IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/transe/v189y2024ics136655452400276x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Unravelling and mapping the theoretical foundations of sustainable supply chains: A literature review and research agenda

Author

Listed:
  • Govindan, Kannan
  • Demartini, Melissa
  • Formentini, Marco
  • Taticchi, Paolo
  • Tonelli, Flavio

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to examine the progression of research literature on sustainable supply chain management and present the prevailing theoretical lenses employed in this field. Through a systematic literature review, this paper identifies: i) dominant theories, ii) the roles played by dominant theories and their combination, and iii) the correlation between dominant theories and research methodologies. The goal is to assist researchers in approaching sustainable supply chain management studies by familiarizing them with the current state-of-the-art theoretical perspectives commonly employed in the field. Additionally, this review develops research propositions and a “theoretical toolbox” to empower scholars in gaining a more profound comprehension of these theoretical perspectives.

Suggested Citation

  • Govindan, Kannan & Demartini, Melissa & Formentini, Marco & Taticchi, Paolo & Tonelli, Flavio, 2024. "Unravelling and mapping the theoretical foundations of sustainable supply chains: A literature review and research agenda," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:transe:v:189:y:2024:i:c:s136655452400276x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.tre.2024.103685
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136655452400276X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.tre.2024.103685?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Divya Choudhary & Ajay Kumar & Baofeng Huo, 2023. "Examination of sustainability risk in freight shipping based on the theory of planned behavior with temporal analysis," Post-Print hal-04325731, HAL.
    2. Wilhelm, Miriam & Blome, Constantin & Wieck, Ellen & Xiao, Cheng Yong, 2016. "Implementing sustainability in multi-tier supply chains: Strategies and contingencies in managing sub-suppliers," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 182(C), pages 196-212.
    3. Govindan, Kannan, 2023. "How digitalization transforms the traditional circular economy to a smart circular economy for achieving SDGs and net zero," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    4. Beske, Philip & Land, Anna & Seuring, Stefan, 2014. "Sustainable supply chain management practices and dynamic capabilities in the food industry: A critical analysis of the literature," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 131-143.
    5. Choudhary, Divya & Kumar, Ajay & Huo, Baofeng, 2023. "Examination of sustainability risk in freight shipping based on the theory of planned behavior with temporal analysis," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    6. Rodríguez-Espíndola, Oscar & Cuevas-Romo, Ana & Chowdhury, Soumyadeb & Díaz-Acevedo, Natalie & Albores, Pavel & Despoudi, Stella & Malesios, Chrisovalantis & Dey, Prasanta, 2022. "The role of circular economy principles and sustainable-oriented innovation to enhance social, economic and environmental performance: Evidence from Mexican SMEs," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 248(C).
    7. Schoenherr, Tobias, 2012. "The role of environmental management in sustainable business development: A multi-country investigation," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(1), pages 116-128.
    8. Govindan, Kannan, 2018. "Sustainable consumption and production in the food supply chain: A conceptual framework," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C), pages 419-431.
    9. Mani, Venkatesh & Gunasekaran, Angappa, 2018. "Four forces of supply chain social sustainability adoption in emerging economies," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 150-161.
    10. Bag, Surajit & Gupta, Shivam & Kumar, Sameer, 2021. "Industry 4.0 adoption and 10R advance manufacturing capabilities for sustainable development," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    11. Govindan, Kannan, 2024. "Unlocking the potential of quality as a core marketing strategy in remanufactured circular products: A machine learning enabled multi-theoretical perspective," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 269(C).
    12. Venugopal Gopalakrishna‐Remani & Kyung‐Ah ( Kay) Byun & D. Harold Doty, 2022. "The impact of employees' perceptions about top management engagement on sustainability development efforts and firm performance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(7), pages 2964-2977, November.
    13. Rahman, Muhammad Sabbir & Bag, Surajit & Gupta, Shivam & Sivarajah, Uthayasankar, 2023. "Technology readiness of B2B firms and AI-based customer relationship management capability for enhancing social sustainability performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    14. Craig Shepherd & Hannes Günter, 2006. "Measuring supply chain performance: current research and future directions," International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 55(3/4), pages 242-258, April.
