A systematic review and future directions of the sharing economy: business models, operational insights and environment-based utilities

With the emergence of a series of physical sharing platforms such as Uber and Airbnb, the business model of the sharing economy (SE) is rapidly developing globally. Existing research on the sharing economy mainly involves three main aspects: the connotation of the sharing economy, the business model of the sharing economy, and the impact of the sharing economy. We begin by introducing the reasons why the sharing economy is booming and why customers from different positions participate in the sharing economy. Then we summarize the basic mechanisms of the consumer-to-consumer (C2C) and business-to-consumer (B2C) aspects of the sharing economy. Regarding the main causes of the sharing economy, we specifically focus on the impacts of the sharing economy on the environment, i.e., whether sharing economy is eco-friendly to the society. We consider product life cycle assessment (LCA) technology as one of the frontiers and key technologies in the fields of green design and green manufacturing. Furthermore, combined with the impact of COVID-19 on the sharing economy and the actual problems in real life, we present the future development directions of the sharing economy.