen SE, Burkhard B, Müller F (2013) Twenty volumes of ecological indicators-an accounting short review. Ecol Indic 28:4–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2012.12.018

Joshi S, Sharma M, Kler R (2020) Modeling circular economy dimensions in agri-tourism clusters: sustainable performance and future research directions. Int J Math Eng Manag Sci 5:1046–1061. https://doi.org/10.33889/IJMEMS.2020.5.6.080

Kamilaris A, Gao F, Prenafeta-Boldu FX, Ali MI (2017) Agri-IoT: a semantic framework for Internet of Things-enabled smart farming applications. In: 2016 IEEE 3rd World Forum on Internet of Things, WF-IoT 2016. pp 442–447

Karuppusami G, Gandhinathan R (2006) Pareto analysis of critical success factors of total quality management: a literature review and analysis. TQM Mag 18:372–385. https://doi.org/10.1108/09544780610671048

Kates RW, Parris TM, Leiserowitz AA (2005) What is sustainable development? Goals, indicators, values, and practice. Environ Sci Policy Sustain Dev 47:8–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/00139157.2005.10524444

Khounani Z, Hosseinzadeh-Bandbafha H, Moustakas K et al (2021) Environmental life cycle assessment of different biorefinery platforms valorizing olive wastes to biofuel, phosphate salts, natural antioxidant, and an oxygenated fuel additive (triacetin). J Clean Prod 278:123916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123916

Kitchenham B, Charters S (2007) Guidelines for performing systematic literature reviews in software engineering version 2.3. Engineering 45. https://doi.org/10.1145/1134285.1134500

Korhonen J, Nuur C, Feldmann A, Birkie SE (2018) Circular economy as an essentially contested concept. J Clean Prod 175:544–552. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.12.111

Kuisma M, Kahiluoto H (2017) Biotic resource loss beyond food waste: agriculture leaks worst. Resour Conserv Recycl 124:129–140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2017.04.008

Laso J, Hoehn D, Margallo M et al (2018) Assessing energy and environmental efficiency of the Spanish agri-food system using the LCA/DEA methodology. Energies 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/en11123395

Lee KM (2007) So What is the “triple bottom line”? Int J Divers Organ Communities Nations Annu Rev 6:67–72. https://doi.org/10.18848/1447-9532/cgp/v06i06/39283

Lehmann RJ, Hermansen JE, Fritz M et al (2011) Information services for European pork chains - closing gaps in information infrastructures. Comput Electron Agric 79:125–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2011.09.002

León-Bravo V, Caniato F, Caridi M, Johnsen T (2017) Collaboration for sustainability in the food supply chain: a multi-stage study in Italy. Sustainability 9:1253

Lepage A (2009) The quality of life as attribute of sustainability. TQM J 21:105–115. https://doi.org/10.1108/17542730910938119

Li CZ, Zhao Y, Xiao B et al (2020) Research trend of the application of information technologies in construction and demolition waste management. J Clean Prod 263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.121458

Lo Giudice A, Mbohwa C, Clasadonte MT, Ingrao C (2014) Life cycle assessment interpretation and improvement of the Sicilian artichokes production. Int J Environ Res 8:305–316. https://doi.org/10.22059/ijer.2014.721

Lueddeckens S, Saling P, Guenther E (2020) Temporal issues in life cycle assessment—a systematic review. Int J Life Cycle Assess 25:1385–1401. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-020-01757-1

Luo J, Ji C, Qiu C, Jia F (2018) Agri-food supply chain management: bibliometric and content analyses. Sustain 10. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10051573

Lynch J, Donnellan T, Finn JA et al (2019) Potential development of Irish agricultural sustainability indicators for current and future policy evaluation needs. J Environ Manage 230:434–445. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.09.070

MacArthur E (2013) Towards the circular economy. J Ind Ecol 2:23–44

MacArthur E (2017) Delivering the circular economy a toolkit for policymakers, The Ellen MacArthur Foundation

MacInnis DJ (2011) A framework for conceptual. J Mark 75:136–154. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.75.4.136

Mangla SK, Luthra S, Rich N et al (2018) Enablers to implement sustainable initiatives in agri-food supply chains. Int J Prod Econ 203:379–393. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpe.2018.07.012

Marotta G, Nazzaro C, Stanco M (2017) How the social responsibility creates value: models of innovation in Italian pasta industry. Int J Glob Small Bus 9:144–167. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJGSB.2017.088923