    15. Shivam Gupta & Régis Meissonier & Vinayak Drave & David Roubaud, 2020. "Examining the impact of Cloud ERP on sustainable performance: A dynamic capability view," Post-Print hal-02914021, HAL.
    16. Behl, Abhishek & Gaur, Jighyasu & Pereira, Vijay & Yadav, Rambalak & Laker, Benjamin, 2022. "Role of big data analytics capabilities to improve sustainable competitive advantage of MSME service firms during COVID-19 – A multi-theoretical approach," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 378-389.
    17. Thomas Johnsen & Joe Miemczyk & Mickey Howard, 2017. "A systematic literature review of sustainable purchasing and supply research: Theoretical perspectives and opportunities for IMP-based research," Post-Print hal-01290917, HAL.
    18. Bag, Surajit & Rahman, Muhammad Sabbir & Srivastava, Gautam & Shore, Adam & Ram, Pratibha, 2023. "Examining the role of virtue ethics and big data in enhancing viable, sustainable, and digital supply chain performance," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 186(PB).
    19. Grimm, Jörg H. & Hofstetter, Joerg S. & Sarkis, Joseph, 2014. "Critical factors for sub-supplier management: A sustainable food supply chains perspective," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 159-173.
    20. Yongxin Liao & Fernando Deschamps & Eduardo de Freitas Rocha Loures & Luiz Felipe Pierin Ramos, 2017. "Past, present and future of Industry 4.0 - a systematic literature review and research agenda proposal," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(12), pages 3609-3629, June.
    21. Sarkis, Joseph & Zhu, Qinghua & Lai, Kee-hung, 2011. "An organizational theoretic review of green supply chain management literature," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(1), pages 1-15, March.
    22. Siems, Erik & Land, Anna & Seuring, Stefan, 2021. "Dynamic capabilities in sustainable supply chain management: An inter-temporal comparison of the food and automotive industries," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 236(C).
    23. Esfahbodi, Ali & Zhang, Yufeng & Watson, Glyn, 2016. "Sustainable supply chain management in emerging economies: Trade-offs between environmental and cost performance," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 181(PB), pages 350-366.
    24. Frank Montabon & Mark Pagell & Zhaohui Wu, 2016. "Making Sustainability Sustainable," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 52(2), pages 11-27, April.
    25. Gupta, Shivam & Meissonier, Régis & Drave, Vinayak A. & Roubaud, David, 2020. "Examining the impact of Cloud ERP on sustainable performance: A dynamic capability view," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    26. Scott E. Masten & Stéphane Saussier, 2000. "Econometrics of Contracts : an Assessment of Developments in the Empirical Literature on Contracting," Revue d'Économie Industrielle, Programme National Persée, vol. 92(1), pages 215-236.
    27. Jinxia Jiao & ChenGuang Liu & Yan Xu, 2020. "Effects of stakeholder pressure, managerial perceptions, and resource availability on sustainable operations adoption," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(8), pages 3246-3260, December.
    28. Charl de Villiers & Pei‐Chi Kelly Hsiao, 2018. "A review of accounting research in Australasia," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 58(4), pages 993-1026, December.
    29. Yuen, Kum Fai & Li, Kevin X. & Xu, Gangyan & Wang, Xueqin & Wong, Yiik Diew, 2019. "A taxonomy of resources for sustainable shipping management: Their interrelationships and effects on business performance," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 316-332.
    30. Mani, Venkatesh & Jabbour, Charbel Jose Chiappetta & Mani, Kavitha T.N., 2020. "Supply chain social sustainability in small and medium manufacturing enterprises and firms’ performance: Empirical evidence from an emerging Asian economy," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 227(C).
    31. Gupta, Shivam & Chen, Haozhe & Hazen, Benjamin T. & Kaur, Sarabjot & Santibañez Gonzalez, Ernesto D.R., 2019. "Circular economy and big data analytics: A stakeholder perspective," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 466-474.
    32. Kannan, Devika, 2018. "Role of multiple stakeholders and the critical success factor theory for the sustainable supplier selection process," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C), pages 391-418.
