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In an ever-evolving international market, knowing where things come from is becoming increasingly difficult. With over USD 19 Trillion worth of merchandise traded worldwide in 2019 (World Trade Organisation, 2020) it is no wonder that consumers are increasingly interested in the characteristics of the products they purchase, and that producers seek to obtain a greater competitive advantage in connecting with consumers. Technological advancements, like blockchain technology, provide new opportunities for brands to foster their relationships with consumers but also create new challenges (Scholz & Duffy, 2018). Since its introduction in a 2008 paper published under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto (Manglekar & Dinesha, 2018), blockchain technology has captured both scholars and industry experts’ attention. Blockchain technology has diversified beyond its original cryptocurrency applications to include smart contracts, and applications in government, health, science, arts, and culture (Swan, 2015). While blockchain applications beyond cryptocurrency remain scarce (Angelis & Ribeiro da Silva, 2019; Ghose, 2018; Halaburda, 2018; Morkunas et al., 2019), this technology can increase traceability across agri-food supply chains and provide more transparency to consumers. Enthusiasts claim that blockchain technology has the potential to change the way consumers interact with brands and products (Mattila, 2016; Tapscott & Tapscott, 2017). A blockchain is composed of a series of transaction records called blocks, each verified within a peer-to-peer network. For each transaction, a time-stamped copy of the information recorded is propagated to and stored by all users (peers) registered within the network. To tamper with the information, one would have to modify all existing peers simultaneously, making the information virtually unfalsifiable (Basden & Cottrell, 2017). The information stored within the blockchain can be populated by the organisation manually at each stage of the production or by using “smart” contracts; these contracts can self-execute a set of provisions previously agreed upon by all parties when a triggering event occurs. For example, an agreement between a booking site and an airline can be executed autonomously once the agreed event, a ticket purchase, occurs (Crosby et al., 2016; Kosba et al., 2016). Globalisation has heightened consumer concerns regarding the authenticity of a range of product qualities and claims. These concerns over authenticity, safety, environmental credentials, social credentials, and production impacts are creating a need and demand for increased traceability and transparency. Over the past decade, a series of meat scandals in Europe (e.g., 2013 horse meat scandal, 2008 Irish pork crisis) has highlighted the importance of meat safety and quality regulations for consumers. Pardo et al. (2016) also emphasize that companies must acknowledge that today’s consumers have become a lot more sophisticated and knowledgeable about the products they purchase (Sander et al., 2018). In response to consumer concerns, organisations have started leveraging innovations to store product information securely, using decentralised digital databases including blockchain applications. Prior research has begun to provide insight into how blockchain technology affects existing business models and organisational functioning in various industries, including online retailers, healthcare, hospitality, governmental services, etc. (Casino et al., 2019; A. Hughes et al., 2019; Morkunas et al., 2019), highlighting blockchain applications’ capacity to create transparent communication with consumers. Similarly, there is a wealth of literature that has also focussed on the potential of blockchain and its applications throughout the world of trade and commerce (Antonucci et al., 2019; Danese et al., 2021; Kamilaris et al., 2019; Montecchi et al., 2019; Morkunas et al., 2019; Tiscini et al., 2020; Toohey, 2021; Y. Wang, Singgih, et al., 2019; Zhao et al., 2019). However, there have been few scholarly studies to date focussing solely on consumer perceptions of blockchain technologies and the influence of consumer trust. This paper aims to offer a comprehensive review of empirical evidence on the influence of blockchain applications on consumer trust. Blockchain technology has been said to facilitate value exchanges without third-party intervention (De Filippi, 2017). This technology’s primary purpose is to reduce the need for third-party trust and provide tamper-proof traceability in the international marketplace. Despite being branded a “trustless” or “trust-free” technology (Beck et al., 2016; Hawlitschek et al., 2018), understanding consumers’ trust in the technology is essential for technology adoption and applications, and for consumers to ultimately trust the products that they purchase. Through our systematic review, we sought to elucidate consumer trust in blockchain applications by examining four key elements linked to trust in blockchain technologies, namely, experience, attitude, behavioural intention, and trust. |