Martucci O, Arcese G, Montauti C, Acampora A (2019) Social aspects in the wine sector: comparison between social life cycle assessment and VIVA sustainable wine project indicators. Resources 8. https://doi.org/10.3390/resources8020069

Mayring P (2004) Forum : Qualitative social research Sozialforschung 2. History of content analysis. A Companion to Qual Res 1:159–176

McKelvey B (2002) Managing coevolutionary dynamics. In: 18th EGOS Conference. Barcelona, Spain, pp 1–21

McMichael AJ, Butler CD, Folke C (2003) New visions for addressing sustainability. Science (80- ) 302:1191–1920

Mehmood A, Ahmed S, Viza E et al (2021) Drivers and barriers towards circular economy in agri-food supply chain: a review. Bus Strateg Dev 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1002/bsd2.171

Mella P, Gazzola P (2011) Sustainability and quality of life: the development model. In: Kapounek S (ed) Enterprise and competitive environment. Mendel University: Brno, Czechia. 542–551

Merli R, Preziosi M, Acampora A (2018) How do scholars approach the circular economy ? A systematic literature review. J Clean Prod 178:703–722. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.12.112

Merli R, Preziosi M, Acampora A et al (2020) Recycled fibers in reinforced concrete: a systematic literature review. J Clean Prod 248:119207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.119207

Miglietta PP, Morrone D (2018) Managing water sustainability: virtual water flows and economic water productivity assessment of the wine trade between Italy and the Balkans. Sustain 10. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020543

Mitchell MGE, Chan KMA, Newlands NK, Ramankutty N (2020) Spatial correlations don’t predict changes in agricultural ecosystem services: a Canada-wide case study. Front Sustain Food Syst 4:1–17. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2020.539892

Moraga G, Huysveld S, Mathieux F et al (2019) Circular economy indicators: what do they measure?. Resour Conserv Recycl 146:452–461. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.03.045

Morrissey JE, Dunphy NP (2015) Towards sustainable agri-food systems: the role of integrated sustainability and value assessment across the supply-chain. Int J Soc Ecol Sustain Dev 6:41–58. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJSESD.2015070104

Moser G (2009) Quality of life and sustainability: toward person-environment congruity. J Environ Psychol 29:351–357. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2009.02.002

Muijs D (2010) Doing quantitative research in education with SPSS. London

Muller MF, Esmanioto F, Huber N, Loures ER (2019) A systematic literature review of interoperability in the green Building Information Modeling lifecycle. J Clean Prod 223:397–412. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.03.114

Muradin M, Joachimiak-Lechman K, Foltynowicz Z (2018) Evaluation of eco-efficiency of two alternative agricultural biogas plants. Appl Sci 8. https://doi.org/10.3390/app8112083

Naseer MA, ur R, Ashfaq M, Hassan S, et al (2019) Critical issues at the upstream level in sustainable supply chain management of agri-food industries: evidence from Pakistan’s citrus industry. Sustain 11:1–19. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11051326

Nattassha R, Handayati Y, Simatupang TM, Siallagan M (2020) Understanding circular economy implementation in the agri-food supply chain: the case of an Indonesian organic fertiliser producer. Agric Food Secur 9:1–16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40066-020-00264-8

Nazari-Sharabian M, Ahmad S, Karakouzian M (2018) Climate change and eutrophication: a short review. Eng Technol Appl Sci Res 8:3668–3672. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.2532694

Nazir N (2017) Understanding life cycle thinking and its practical application to agri-food system. Int J Adv Sci Eng Inf Technol 7:1861–1870. https://doi.org/10.18517/ijaseit.7.5.3578

Negra C, Remans R, Attwood S et al (2020) Sustainable agri-food investments require multi-sector co-development of decision tools. Ecol Indic 110:105851. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2019.105851

Newsham KK, Robinson SA (2009) Responses of plants in polar regions to UVB exposure: a meta-analysis. Glob Chang Biol 15:2574–2589. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2486.2009.01944.x

Niemeijer D, de Groot RS (2008) A conceptual framework for selecting environmental indicator sets. Ecol Indic 8:14–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2006.11.012

Niero M, Kalbar PP (2019) Coupling material circularity indicators and life cycle based indicators: a proposal to advance the assessment of circular economy strategies at the product level. Resour Conserv Recycl 140:305–312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2018.10.002

Nikolaou IE, Tsagarakis KP (2021) An introduction to circular economy and sustainability: some existing lessons and future directions. Sustain Prod Consum 28:600–609. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2021.06.017