    33. K. T. Shibin & Rameshwar Dubey & Angappa Gunasekaran & Benjamin Hazen & David Roubaud & Shivam Gupta & Cyril Foropon, 2020. "Examining sustainable supply chain management of SMEs using resource based view and institutional theory," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 290(1), pages 301-326, July.
    34. Dunaiski, Marcel & Geldenhuys, Jaco & Visser, Willem, 2019. "On the interplay between normalisation, bias, and performance of paper impact metrics," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 13(1), pages 270-290.
    35. Kannan, Devika, 2021. "Sustainable procurement drivers for extended multi-tier context: A multi-theoretical perspective in the Danish supply chain," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    36. Bambang Tjahjadi & Noorlailie Soewarno & Tsanya El Karima & Annisa Ayu Putri Sutarsa, 2023. "Socially friendly business strategy and social sustainability performance: roles of spiritual capital and social management process," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 20(4), pages 804-824, September.
    37. Karaosman, Hakan & Perry, Patsy & Brun, Alessandro & Morales-Alonso, Gustavo, 2020. "Behind the runway: Extending sustainability in luxury fashion supply chains," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 652-663.
    38. Kannan Govindan & Mia Hasanagic, 2018. "A systematic review on drivers, barriers, and practices towards circular economy: a supply chain perspective," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(1-2), pages 278-311, January.
    39. Glover, J.L. & Champion, D. & Daniels, K.J. & Dainty, A.J.D., 2014. "An Institutional Theory perspective on sustainable practices across the dairy supply chain," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 102-111.
    40. Sachin S. Kamble & Angappa Gunasekaran & Nachiappan Subramanian & Abhijeet Ghadge & Amine Belhadi & Mani Venkatesh, 2023. "Blockchain technology’s impact on supply chain integration and sustainable supply chain performance: evidence from the automotive industry," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 327(1), pages 575-600, August.
    41. Flavio Tonelli & Steve Evans & Paolo Taticchi, 2013. "Industrial sustainability: challenges, perspectives, actions," International Journal of Business Innovation and Research, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 7(2), pages 143-163.
    42. Julia Wolf, 2014. "The Relationship Between Sustainable Supply Chain Management, Stakeholder Pressure and Corporate Sustainability Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 119(3), pages 317-328, February.
    43. Gideon D. Markman & Daniel Krause, 2016. "Theory Building Surrounding Sustainable Supply Chain Management: Assessing What We Know, Exploring Where to Go," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 52(2), pages 3-10, April.
    44. Wael Hassan El-Garaihy & Tamer Farag & Khalid Al Shehri & Piera Centobelli & Roberto Cerchione, 2022. "Driving sustainability in supply chain management for a more inclusive and responsible future," International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 73(1), pages 43-84, October.
    45. Lee Matthews & Damien Power & Anne Touboulic & Leonardo Marques, 2016. "Building Bridges: Toward Alternative Theory of Sustainable Supply Chain Management," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 52(1), pages 82-94, January.
    46. David Roubaud & Rameshwar Dubey & Cyril Foropon & Angappa Gunasekaran & Stephen J. Childe & Zongwei Luo & Fosso Wamba Samuel, 2018. "Examining the role of big data and predictive analytics on collaborative performance in context to sustainable consumption and production behaviour," Post-Print hal-02051276, HAL.
    47. Xu, Song & Govindan, Kannan & Wang, Wanru & Yang, Wenting, 2024. "Supply chain management under cap-and-trade regulation: A literature review and research opportunities," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 271(C).
    48. Mohammad Alghababsheh & David Gallear, 2021. "Socially Sustainable Supply Chain Management and Suppliers’ Social Performance: The Role of Social Capital," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 173(4), pages 855-875, November.
    49. Yousaf Ali & Ahsan Younus & Amin Ullah Khan & Hamza Pervez, 2020. "Impact of Lean, Six Sigma and environmental sustainability on the performance of SMEs," International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 70(8), pages 2294-2318, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Else, Tim & Choudhary, Sonal & Genovese, Andrea, 2022. "Uncovering sustainability storylines from dairy supply chain discourse," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 858-874.
