Examining the influence of sustainable value co-creation on social entrepreneurship through an integrated fuzzy multi-layer decision-making framework

Sustainable value co-creation (SVCC) is designed to collaboratively develop long-term, innovative solutions with and for end-users, ensuring enhanced services for society. Simultaneously, social entrepreneurship (SE) has emerged as a highly significant research field for businesses and scholars, particularly in the areas of sustainability and value co-creation. This research, therefore, focused on exploring the influence of SVCC strategies on SE from the viewpoint of entrepreneurs. Therefore, qualitative and quantitative research methods were employed. First, a systematic literature review and thematic analysis identified 35 SE indicators and 13 SVCC strategies. Second, a multi-layer decision-making approach in an uncertain environment was taken to (i) screen and select, via Fuzzy Delphi, the 10 most significant indicators of SE from entrepreneurs’ perspectives; (ii) calculate the relative importance of each finalised indicator and determine the causal relations amongst indicators by mixed fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) and Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL); and (iii) classify the SVCC strategies based on their influence on SE indicators according to the scores derived from FCM-DEMATEL. The cause–effect relationships among these indicators were analysed, and their weights were assessed. ‘Trust’, ‘people management’ and ‘responsibility’ emerged as the most important indicators.