Notarnicola B, Hayashi K, Curran MA, Huisingh D (2012) Progress in working towards a more sustainable agri-food industry. J Clean Prod 28:1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.02.007

Notarnicola B, Tassielli G, Renzulli PA, Monforti F (2017) Energy flows and greenhouses gases of EU (European Union) national breads using an LCA (life cycle assessment) approach. J Clean Prod 140:455–469. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.05.150

Opferkuch K, Caeiro S, Salomone R, Ramos TB (2021) Circular economy in corporate sustainability reporting: a review of organisational approaches. Bus Strateg Environ 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2854

Padilla-Rivera A, do Carmo BBT, Arcese G, Merveille N, (2021) Social circular economy indicators: selection through fuzzy delphi method. Sustain Prod Consum 26:101–110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2020.09.015

Pagotto M, Halog A (2016) Towards a circular economy in Australian agri-food industry: an application of input-output oriented approaches for analyzing resource efficiency and competitiveness potential. J Ind Ecol 20:1176–1186. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12373

Parent G, Lavallée S (2011) LCA potentials and limits within a sustainable agri-food statutory framework. Global food insecurity. Springer, Netherlands, Dordrecht, pp 161–171

Chapter   Google Scholar  

Pattey E, Qiu G (2012) Trends in primary particulate matter emissions from Canadian agriculture. J Air Waste Manag Assoc 62:737–747. https://doi.org/10.1080/10962247.2012.672058

Pauliuk S (2018) Critical appraisal of the circular economy standard BS 8001:2017 and a dashboard of quantitative system indicators for its implementation in organizations. Resour Conserv Recycl 129:81–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2017.10.019

Peano C, Migliorini P, Sottile F (2014) A methodology for the sustainability assessment of agri-food systems: an application to the slow food presidia project. Ecol Soc 19. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-06972-190424

Peano C, Tecco N, Dansero E et al (2015) Evaluating the sustainability in complex agri-food systems: the SAEMETH framework. Sustain 7:6721–6741. https://doi.org/10.3390/su7066721

Pearce DW, Turner RK (1990) Economics of natural resources and the environment. Harvester Wheatsheaf, Hemel Hempstead, Herts

Pelletier N (2018) Social sustainability assessment of Canadian egg production facilities: methods, analysis, and recommendations. Sustain 10:1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10051601

Peña C, Civit B, Gallego-Schmid A et al (2021) Using life cycle assessment to achieve a circular economy. Int J Life Cycle Assess 26:215–220. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-020-01856-z

Perez Neira D (2016) Energy sustainability of Ecuadorian cacao export and its contribution to climate change. A case study through product life cycle assessment. J Clean Prod 112:2560–2568. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.11.003

Pérez-Neira D, Grollmus-Venegas A (2018) Life-cycle energy assessment and carbon footprint of peri-urban horticulture. A comparative case study of local food systems in Spain. Landsc Urban Plan 172:60–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2018.01.001

Pérez-Pons ME, Plaza-Hernández M, Alonso RS et al (2021) Increasing profitability and monitoring environmental performance: a case study in the agri-food industry through an edge-iot platform. Sustain 13:1–16. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13010283

Petti L, Serreli M, Di Cesare S (2018) Systematic literature review in social life cycle assessment. Int J Life Cycle Assess 23:422–431. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-016-1135-4

Pieroni MPP, McAloone TC, Pigosso DCA (2019) Business model innovation for circular economy and sustainability: a review of approaches. J Clean Prod 215:198–216. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.01.036

Polit DF, Beck CT (2004) Nursing research: principles and methods. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia, PA

Porkka M, Gerten D, Schaphoff S et al (2016) Causes and trends of water scarcity in food production. Environ Res Lett 11:015001. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/11/1/015001

Prajapati H, Kant R, Shankar R (2019) Bequeath life to death: state-of-art review on reverse logistics. J Clean Prod 211:503–520. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.11.187

Priyadarshini P, Abhilash PC (2020) Policy recommendations for enabling transition towards sustainable agriculture in India. Land Use Policy 96:104718. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2020.104718

Pronti A, Coccia M (2020) Multicriteria analysis of the sustainability performance between agroecological and conventional coffee farms in the East Region of Minas Gerais (Brazil). Renew Agric Food Syst. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742170520000332

Rabadán A, González-Moreno A, Sáez-Martínez FJ (2019) Improving firms’ performance and sustainability: the case of eco-innovation in the agri-food industry. Sustain 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205590

Raut RD, Luthra S, Narkhede BE et al (2019) Examining the performance oriented indicators for implementing green management practices in the Indian agro sector. J Clean Prod 215:926–943. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.01.139