    2. Fritz, Morgane MC & Ruel, Salomée & Kallmuenzer, Andreas & Harms, Rainer, 2021. "Sustainability management in supply chains: the role of familiness," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    3. Siems, Erik & Land, Anna & Seuring, Stefan, 2021. "Dynamic capabilities in sustainable supply chain management: An inter-temporal comparison of the food and automotive industries," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 236(C).
    4. Jamalnia, Aboozar & Gong, Yu & Govindan, Kannan, 2023. "Sub-supplier's sustainability management in multi-tier supply chains: A systematic literature review on the contingency variables, and a conceptual framework," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    5. Geyi, Dan’Asabe Godwin & Yusuf, Yahaya & Menhat, Masha S. & Abubakar, Tijjani & Ogbuke, Nnamdi J., 2020. "Agile capabilities as necessary conditions for maximising sustainable supply chain performance: An empirical investigation," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).
    6. Mangla, Sachin Kumar & Luthra, Sunil & Rich, Nick & Kumar, Divesh & Rana, Nripendra P. & Dwivedi, Yogesh K., 2018. "Enablers to implement sustainable initiatives in agri-food supply chains," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 379-393.
    7. Rebeca B. Sánchez-Flores & Samantha E. Cruz-Sotelo & Sara Ojeda-Benitez & Ma. Elizabeth Ramírez-Barreto, 2020. "Sustainable Supply Chain Management—A Literature Review on Emerging Economies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-27, August.
    8. Kannan, Devika, 2021. "Sustainable procurement drivers for extended multi-tier context: A multi-theoretical perspective in the Danish supply chain," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    9. Jamshed Raza & Yuxin Liu & Jianwei Zhang & Nan Zhu & Zohaib Hassan & Habib Gul & Sikander Hussain, 2021. "Sustainable Supply Management Practices and Sustainability Performance: The Dynamic Capability Perspective," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440211, March.
    10. Min Zhou & Xianyi Long & Kannan Govindan, 2024. "Unveiling the value of institutional pressure in socially sustainable supply chain management: The role of top management support for social initiatives and organisational culture," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(4), pages 2629-2648, July.
    11. Philipp Sauer & Stefan Seuring, 2018. "A three-dimensional framework for multi-tier sustainable supply chain management," Post-Print hal-03926114, HAL.
    12. Ardian Qorri & Saranda Gashi & Andrzej Kraslawski, 2021. "Performance outcomes of supply chain practices for sustainable development: A meta‐analysis of moderators," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 194-216, January.
    13. Karaosman, Hakan & Perry, Patsy & Brun, Alessandro & Morales-Alonso, Gustavo, 2020. "Behind the runway: Extending sustainability in luxury fashion supply chains," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 652-663.
    14. Erik Siems & Stefan Seuring & Lara Schilling, 2023. "Stakeholder roles in sustainable supply chain management: a literature review," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 93(4), pages 747-775, May.
    15. Mejías, Ana M. & Bellas, Roberto & Pardo, Juan E. & Paz, Enrique, 2019. "Traceability management systems and capacity building as new approaches for improving sustainability in the fashion multi-tier supply chain," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 143-158.
    16. Xiongyong Zhou & Zhiduan Xu, 2018. "An Integrated Sustainable Supplier Selection Approach Based on Hybrid Information Aggregation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-49, July.
    17. Govindan, Kannan, 2023. "How digitalization transforms the traditional circular economy to a smart circular economy for achieving SDGs and net zero," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    18. Esfahbodi, Ali & Zhang, Yufeng & Liu, Yang & Geng, Duanyang, 2023. "The fallacy of profitable green supply chains: The role of green information systems (GIS) in attenuating the sustainability trade-offs," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    19. Iain J. Fraser & Martin Müller & Julia Schwarzkopf, 2020. "Transparency for Multi-Tier Sustainable Supply Chain Management: A Case Study of a Multi-tier Transparency Approach for SSCM in the Automotive Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-24, February.
    20. Fosso Wamba, Samuel & Queiroz, Maciel M. & Trinchera, Laura, 2024. "The role of artificial intelligence-enabled dynamic capability on environmental performance: The mediation effect of a data-driven culture in France and the USA," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 268(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:transe:v:189:y:2024:i:c:s136655452400276x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600244/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.