Grey weighted influence non-linear gauge systems (WINGS) for evaluating consumption barriers of refurbished mobile phones for a circular economy

Due to the global problem of electronic wastes (e-wastes), the concept of a circular economy is deemed a viable framework for achieving minimal resource extraction and waste generation. Despite the advances in the literature on managing the circularity of e-wastes, the consumption aspect needs much attention. Although some barriers to the consumption of recovered e-wastes, such as refurbished mobile phones, were already identified, an overarching evaluation of these barriers remains a gap. Thus, this work evaluates these relevant barriers by considering their internal strengths (or priorities) and the intertwined relationships between them under uncertainty. In achieving this agenda, three phases of the methodology were implemented: (1) performing a systematic literature review of the barriers, (2) finalizing the list of barriers following a focus group discussion, and (3) evaluating the barriers using a soft system model. The intricacies of the evaluation process prompt the development of a proposed integration of grey system theory and the weighted influence non-linear gauge systems (WINGS), coined grey WINGS. Findings from a case study in the Philippines reveal that negative perception, inferior quality, the misconception of the refurbishment concept, technological obsolescence, and lack of awareness are the critical barriers to the consumption of refurbished mobile phones. Discussions behind these barriers in view of consumer decisions were offered. Also, some policy insights were outlined to overcome these barriers. In effect, this work contributes twofold to the literature: (1) evaluating the barriers to the consumption of refurbished mobile phones to help design circularity initiatives, and (2) methodologically, integrating grey system theory within the framework of the WINGS method to address uncertainty in judgment elicitations.