Recanati F, Marveggio D, Dotelli G (2018) From beans to bar: a life cycle assessment towards sustainable chocolate supply chain. Sci Total Environ 613–614:1013–1023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.09.187

Redclift M (2005) Sustainable development (1987–2005): an oxymoron comes of age. Sustain Dev 13:212–227. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.281

Rezaei M, Soheilifard F, Keshvari A (2021) Impact of agrochemical emission models on the environmental assessment of paddy rice production using life cycle assessment approach. Energy Sources. Part A Recover Util Environ Eff 1–16

Rigamonti L, Mancini E (2021) Life cycle assessment and circularity indicators. Int J Life Cycle Assess. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-021-01966-2

Risku-Norja H, Mäenpää I (2007) MFA model to assess economic and environmental consequences of food production and consumption. Ecol Econ 60:700–711. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2006.05.001

Ritzén S, Sandström GÖ (2017) Barriers to the circular economy – integration of perspectives and domains. Procedia CIRP 64:7–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procir.2017.03.005

Rockström J, Steffen W, Noone K et al (2009) A safe operating space for humanity. Nature 461:472–475. https://doi.org/10.1038/461472a

Roos Lindgreen E, Mondello G, Salomone R et al (2021) Exploring the effectiveness of grey literature indicators and life cycle assessment in assessing circular economy at the micro level: a comparative analysis. Int J Life Cycle Assess. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-021-01972-4

Roselli L, Casieri A, De Gennaro BC et al (2020) Environmental and economic sustainability of table grape production in Italy. Sustain 12.  https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093670

Ross RB, Pandey V, Ross KL (2015) Sustainability and strategy in U.S. agri-food firms: an assessment of current practices. Int Food Agribus Manag Rev 18:17–48

Royo P, Ferreira VJ, López-Sabirón AM, Ferreira G. (2016) Hybrid diagnosis to characterise the energy and environmental enhancement of photovoltaic modules using smart materials. Energy 101:174–189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2016.01.101

Ruggerio CA (2021) Sustainability and sustainable development: a review of principles and definitions. Sci Total Environ 786:147481. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147481

Ruiz-Almeida A, Rivera-Ferre MG (2019) Internationally-based indicators to measure agri-food systems sustainability using food sovereignty as a conceptual framework. Food Secur 11:1321–1337. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-019-00964-5

Ryan M, Hennessy T, Buckley C et al (2016) Developing farm-level sustainability indicators for Ireland using the Teagasc National Farm Survey. Irish J Agric Food Res 55:112–125. https://doi.org/10.1515/ijafr-2016-0011

Saade MRM, Yahia A, Amor B (2020) How has LCA been applied to 3D printing ? A systematic literature review and recommendations for future studies. J Clean Prod 244:118803. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.118803

Saitone TL, Sexton RJ (2017) Agri-food supply chain: evolution and performance with conflicting consumer and societal demands. Eur Rev Agric Econ 44:634–657. https://doi.org/10.1093/erae/jbx003

Salim N, Ab Rahman MN, Abd Wahab D (2019) A systematic literature review of internal capabilities for enhancing eco-innovation performance of manufacturing firms. J Clean Prod 209:1445–1460. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.11.105

Salimi N (2021) Circular economy in agri-food systems BT - strategic decision making for sustainable management of industrial networks. In: International S (ed) Rezaei J. Publishing, Cham, pp 57–70

Salomone R, Ioppolo G (2012) Environmental impacts of olive oil production: a life cycle assessment case study in the province of Messina (Sicily). J Clean Prod 28:88–100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2011.10.004

Sánchez AD, Río DMDLC, García JÁ (2017) Bibliometric analysis of publications on wine tourism in the databases Scopus and WoS. Eur Res Manag Bus Econ 23:8–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iedeen.2016.02.001

Saputri VHL, Sutopo W, Hisjam M, Ma’aram A (2019) Sustainable agri-food supply chain performance measurement model for GMO and non-GMO using data envelopment analysis method. Appl Sci 9. https://doi.org/10.3390/app9061199

Sassanelli C, Rosa P, Rocca R, Terzi S (2019) Circular economy performance assessment methods : a systematic literature review. J Clean Prod 229:440–453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.05.019

Schiefer S, Gonzalez C, Flanigan S (2015) More than just a factor in transition processes? The role of collaboration in agriculture. In: Sutherland LA, Darnhofer I, Wilson GA, Zagata L (eds) Transition pathways towards sustainability in agriculture: case studies from Europe, CPI Group. Croydon, UK, pp. 83

