Food waste is emerging as a global issue and has been recognised in the Sustainable Development Goals with a specific target to halve per capita global food waste at consumer levels and reduce food losses by 2030. Research on food waste has been neglected particularly in the aviation sector. The International Air Transport Association reported that 5.7 million tonnes of cabin waste was generated on airlines, up to 80.5% of which was leftover food and beverages. The exploration of passengers’ food wasting aims to provide insights for tackling the airline food waste problem. To address this issue, this research investigated the in-flight catering experience of 19 passengers from 21 full-service flights. Qualitative research techniques have been applied to analyse passengers’ food-wasting behaviour by collecting participant-produced photographs and completed questionnaires concerning food-related behaviour. This research identified key factors associated with passengers’ food wasting behaviour by adopting Design for Sustainable Behaviour approaches. Four types of factors were found to influence onboard passenger waste, these were normative, habitual, intentional and situational factors. This research indicates that behavioural change interventions need to incorporate the power of social norms to prevent food waste.

The COVID-19 lockdowns led to significant resource constraints, potentially impacting mental health and decision-making behaviors. Understanding the psychological and behavioral consequences could inform designing interventions to mitigate the negative impacts of episodic scarcity during crises like pandemics. To investigate the effects of perceived scarcity on mental health (stress and fear), cognitive functioning, time and risk preferences (present bias and risk aversion), and trade-offs between groceries, health, and temptation goods during and after the COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai. A quasi-natural experiment was conducted in Shanghai during and after the COVID-19 lockdown. Web-based surveys were administered in May 2022 (during lockdown) and September 2022 (post-lockdown). Propensity score matching was used to balance demographic factors between the groups (During: n=332; After: n=339). Data were analyzed using regression analyses, controlling for potential confounders and applying propensity score matching weights. Perceived scarcity was significantly higher during the lockdown (mean 7.97 (SD 2.1)) than after (mean 4.35 (SD 2.27); P<.001). Higher perceived scarcity was associated with increased stress levels both during (standardized β coefficient=.62, P<.001) and after the lockdown (standardized β coefficient=.65, P<.001). Perceived scarcity also predicted greater fear of COVID-19 after lockdown (standardized β coefficient =.38, P<.001), though not during lockdown. Cognitive functioning remained stable, possibly due to a ceiling effect from high education levels. Monetary risk aversion increased under prolonged scarcity during lockdown (scarcity×during-lockdown interaction standardized β coefficient=4.68, P<.001). Present bias (tendency to choose immediate rewards) showed no significant overall change between groups, in line with recent evidence of stable time preferences during the pandemic. During lockdown, participants allocated more budget to groceries (standardized β coefficient=.67, P=.01) and less to health items (standardized β coefficient=-.61, P=.02), compared to post-lockdown, reflecting shifted priorities on pressing needs under scarcity. Subgroup analyses indicated stratified heterogeneity. Women increased their grocery spending (standardized β coefficient =.16, P=.04) and reduced spending on health items (standardized β coefficient = -.15, P=.05). Lower education participants exhibited more risk-averse attitudes (standardized β coefficient =.80, P=.01) under scarcity, whereas age and income did not significantly moderate these effects. The study highlights that perceived scarcity during lockdown intensified stress and altered decision-making behaviors, including increased monetary risk aversion and shifts in spending priorities. Theoretically, this study advances the understanding of perceived scarcity by exploring its domain-specific effects on mental health and decision-making. Practically, these findings emphasize the need for public health strategies that mitigate the psychological impact of scarcity during crises, ensure access to essential goods, and support adaptive decision-making behaviors.

BACKGROUND The COVID-19 lockdowns led to significant resource constraints, potentially impacting mental health and decision-making behaviors. Understanding the psychological and behavioral consequences could inform designing interventions to mitigate the negative impacts of episodic scarcity during crises like pandemics. OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of perceived scarcity on mental health (stress and fear), cognitive functioning, time and risk preferences (present bias and risk aversion), and trade-offs between groceries, health, and temptation goods during and after the COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai. METHODS A quasi-natural experiment was conducted in Shanghai during and after the COVID-19 lockdown. Online surveys were administered in May 2022 (during lockdown) and September 2022 (post-lockdown). Propensity Score Matching (PSM) was used to balance demographic factors between the groups (During: n=332; After: n=339). Data were analyzed using regression analyses, controlling for potential confounders. RESULTS Perceived scarcity was significantly higher during the lockdown (mean=7.97) than after (mean=4.35; P<.001). Higher perceived scarcity was associated with increased stress levels both during (β=0.62, P<.001) and after the lockdown (β=0.65, P<.001). While cognitive functioning remained stable, possibly due to a ceiling effect from high education levels, monetary risk aversion increased under prolonged scarcity during lockdown (interaction β=4.68, P<.001). During lockdown, participants allocated more budget to groceries (β=0.67, P=.01) and less to health items (β=-0.61, P=.02). CONCLUSIONS The study highlights that perceived scarcity during lockdown intensified stress and altered decision-making behaviors, including increased monetary risk aversion and shifts in spending priorities. Theoretically, this study advances the understanding of perceived scarcity by exploring its domain-specific effects on mental health and decision-making. Practically, these findings emphasize the need for public health strategies that mitigate the psychological impact of scarcity during crises, ensure access to essential goods, and support adaptive decision-making behaviors.

This research aims to study the passenger's sustainable attitudes, in-flight catering behaviour, and to develop a persuasive model for behaviour change. Current studies towards the in-flight catering waste are primarily focused on dealing the recyclable materials such as cupboard, newspaper and food packaging. In a survey of 624 respondents, the environmental attitude was a poor predictor of environmental behaviour. The survey data were used to develop the persuasive model based on Persuasive Technology. Four phases of the in-flight catering are based on data from the passenger survey. In-flight touchpoints performed with persuasive function is proposed to raise awareness of food waste classification onboard. This study illustrates how persuasive strategies can change the passenger's food-wasting behaviour.