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Methodological Perspective for Assessing European Consumers’ Awareness of Cybersecurity and Sustainability in E-Commerce

Author

Listed:
  • Idiano D’Adamo

    (Department of Computer, Control and Management Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Ariosto 25, 00185 Rome, Italy)

  • Rocío González-Sánchez

    (Department of Business Administration (ADO), Applied Economics II and Fundamentals of Economic Analysis, Rey Juan Carlos University, 28032 Madrid, Spain)

  • Maria Sonia Medina-Salgado

    (Department of Business Administration (ADO), Applied Economics II and Fundamentals of Economic Analysis, Rey Juan Carlos University, 28032 Madrid, Spain)

  • Davide Settembre-Blundo

    (Department of Business Administration (ADO), Applied Economics II and Fundamentals of Economic Analysis, Rey Juan Carlos University, 28032 Madrid, Spain)

Abstract

The increasing European consumer awareness of cybersecurity and sustainability issues in e-commerce is raising key methodological concerns. In a field like this, still unexplored by scholars, it is crucial to identify reliable data as well as to choose the modalities of combining primary and secondary data. As the robustness of the outcome of a study on a complex issue is highly sensitive to the quality of the data used, this paper is a communication that aims to complement and support previously published empirical research. This communication describes the methodological path to collect, integrate, and process data from different sources to interpret European consumers’ attitudes towards cybersecurity and sustainability during e-commerce. In fact, COVID-19 has driven many users to shop online, raising concerns especially about the security of digital transactions. Scientific studies analyzing these effects are still lacking in the literature and therefore this paper aims to fill this gap. The limits of a rigid dataset such as Eurostat’s are overcome by integrating the results of European citizens’ behavior during online purchases, with a survey that involved some experts appropriately selected by the research team. The combination of primary and secondary sources of data and the application of a hybrid methodological approach using MCDA (multi-criteria decision analysis) and a Likert scale allowed new information that fills some gaps in the literature to be extracted from the data. How European citizens correlate e-commerce with cybersecurity and sustainability emerged, thus providing important insights for decision-makers.

Suggested Citation

  • Idiano D’Adamo & Rocío González-Sánchez & Maria Sonia Medina-Salgado & Davide Settembre-Blundo, 2021. "Methodological Perspective for Assessing European Consumers’ Awareness of Cybersecurity and Sustainability in E-Commerce," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-10, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:20:p:11343-:d:655815
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Cristina Burlacioiu, 2022. "Online Commerce Pattern in European Union Countries between 2019 and 2020," Societies, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-15, December.
    2. Jose Alejandro Cano & Abraham Londoño-Pineda & Maria Fanny Castro & Hugo Bécquer Paz & Carolina Rodas & Tatiana Arias, 2022. "A Bibliometric Analysis and Systematic Review on E-Marketplaces, Open Innovation, and Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-42, May.

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