Seuring S, Muller M (2008) From a literature review to a conceptual framework for sustainable supply chain management. J Clean Prod 16:1699–1710. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2008.04.020

Silvestri C, Silvestri L, Forcina A, et al (2021) Green chemistry contribution towards more equitable global sustainability and greater circular economy: A systematic literature review. J Clean Prod 294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126137

Smetana S, Schmitt E, Mathys A (2019) Sustainable use of Hermetia illucens insect biomass for feed and food: attributional and consequential life cycle assessment. Resour Conserv Recycl 144:285–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.01.042

Sonesson U, Berlin J, Ziegler F (2010) Environmental assessment and management in the food industry: life cycle assessment and related approaches. Woodhead Publishing, Cambridge

Soussana JF (2014) Research priorities for sustainable agri-food systems and life cycle assessment. J Clean Prod 73:19–23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.02.061

Soylu A, Oruç C, Turkay M et al (2006) Synergy analysis of collaborative supply chain management in energy systems using multi-period MILP. Eur J Oper Res 174:387–403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejor.2005.02.042

Spaiser V, Ranganathan S, Swain RB, Sumpter DJ (2017) The sustainable development oxymoron: quantifying and modelling the incompatibility of sustainable development goals. Int J Sustain Dev World Ecol 24:457–470. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504509.2016.1235624

Stewart R, Niero M (2018) Circular economy in corporate sustainability strategies: a review of corporate sustainability reports in the fast-moving consumer goods sector. Bus Strateg Environ 27:1005–1022. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2048

Stillitano T, Spada E, Iofrida N et al (2021) Sustainable agri-food processes and circular economy pathways in a life cycle perspective: state of the art of applicative research. Sustain 13:1–29. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13052472

Stone J, Rahimifard S (2018) Resilience in agri-food supply chains: a critical analysis of the literature and synthesis of a novel framework. Supply Chain Manag 23:207–238. https://doi.org/10.1108/SCM-06-2017-0201

Strazza C, Del Borghi A, Gallo M, Del Borghi M (2011) Resource productivity enhancement as means for promoting cleaner production: analysis of co-incineration in cement plants through a life cycle approach. J Clean Prod 19:1615–1621. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2011.05.014

Su B, Heshmati A, Geng Y, Yu X (2013) A review of the circular economy in China: moving from rhetoric to implementation. J Clean Prod 42:215–227. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.11.020

Suárez-Eiroa B, Fernández E, Méndez-Martínez G, Soto-Oñate D (2019) Operational principles of circular economy for sustainable development: linking theory and practice. J Clean Prod 214:952–961. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.12.271

Svensson G, Wagner B (2015) Implementing and managing economic, social and environmental efforts of business sustainability. Manag Environ Qual an Int Journal 26:195–213. https://doi.org/10.1108/MEQ-09-2013-0099

Tasca AL, Nessi S, Rigamonti L (2017) Environmental sustainability of agri-food supply chains: an LCA comparison between two alternative forms of production and distribution of endive in northern Italy. J Clean Prod 140:725–741. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.06.170

Tassielli G, Notarnicola B, Renzulli PA, Arcese G (2018) Environmental life cycle assessment of fresh and processed sweet cherries in southern Italy. J Clean Prod 171:184–197. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.09.227

Teixeira R, Pax S (2011) A survey of life cycle assessment practitioners with a focus on the agri-food sector. J Ind Ecol 15:817–820. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1530-9290.2011.00421.x

Tobergte DR, Curtis S (2013) ILCD Handbook. J Chem Info Model. https://doi.org/10.278/33030

Tortorella MM, Di Leo S, Cosmi C et al (2020) A methodological integrated approach to analyse climate change effects in agri-food sector: the TIMES water-energy-food module. Int J Environ Res Public Health 17:1–21. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17217703

Tranfield D, Denyer D, Smart P (2003) Towards a methodology for developing evidenceinformed management knowledge by means of systematic review. Br J Manag 14:207–222

Trivellas P, Malindretos G, Reklitis P (2020) Implications of green logistics management on sustainable business and supply chain performance: evidence from a survey in the greek agri-food sector. Sustain 12:1–29. https://doi.org/10.3390/su122410515

Tsangas M, Gavriel I, Doula M et al (2020) Life cycle analysis in the framework of agricultural strategic development planning in the Balkan region. Sustain 12:1–15. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12051813

Ülgen VS, Björklund M, Simm N (2019) Inter-organizational supply chain interaction for sustainability : a systematic literature review.

UNEP S (2020) Guidelines for social life cycle assessment of products and organizations 2020.

UNEP/SETAC (2009) United Nations Environment Programme-society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Guidelines for social life cycle assessment of products. France

United Nations (2011) Guiding principles on business and human rights. Implementing the United Nations “protect, respect and remedy” framework

United Nations (2015) Transforming our world: the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. sustainabledevelopment.un.org

Van Asselt ED, Van Bussel LGJ, Van Der Voet H et al (2014) A protocol for evaluating the sustainability of agri-food production systems - a case study on potato production in peri-urban agriculture in the Netherlands. Ecol Indic 43:315–321. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.02.027

Van der Ploeg JD (2014) Peasant-driven agricultural growth and food sovereignty. J Peasant Stud 41:999–1030. https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2013.876997

van Eck NJ, Waltman L (2010) Software survey: VOSviewer, a computer program for bibliometric mapping. Scientometrics 84:523–538. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-009-0146-3

Van Eck NJ, Waltman L (2019) Manual for VOSviwer version 1.6.10. CWTS Meaningful metrics 1–53

Vasa L, Angeloska A, Trendov NM (2017) Comparative analysis of circular agriculture development in selected Western Balkan countries based on sustainable performance indicators. Econ Ann 168:44–47. https://doi.org/10.21003/ea.V168-09

Verdecho MJ, Alarcón-Valero F, Pérez-Perales D et al (2020) A methodology to select suppliers to increase sustainability within supply chains. Cent Eur J Oper Res. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10100-019-00668-3

Vergine P, Salerno C, Libutti A et al (2017) Closing the water cycle in the agro-industrial sector by reusing treated wastewater for irrigation. J Clean Prod 164:587–596. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.06.239

WCED (1987) Our common future - call for action

Webster K (2013) What might we say about a circular economy? Some temptations to avoid if possible. World Futures 69:542–554

Wheaton E, Kulshreshtha S (2013) Agriculture and climate change: implications for environmental sustainability indicators. WIT Trans Ecol Environ 175:99–110. https://doi.org/10.2495/ECO130091

Wijewickrama MKCS, Chileshe N, Rameezdeen R, Ochoa JJ (2021) Information sharing in reverse logistics supply chain of demolition waste: a systematic literature review. J Clean Prod 280:124359. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.124359

Woodhouse A, Davis J, Pénicaud C, Östergren K (2018) Sustainability checklist in support of the design of food processing. Sustain Prod Consum 16:110–120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2018.06.008

Wu R, Yang D, Chen J (2014) Social Life Cycle Assessment Revisited Sustain 6:4200–4226. https://doi.org/10.3390/su6074200

Yadav S, Luthra S, Garg D (2021) Modelling Internet of things (IoT)-driven global sustainability in multi-tier agri-food supply chain under natural epidemic outbreaks. Environ Sci Pollut Res 16633–16654. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-11676-1

Yee FM, Shaharudin MR, Ma G et al (2021) Green purchasing capabilities and practices towards Firm’s triple bottom line in Malaysia. J Clean Prod 307:127268. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.127268

Yigitcanlar T (2010) Rethinking sustainable development: urban management, engineering, and design. IGI Global

Zamagni A, Amerighi O, Buttol P (2011) Strengths or bias in social LCA? Int J Life Cycle Assess 16:596–598. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-011-0309-3

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Department of Economy, Engineering, Society and Business Organization, University of “Tuscia, ” Via del Paradiso 47, 01100, Viterbo, VT, Italy

Cecilia Silvestri, Michela Piccarozzi & Alessandro Ruggieri

Department of Engineering, University of Rome “Niccolò Cusano, ” Via Don Carlo Gnocchi, 3, 00166, Rome, Italy

Luca Silvestri

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Cecilia Silvestri .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Communicated by Monia Niero

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

The original online version of this article was revised: a number of ill-placed paragraph headings were removed and the source indication "Authors' elaborations" was added to Tables 1-3.

Supplementary Information

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary file1 (DOCX 31 KB)

Rights and permissions.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Silvestri, C., Silvestri, L., Piccarozzi, M. et al. Toward a framework for selecting indicators of measuring sustainability and circular economy in the agri-food sector: a systematic literature review. Int J Life Cycle Assess (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-022-02032-1

Download citation

Received : 15 June 2021

Accepted : 16 February 2022

Published : 02 March 2022

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-022-02032-1

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Agri-food sector
• Sustainability
• Circular economy
• Triple bottom line
• Life cycle assessment
• Find a journal
• Publish with us
• Track your research

Author Information

Journal Information

• Editorial Boards
• Publication Period
• Publication Charge
• Open Access Policy
• Open Access License
• Abstracting and Indexing
• Peer Review Policy
• Publication Ethics
• Plagiarism Screening
• Browse Articles
• Scopus Citedness
• Vol. 1 Issue 1 (2017)
• Vol. 1 Issue 2 (2018)
• Vol. 1 Issue 3 (2018)
• Vol. 2 Issue 1 (2018)
• Vol. 2 Issue 2 (2019)
• Vol. 2 Issue 3 (2019)
• Vol. 3 Issue 1 (2019)
• Vol. 3 Issue 2 (2020)
• Vol. 3 Issue 3 (2020)
• Vol. 4 Issue 1 (2020)
• Vol. 4 Issue 2 (2021)
• Vol. 4 Issue 3 (2021)
• Vol. 4 Issue 4 (2021)
• Vol. 5 Issue 1 (2022)
• Vol. 5 Issue 2 (2022)
• Vol. 5 Issue 3 (2022)
• Vol. 6 Issue 1 (2023)
• Vol. 6 Issue 2 (2023)
• Vol. 6 Issue 3 (2023)
• Vol. 6 Issue 4 (2023)
• Vol. 7 Issue 1 (2024)
• 5172  downloads (2020)
• 5640  downloads (2021)
• 14151  downloads (2022)
• 6.524  Visitors (2020)
• 11.355  Visitors (2021)
• 13.937  Visitors (2022)

View My Stats

• Recommended softwares for the manuscript preparation: Mendeley , Grammarly

Accreditation

Main Indexing

• Announcements
• Most-Cited Articles

A Systematic Literature Review of Science and Physics Education Teaching Regarding Oscillations

Aygün, B. M., & Hacıoğlu, Y. (2022). Teaching the Sound Concept : A Review of Science and Physics Education Postgraduate Theses in Turkey. Athen Journal of Education, 9(2), 257–275.

Banda, H. J., & Nzabahimana, J. (2023). The Impact of Physics Education Technology (PhET) Interactive Simulation-Based Learning on Motivation and Academic Achievement Among Malawian Physics Students. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 32(1), 127–141. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10956-022-10010-3

Bathgate, M. E., Aragón, O. R., Cavanagh, A. J., Waterhouse, J. K., Frederick, J., & Graham, M. J. (2019). Perceived supports and evidence-based teaching in college STEM. International Journal of STEM Education, 6(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-019-0166-3

Batlolona, J. R., Diantoro, M., Wartono, & Latifah, E. (2019). Creative thinking skills students in physics on solid material elasticity. Journal of Turkish Science Education, 16(1), 48–61. https://doi.org/10.12973/tused.10265a

Batlolona, J. R., Diantoro, M., Wartono, & Leasa, M. (2020). Students’ mental models of solid elasticity: Mixed method study. Journal of Turkish Science Education, 17(2), 200–210. https://doi.org/10.36681/tused.2020.21

Borrachero, A. B., Brígido, M., Dávila, M. A., Costillo, E., Cañada, F., & Mellado, V. (2019). Improving the self-regulation in prospective science teachers: the case of the calculus of the period of a simple pendulum. Heliyon, 5(12). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e02827

Chiriacescu, B., Chiriacescu, F. S., Miron, C., Berlic, C., & Barna, V. (2020). Arduino and tracker video – didactic tools for study of the kater pendulum physical experiment. Romanian Reports in Physics, 72(1), 1–14.

Chong, S. W., Lin, T. J., & Chen, Y. (2022). A methodological review of systematic literature review in higher education: Heterogeneity and homogeneity. Educational Research Review, 2022, 2–37.

da Silva, O. H. M., Laburú, C. E., Camargo, S., & Chistófalo, A. A. C. (2019). Epistemological contributions derived from an investigative method in an experimental class in the study of Hooke’s law. Acta Scientiae, 21(2), 110–127. https://doi.org/10.17648/acta.scientiae.v21iss2id4695

Dandare, K. (2018). A study of conceptions of preservice physics teachers in relation to the simple pendulum. Physics Education, 53(5), aac92f. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6552/aac92f

Farrokhnia, M. (2020). Student-Generated Stop-Motion Animation in Science Classes : a Systematic Literature Review. Journal of Science Educa, 29(9), 797–812.

Garcés-Gómez, Y. A., López, P. A., Cárdenas, O. O., Henao-Cespedes, V., & Toro-García, N. (2020). Experimental verification of two theoretical solutions of the pendulum for large angles in frequency domain for teaching support. International Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies, 14(8), 140–149. https://doi.org/10.3991/IJIM.V14I08.12607

Hauko, R., Andreevski, D., Paul, D., Šterk, M., & Repnik, R. (2018). Teaching of the harmonic oscillator damped by a constant force: The use of analogy and experiments. American Journal of Physics, 86(9), 657–662. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.5044654

Ingram, A. R., & Motta, S. E. (2020). A review of quasi-periodic oscillations from black hole X-ray binaries : Observation and theory. New Astronomy Reviews, 85(September 2019), 101524. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.newar.2020.101524

Ionascu, C. (2022). VIRTUAL EXPERIMENTS FOR MEASURING FUNDAMENTAL PHYSICAL QUANTITIES. Romanian Reports in Physics, 74(4). https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85141884433

Israilov, S., Fu, L., Sánchez-Rodríguez, J., Fusco, F., Allibert, G., Raufaste, C., & Argentina, M. (2023). Reinforcement learning approach to control an inverted pendulum: A general framework for educational purposes. PLoS ONE, 18(2 February), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0280071

Krnic Martinic, M., Pieper, D., Glatt, A., & Puljak, L. (2019). Definition of a systematic review used in overviews of systematic reviews, meta-epidemiological studies and textbooks. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 19(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12874-019-0855-0

Kurniawan, B. R., Kusairi, S., Puspita, D. A., & Kusumaningrum, R. W. (2021). Development of Computer Based Diagnostic Assessment Completed with Simple Harmonic Movement Material Remedial Program. Jurnal Pendidikan Fisika Indonesia, 17(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.15294/jpfi.v17i1.18540

Lisboa, A., Peña, F. J., Negrete, O., & Dib, C. O. (2021). Teaching labs for blind students: Equipment to measure standing waves on a string. European Journal of Physics, 42(6). https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6404/ac18b6

Mallidis-Malessas, P., Iatraki, G., & Mikropoulos, T. A. (2022). Teaching Physics to Students With Intellectual Disabilities Using Digital Learning Objects. Journal of Special Education Technology, 37(4), 510–522. https://doi.org/10.1177/01626434211054441

McComas, W. F., & Burgin, S. R. (2020). A Critique of “STEM” Education: Revolution-in-the-Making, Passing Fad, or Instructional Imperative? Science and Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-020-00138-2

Nyirahabimana, P., Minani, E., Nduwingoma, M., & Kemeza, I. (2022). A scientometric review of multimedia in teaching and learning of physics. LUMAT, 10(1), 89–106.

Powell, J. T., & Koelemay, M. J. W. (2022). Systematic Reviews of the Literature Are Not Always Either Useful Or the Best Way To Add To Science. EJVES Vascular Forum, 54(i), 2–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejvsvf.2021.10.021

Price, C. B., & Mohr, R. P. (2019). PhysLab: A 3D virtual physics laboratory of simulated experiments for advanced physics learning. Physics Education, 54(3). https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6552/ab0005

Purba, S. W. D., & Hwang, W. Y. (2018). Investigation of learning behaviors and achievement of simple pendulum for vocational high school students with Ubiquitous-Physics app. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(7), 2877–2893. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/90985

Rinaldi, R. G., & Fauzi, A. (2020). A complete damped harmonic oscillator using an Arduino and an Excel spreadsheet. Physics Education, 55(1), ab539d. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6552/ab539d

Sumardi, Y., Amalia, A. F., & Prabowo, U. N. (2022). Develoment of The Computer Simulation of Oscillation in Physics Learning. Jurnal Pendidikan Fisika Indonesia, 18(1), 33–44. https://doi.org/10.15294/jpfi.v18i1.29040

Tinmaz, H., Lee, Y. T., Ivanovici, M. F., & Baber, H. (2022). A systematic review on digital literacy. Smart Learning Environments, 9(21), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40561-022-00204-y

Volfson, A., Eshach, H., & Ben-Abu, Y. (2021). When Technology Meets Acoustics: Students’ Ideas About the Underlying Principles Explaining Simple Acoustic Devices. Research in Science Education, 51(4), 911–938. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-019-09913-w

Zhong, B., & Xia, L. (2020). A Systematic Review on Exploring the Potential of Educational Robotics in Mathematics Education. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 18(5), 79–101.

• There are currently no refbacks.